Abstract

BACKGROUND: Female midwifery academics often face unique career challenges influenced by organizational culture, gender roles, and balancing multiple responsibilities. Identifying these barriers is crucial for creating more supportive academic environments and promoting career advancement.
AIM AND OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to identify the career challenges female midwifery academics face.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study is a cross-sectional and comparative study. The study was conducted in collaboration with female academics (n = 105) working in midwifery schools providing undergraduate education in midwifery in Turkey. Data were collected using the "Career Barriers of Female Academics Scale (FACOS)." Necessary official permissions were obtained from the ethics committee and relevant institutions. Data were analyzed electronically using SPSS for Windows 20.0 package software for statistical purposes.
RESULTS: The most critical barriers reported by midwife academics were "organizational culture and policies" (mean = 45.92 ± 11.1) and "playing multiple roles" (mean = 30.95 ± 9.47); the least essential barriers were "organizational conditions" (mean = 21.96 ± 4.46) and "stereotypes" (mean = 20.44 ± 6.31). The characteristics affecting the career barriers of midwife academicians were title, years of employment, age, and administrative position.
CONCLUSION: Regarding career barriers in educational institutions providing midwifery education, especially organizational culture and policies, multiple roles and stereotyped prejudices should be reviewed. To obtain more comprehensive results in explaining the career barriers of midwifery academics, further studies should be conducted in cooperation with female academics working in different regions and different types of institutions in the field of midwifery.

Key words: KEYWORDS: Midwifery Academician, Career Barriers, Women, Female Academician