Women in Biomedical Careers

The NIH Working Group on Women in Biomedical Careers is a trans-NIH effort to consider barriers for women in science and to develop innovative strategies to promote entry, recruitment, retention, and sustained advancement of women in biomedical and research careers. Under the leadership of NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins and Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH) Director Dr. Janine Clayton, the Working Group collaborates with the NIH Institutes and Centers to promote tangible changes to institutional policies in the NIH intramural and extramural communities.

The Working Group was originally established in January 2007, by then NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D., in response to the 2006 National Academies report Beyond Bias and Barriers: Fulfilling the Potential of Women in Academic Science and Engineering. The report found that women face institutional and environmental barriers to advancement at all career stages and called for broad, innovative action from universities, professional societies, and government funding agencies. The NIH Working Group on Women in Biomedical Careers includes NIH Deputy Directors and Office of the Director (OD) senior staff, Institute and Center (IC) Directors, and other representatives of NIH intramural and extramural staff. Five years after its inception, the Working Group continues to work towards even greater accomplishments, recognizing that sustaining advancement of women in biomedical careers will require persistent attention.

The Working Group has sponsored national workshops on mentoring women in biomedical careers and best practices for sustaining career success. The recommendations generated at these workshops have been incorporated into the recent activities of the Working Group. Other accomplishments include:

For more information about activities and accomplishments of the Working Group, download our flyer (PDF Document, 2 pages).

 

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This page last updated: September 26. 2012
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