Why Is The Percentage Of Women Heading Higher Education Institutes In India only 11.24%?

The share of women leaders in higher education institutions (HEIs) in India is rising, though much needs to be done to inspire more women to take leadership roles in the coming years. EduShine Search Partners has emphasised improving gender diversity in India's higher education system. The premier executive search and strategic recruitment firm surveyed 1352 higher education institutions (HEIs) in India and found only 152 (11.24%) were headed by female leaders.

The survey included IITs, IIMs, public, private, and deemed universities, along with Institutes of National Importance (INIs)The lower number of female leaders signifies the structural issue with the country’s education system. Marred by conventional thought processes and a slower reform pace, HEIs failed to create enough opportunities for females. That said, 11.24% of women leaders that the EduShine Search Partners found in its current survey is higher than the 9.56% recorded by the agency in 2021. For reference, the US, the UK, and Australia have 25% female leaders in HEIs. Further, countries like Brazil and South Africa have 47.3% and 23% women leaders, respectively.

"To enthuse more women to take the role of leadership, there is a compelling need to present women role models in HEIs in India," says Kalpesh Banker, Managing Partner at EduShine Search Partners, "this will inspire the next generation of women to take the leadership role in India's education ecosystem."

What is encouraging in the survey is the performance of the government institutions in promoting gender diversity in leadership roles. Central Universities have a maximum of 14.04% of women leaders, followed by deemed (13.76%) and state public Universities (13.2%). However, the need to promote women in leadership roles in INIs is urgent. With only 14 out of 164 INIs headed by women leaders, the participation rate of women in running these premier institutions is abysmally low.

And just when one thinks that INIs are the worst in women's leadership ratio, the performance of Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) comes to mind. No single IIT was found to be headed by a woman, whereas only 2 Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) had females in leadership positions. The lack of female leaders is also prevalent in the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), with only 1 AIIMS out of 15 led by women.

"Women have traditionally enrolled in low numbers in the engineering education, which created a lack of women leaders in the technical domain," Kalpesh describes, "the time is though opportune now to push for more women leaders in the technical domain collectively."

Inspiring more women to take leadership roles in HEIs is essential for reforming India's education ecosystem. To that end, policymakers must adopt a comprehensive approach and involve work from grassroots levels to create opportunities for female leaders. A higher percentage of women leaders in HEIs also ensures that growth benefits reach the last person standing in the row.

Authored by Kalpesh Banker, Managing Partner at EduShine Search Partners