Employment Chances in the Academic Job Market in Sociology: Do Race and Gender Matter?

Abstract

Do employment chances for academics differ based on the gender or race/ethnicity of the job seeker? We use data from a sample of positions in sociology filled during the 1991–92 school year to determine whether European-American women, minority women, and minority men are advantaged, disadvantaged, or similarly placed in relation to European-American men. We find no evidence suggesting that European-American men are significantly disadvantaged, or disadvantaged in systematic or serious ways, vis-à-vis these groups. Among our most interesting findings is the discovery that minority men and women tend to be hired in positions newly created by the university while European-American women are significantly more likely to be hired in positions created when someone has been denied tenure. We conclude that disadvantages are beginning to level off, but they still exist for European-American women, minority men, and most especially minority women.