Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

The existing literature demonstrated that women experience gender inequities in the academic promotion and leadership process when compared to men, This includes promotion delays and pay gaps. However, there is minimal research that examined the underlying reasons to these gender inequities. Comprehending these inequities are necessary to create change in promotion and leadership advancement. The objective is this study was to explore the impacts on health science academic promotion and leadership process in associate professors and professors at a Canadian university. An interview-based design qualitative study was conducted. The study was informed and guided by intersectionality, the feminist standpoint theory, and Bourdieu's theory of practice. 12 participants were recruited from health sciences through an invitation letter. Semi-structured, virtual interviews were conducted following informed consent. De-identified transcripts were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis with multiple coders to ensure inter-rater reliability. Overall, the findings demonstrated that there were clear gender inequities whereby women are not equally valued and supported, which impacted promotion and leadership roles when going up the ranks. In addition, there was this unwritten criteria in the promotion and leadership process. Participants explained the promotion process and leadership position accessibility to be challenging and haphazard. There was an unwritten code that was patriarchal whereby it swayed advancement and access to supports. Findings are in support of existing literature. Systemic racism was also observed through the intersectionality lens. Recommendations include reviewing the selection processes, reducing redundancy, forming a mentorship system, establishing clear guidance and monitoring, ensuring equitable compensation, and ensuring equitable access to supports and services.