AAS Committee on the Status of Women Issue of September 21, 2012 eds. Caroline Simpson, Michele Montgomery, Daryl Haggard, & Nick Murphy This week's issues: 1. Parental Leave Wiki on AstroBetter 2. The Name Game 3. The Subtle `Stereotype Threat' That May Be Driving Women Out of Science-Related Fields 4. Online Mentors to Guide Women Into the Sciences 5. Planning Career Paths for Ph.D.s 6. Job Opportunities 7. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter 8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter 9. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Parental Leave Wiki on AstroBetter From: Nick Murphy via womeninastronomy.blogspot.com Last year, our colleagues at AstroBetter provided wiki space to catalog parental leave policies at astronomical institutions: http://www.astrobetter.com/wiki/tiki-index.php?page=Leave+Policies The goals of this wiki are: (1) to allow astronomers at different career stages to easily compare parental leave policies, and (2) to encourage institutions to enact better parental leave policies by showing how they compare with peer institutions. To read more, please see http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. The Name Game From: Nicolle Zellner via womeninastronomy.blogspot.com Ms., Mrs., Mr., Doctor, Professor... what do your students call you? As we start the new school year and I teach a new crop of first-year students at a liberal arts (LA) college, I'm again faced with a big decision - how should I have my students address me? I'm proud of the work I did in graduate school and my position at my college. We all worked hard to earn our PhDs - blood, sweat, tears, sacrifices...you know the story. Surely, asking the students to call me "Dr." or "Professor" is appropriate, right? To read more, please see http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. The Subtle `Stereotype Threat' That May Be Driving Women Out of Science-Related Fields According to new research into the glaring gender gap in science and math-related fields, the psychological phenomenon known as the "stereotype threat" may be discouraging female scientists from relishing their work, which sucks because without more women entering the scientific workforce, America is probably going to soon become a nation of cave-dwelling primates that believe thunder is just God's giant cosmic dog thumping against celestial floorboards in an effort to scratch behind its ear. Or some such non-scientific wackiness. To read more, please see http://jezebel.com/5925704/the-subtle-stereotype-threat-that-may- be-driving-women-out-of-science+related-fields or http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Online Mentors to Guide Women Into the Sciences From: Joan Schmelz [jschmelz_at_memphis.edu] Hundreds of prominent women working in science, technology, engineering and math will become online mentors for college students next month, part of a six-week program to encourage young women to pursue careers in STEM fields. "I think of this as a MOOC - a massive open online course - and a big mentor-fest," said Maria Klawe, the president of Harvey Mudd College and a sponsor of the project. "Getting more women into STEM is my passion in life, and every institution thats set up mentorship programs for young women has been successful at increasing their numbers, so I think this can make a real difference." To read more, please see http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/17/education/online-mentoring-program-to- encourage-women-in-sciences.html?emc=eta1&_r=1 or http://womeninastronomy.blogspot.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. Planning Career Paths for Ph.D.s From: Nancy Brickhouse [nbrickhouse_at_cfa.harvard.edu] The 7 Sept 2012 issue of Science has an editorial on "Planning Career Paths for Ph.D.s" by Jim Austin and Bruce Alberts: http://www.sciencemag.org/content/337/6099/1149.full A free web application is now available for the purpose of long-career planning, starting at the postdoctoral level: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org While originally directed toward the biomedical field, this application is also pertinent to astronomers. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. Job Opportunities * CIERA Postdoctoral Fellowship, Northwestern University, Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics http://ciera.northwestern.edu/Research/fellowships.php#ciera * Lindheimer Postdoctoral Fellowship, Northwestern University, Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics http://ciera.northwestern.edu/Research/fellowships.php#lindheimer * Postdoctoral Positions in Astronomy and Astrophysics, Northwestern University, Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics http://ciera.northwestern.edu/Research/fellowships.php#astronomy * Employment Opportunities at Gemini Observatory (http://www.gemini.edu/jobs) -Adaptive Optics Scientist: http://www.gemini.edu/jobs#138 -Intern, Hilo, Hawaii: http://www.gemini.edu/jobs#144 -Science Operations Specialists, La Serena, Chile: http://www.gemini.edu/jobs#132 -Science Operation Specialist, Hilo, Hawaii: http://www.gemini.edu/jobs#112 -Data Process Developer, Hilo, Hawaii: http://www.gemini.edu/jobs#41 * Education Support Scientist, Sonoma State University, Rohnert Park, CA, http://www.sonoma.edu - go to Jobs - then External Applications - then Position 103489 [This should say, go to Jobs - then Job Opportunities - then External Applications - then Position 103489 - Webmaster] * NAASC Postdoctoral Fellow, NRAO, Charlottesville, VA https://careers.nrao.edu/applicants/Central?quickFind=50837 Job seekers are encouraged to check the WIPHYS newsletter for additional postings: http://lists.apsmsgs.org/read/?forum=wiphys ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send an email to aaswomen_at_aas.org All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address. When submitting a job posting for inclusion in the newsletter, please include a one-line description and a link to the full job posting. Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter Join AAS Women List by email: Send email to aaswlist+subscribe_at_aas.org from the address you want to have subscribed. You can leave the subject and message blank if you like. Be sure to follow the instructions in the confirmation email. (Just reply back to the email list) To unsubscribe by email: Send email to aawlist+unsubscribe_at_aas.org from the address you want to have UNsubscribed. You can leave the subject and message blank if you like. To join or leave AASWomen via web, or change your membership settings: https://groups.google.com/a/aas.org/group/aaswlist/ You will have to create a Google Account if you do not already have one, using https://accounts.google.com/newaccount?hl=en Google Groups Subscribe Help: http://support.google.com/groups/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=46606 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 9. Access to Past Issues http://www.aas.org/cswa/AASWOMEN.html Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered. --