Barriers to Women in Academia: The Case of Moroccan University Female Professors

Abstract

This paper aims to enhance our understanding of the challenges women in academia face in their pursuit of research, with a particular focus on the Moroccan context. Using in-depth interviews with female Moroccan university teachers, we explore personal narratives to highlight the perceived barriers to women’s academic advancement. The results showed that family related factors and financial constraints were the most commonly mentioned obstacles that hinder women’s aspiration and/or time to conduct scientific research and attend international conferences and academic workshops. Implications of these findings suggest creating a gender-friendly work environment and providing specific incentives that could help female academics in their quest for research.