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SUSTAIN Visual HIGHLIGHTS of an independent evaluation for our programme SUPPORTING woMEN IN RESEARCH

The Academy's SUSTAIN programme takes women in their first independent research positions, selected at random from different institutions across the breath of scientific research, and gives them a year of support within a cohort of peers. Its new evaluation has just been published in February 2022.

Over 90% of participants in our SUSTAIN programme for women in research said it was helping them thrive as independent researchers.

Neuroscientist Dr Gemma Modinos:

“Finding the tailored space of SUSTAIN was extremely beneficial for me. It gave me a community: we inspire and empower each other.

“I was told I couldn’t apply for a promotion because I was on a research rather than an academic contract. Our SUSTAIN workshop on negotiation gave me the tools to challenge this and pursue what I thought was right. I went back to talk with my institution, I applied, I got promoted – and now there is a pathway to promotion for future people on research contracts too.”

Since finishing SUSTAIN, Gemma has been elected Chair of the Young Academy of Europe, and become the first woman to win the Schizophrenia International Research Society's Rising Star award.

CONFIDENCE

85% of participants said our SUSTAIN programme helped by “making me more confident of my capacity for leadership”.

Over a third of women independently chose to highlight confidence as a key programme benefit in free text replies.

Two participants explicitly connected recent promotions to the self-confidence they gained from SUSTAIN.

Dr Helen Stagg, who now chairs a national infectious disease network, summed it up as:

“confidence and community = opportunities = action = success”

Dr Rachel Lowe, Associate Professor modelling infectious diseases at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine:

“I joined my institution with a fellowship and a nine-month baby, with no students or post-docs.

“Within three years I had a group with two post-docs, five PhD students, two Masters students and three visiting scientists. This led me to secure a Research Professorship from the Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA) to lead the Global Health Resilience Team at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center.

“I have been more successful than I could have imagined.”

See Rachel's work using supercomputers to tackle the spread of infectious diseases linked to climate change in her video below:

COMMUNITY

Through survey free text and interviews, participants highlighted enduring friendships and support.

Dr Li Chan (an endocrinologist), Dr Sandra McAllister (a plastic surgeon), Dr Soma Meran (a consultant and kidney researcher, pictured centre) and Dr Zania Stamataki (an immunologist) asked to be interviewed for the evaluation together.

“There are not many forums where we could have got together, coming from different backgrounds and with different personalities. But we found we were facing the same sorts of problems; it brought us together.

“We support each other. We’ve kept those links. We are mentally close even though geographically separate.

“In SUSTAIN others were struggling with and enjoying the same things I do. It was a safe space. I cannot overemphasise that support and encouragement and positive benefit.”

TRAINING

“All the training gave us things we could take away almost like a toolkit and use straight away.”

Training within SUSTAIN is tailored by cohort according to demand. Past topics have included: time management; negotiation; media skills; leadership styles; presentation skills, team management, and more.

The Academy's award-winning media training was often cited as unexpectedly useful. One participant interviewee, who had been “really out of her comfort zone” said afterwards she had agreed to talk about her research more in the media.

One said: “Media training and presentation skills have been very important, particularly because I am often the only female in the room. I chair a group that I would never have done without SUSTAIN.”

Practising interview skills outside Westminster

MENTORING

Over 8 in 10 women found interactions with their mentors helpful.

Over 9 in 10 mentors agreed they have seen SUSTAIN help their mentees thrive. Over 80% of mentors noticed improved career planning, better balancing of multiple demands and improved leadership confidence in leadership capacity.

We asked mentees to reflect on their experience through SUSTAIN:

“My mentor was incredible. She made me see my worth and when others in my institution were not recognising or appreciating that.”

Encouragement from my mentor to travel abroad which I had thought was not possible but with encouragement organised and was in (a university abroad) for six months which was transformative to my mindset and career.”

He [my mentor] helped work though how to deal with a bully.”

“My mentor was wonderfully helpful and supportive. She gave me the space to talk through the issues that I was facing, asked good questions and also gave excellent practical advice for specific situations. She helped me to navigate an incredibly difficult period in my career. I now try to model her mentoring style when I deal with my own mentees.”

We asked mentors to reflect on their experiences through SUSTAIN:

“I can see clear examples of giving individuals support that allowed them to more effectively work on and deliver their goals.”

I felt one mentee was experiencing unacceptable behaviours from others in the workplace and encouraged her to speak out. Undoubtedly this helped resolve the situation. Helped build confidence and self-esteem.

“She [my mentee] was in a deep hole of self-doubt and was on her own at a very pivotal time in her career. It was a huge responsibility for me as a mentor as well. Ultimately, she got the funding she needed and she got the job.”

We are seeing 'ripple effects' from our SUSTAIN mentoring programme, with 8 in 10 mentors saying they learned from the experience, and many taking this back into their own organisations.

Pictured: SUSTAIN mentor and mentee speed-matching workshop, hosted at the Academy

CONCLUSIONS

“The SUSTAIN programme is strikingly successful. It does indeed enhance the ability of participating women to thrive in independent research careers. The early impacts of the programme indicate an increased likelihood of later more tangible career advancement and indeed some SUSTAIN participants have already achieved such success. SUSTAIN is clearly targeted appropriately at the critical inflection point at which participants advance towards independent status as researchers and leaders.

“The success of SUSTAIN as a programme is not accidental. Its strength is created by a portfolio of assets which form a resilient, multi-faceted programme. It has been thoughtfully planned and well-organised. It is carefully monitored; for example, trainers are vetted and feedback from participants taken seriously. The overall programme is flexible and adaptable; staff are approachable and have put concerted effort into being responsive to participants’ needs.”

CATALYSIS

“I think SUSTAIN absolutely must think about dissemination. It can only ever take a tiny minority of the group of early career researchers who could really benefit from the opportunity.”

We at the Academy of Medical Sciences want to share our model of supporting women in research and all we have learnt through using it.

We are developing resources on replicating our SUSTAIN programme. We want people to contact us and use our success as a catalyst. We will share our insights, our trainers, our mentoring network, our models, our evaluation methods and more.

Email us: programmes@acmedsci.ac.uk

Independent evaluation of the SUSTAIN programme for women in research published 2022 Funded by a collaboration between the Medical Research Council - UKRI, The Royal Society, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Academy of Medical Sciences
Created By
Melanie Etherton
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