THE EDUCATED WOMAN IN EMPLOYMENT
THE NIGERIAN UNIVERSITY SITUATION

Many Nigerian women have acquired formal education such that in virtually every part of
Nigeria today, almost every extended family unit can boast of a female graduate of one
profession or the other such as a teacher, nurse, lawyer, medical doctor, accountant or
engineer with diplomas, B.A.,B.Ed.B.Sc, masters and Ph.D. degrees in these disciplines.

Most of these qualified women are employed and are working in various establishments
contributing their quota at both the state and national levels. Many others are self employed
and also playing appreciable roles in the national development.

In the education sector, women account for a good percentage of the teaching force especially
in the nursery primary and secondary school levels. Many of these women have risen to the
top positions in these institutions which is good.Among the thirty one (31) universities in
Nigeria, including a military university, woman lecturers are found in many disciplines and
departments of the various faculties. The universities themselves are expected not only to
produce high level manpower, but also to make positive contributions to the overall
development of the country. These women have therefore been found qualified, and employed
to perform equal roles alongside their male counterparts in the fulfilment of some of the set
objectives of the University. There is no gender discrimination in the distribution of
lectures or considerations for promotion in the university. However,the catch comes at the
rate which these women rise alongside their average male colleagues who could reach the
top, that is, become professors, years before the women counterparts sometimes eventually
get there.(Personal communications). The population of the female lectures have been
surveyed and the provided Table gives the statistics of the teaching staff in ten selected
universities. The selection has been made in such a way to cover the entire country. It was
found that the female population of certain disciplines are quite impressive, for
example,education, social and the biological sciences; some areas of medicine, pharmacy and
in arts- languages. It is important to state that the physical sciences, and engineering have
not attracted many women lecturers although there are graduates of these disciplines in the
country.

ANALYSIS AND DEDUCTION FROM THE TABLE

From the presented table, the University of Ibadan, the oldest University has only 10.74%
of the teaching staff as women while the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, the second oldest,
with less population of total staff has 12.7% while the University of Lagos has the highest
percentage 15.1% University of Ahmadu Bello, Zaria, the premier university in the
northern part of the country has the highest population of teaching staff which was not
fortunately matched with corresponding proportional number of Female teaching staff -
6.76%

Looking at the numbers of women professors, it was observed that in two universities as at
1992, there were no female professors after 17 years of inception yet some male lecturers
had been promoted through the ranks within this period to the professorial rank.
Considering the other universities with varying numbers of women professors, the
male/female professor ratio speaks for itself. The professors, who most of the time are the
heads of the departments, constitute the Senate of each university. In effect this ratio reflects
the level of female participation in the policy decisions of the universities. What then for
this paucity of female professors from among the female lecturers?

POSSIBLE REASONS

1.  Work and family conflicts:
(a)  The female gender factor.
Every working woman, irrespective of the statutes, retains the primary responsibility for
household labour and childcare.

The female lecturers most often may be single or married and are still of child bearing age
when they join the system. In this society where being married and bearing children are the
expected norm for a normal woman irrespective of any other thing, every woman aspires to
acquire both. Thus the domestic demands of the home, pregnancy and taking care of children
and other family members must still be executed together with academic duties. It is
therefore discovered that a young female lecturer who in the first ten years on the job, may
have a minimum of 3 pregnancies to cope with and the nursing of the babies, cannot in
anyway rise at the same rate as her male counterpart. This is because as a lecture, she is
expected to be actively engaged, in addition to the lectures, in research and supervising
research projects and publishing the findings of such research in relevant academic
journals. The number and quality of her published articles determine the promotability
irrespective of the teaching quality.

(b)    The male factor.
For the married woman, no matter the level of education, the finding is that she can rise as
high and as fast as it is convenient for the husband and the home. For example, participation
in conference and seminars which are necessary complements and supplements for a
successful academic career maybe out of the questions if the timing is very inconvenient for
the women due to "primary responsibilities."

2. The nature of the job.
At certain levels, the job may require constant travels outside the town of residence for
cooperate meetings, supervisory duties, study-leave training. Sometimes relocation could
enhance and accelerate the promotion to higher status,but the inability of some women
especially married women to fulfil these demands/requirements has robbed some well
qualified women of top positions. Again the reasons are not far fetched: the husband and the
family demands cannot be sacrificed.
Relocation to accept a higher position on the job may be possible only if the man is the
initiator or directly involved. Secondly the physiological state of the women at the time in
question could also make the acceptance of such a post even when offered impracticable. Thus
it is very probable that the actualization of every married womanÍs dream on job is a
function of the cooperation given her by her spouse, family member and her state as a
woman. The few facts so far adduced are just the realities of the situation surrounding
women in employment.

WAY FORWARD
1. face the facts and accept them. Women must be realistic and come to terms with the fact
that natural and biological roles in life such as marriage and child bearing and the
upbringing of the children moderate their jobs and careers, placing them second in the
scheme of things. Accepting this fact mentally makes it easier to cope with the probability
that the man she graduated with,or even before, could likely become a manager, director or
professor long before her.

2.  It was observed during the survey that none of the female professors was below 40 years
of age. The older women, 40 years old and above eventually pick up and may rise to top
positions.

This is, perhaps, because by this age, the children demand less attention and the domestic
setup structure has been established such that the women now has more time and perhaps
ÒfreedomÓ to devote to her career. This is corroborated by the fact that all the married
women who are professors in the Nigerian Universities fall under this age group where as
quite a number of male lecturers do attain the professorial rank before the age of 40.  It is
also most likely by this time, the husbands have arrived at the tops of their careers and can
now afford to let their women develop to fulfil themselves or perhaps to "embellish" their
men's status and social standing.

Obviously the inherent gender limitations call for appreciation by the women, employers
and society such that every encouragement should be given to women at every stage to cope
with the realities of being a women and still bring out and contribute the best of what nature
has endowed them with. It becomes therefore very appropriate and important to address and
discuss policies and plans that enhance women acquisition of education and skills before
marriage which they can sustain and eventually improve upon at the later stages of their
metamorphosis to actualize their ambitions and dreams.


Dr. Ijeoma Ahonkhai
Faculty of Pharmacy
University of Benin
Benin City
Nigeria.