Chilean University Alliance for Women in Academia

The DRCLAS Chile Office will close in December 2025. Despite this transition, Universidad Central has assumed a leadership role in consulting with other local alliance university members. Together, they have reaffirmed their shared commitment to continuing the legacy of Harvard Vice Provost Judy Singer (2019–2025) by promoting women’s empowerment, equity, and visibility in academia.

Each year, a local university volunteer is democratically elected to lead the initiative, contributing their distinctive strengths and vision to advance the alliance’s mission. The DRCLAS Chile Office is proud and honored that the Alliance for Women in Academia will continue its important work for years to come. Read statement.

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This Alliance aimed to discuss and share experiences, best practices, and difficulties within the universities, in order to increase the number of women in academia and give greater visibility to the contributions they made, inspired and nurtured by Harvard’s Faculty Development & Diversity Office.

In early 2019, Vice Provosts from 12 Chilean universities came together to form an Alliance with the purpose of improving the participation and visibility of women in academia. This initiative was supported by the Chile Regional Office, and led by Judith Singer, James Bryant Conant Professor of Education and Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Development & Diversity at Harvard University.

Apart from visiting every January for the annual Alliance meeting, in September 2024, Judith Singer was invited to give a keynote talk at the Universidad Católica de Chile on Gender Gaps in Academia and Research: Contributions for Analysis.

The Alliance's primary goal was to spotlight and enhance the myriad initiatives universities undertook to foster substantive equality in academic environments. A key element of each year's leadership was the development and implementation of the Survey of Women in Academia (EMA), which consolidated information for data comparison and bolstered the collective efforts of all participating universities. The EMA's Institutional Questionnaire delved into Academic and Administrative leadership roles, Student demographics, Research, Policies and Procedures, and Strategies to address gender disparities within the academic community.

The Alliance convened annually with Professor Singer to evaluate data concerning women's academic participation and advancement with the aim of closing gender disparities in academia. It was locally spearheaded by a designated university Vice Provost serving a one-year term. The journey began with Soledad Arellano from Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez leading the group during the 2019-2020 academic year; the following year Universidad de las Américas took the lead, and Universidad Central assumed the role in 2021. Following them, Universidad de Chile led the initiative in 2022, passing the baton to Universidad de Los Andes in 2023. For 2024, Universidad Mayor was appointed as the local leader, and Universidad Central assumed the leading role of the Alliance during 2025.

The Alliance's efforts to promote women's inclusion and academic growth included diverse initiatives such as workshops, seminars, and inspirational meetings focusing on women in academia.

Notable achievements

  • In 2025, under the leadership of Universidad Central, the Alliance has focused on:
    • Advancing concrete strategies to promote women’s academic careers, moving beyond diagnostics. AMA has held monthly sessions focused on sharing and scaling successful institutional practices in areas such as:
      • Policies and strategies to support promotion and tenure for women
      • Historical perspectives on gender gaps in Chilean universities
      • Time use, work–life balance, and caregiving responsibilities in academic careers
    • Developing new tools to measure and value academic time, especially activities that disproportionately fall on women. This includes a collaboration with EMEGAE, a network of Spanish universities, which will present innovative methodologies and certification opportunities at the January 2025 International Seminar. In April 2026, the Alliance will offer a micro-credential course on gender balance in academia.
    • Strengthening political visibility and engagement, through new alliances with CRUCH and CUP and a full day of programming at the International Seminar dedicated to gender equity in academic careers. Key national and international decision-makers will participate, alongside academic vice-rectorates and gender units from across Chile, contributing to a coordinated 2026 action agenda.
    • The outcomes of AMA’s 2025 work and the International Seminar will be captured in a forthcoming publication with Editorial Tirant.
  • In 2024, Universidad Mayor presented the first longitudinal analysis of the data collected through the Women in Academia Survey (EMA), covering the period from 2020 to 2024. This analysis marks a new step towards understanding the trends and patterns that define women's participation in academia, which will help adjust the strategies and ensure that every action taken is evidence-based.
  • Universidad Mayor focused on expanding the Alliance by beginning to incorporate eight new universities from different regions. This effort was carried out in an articulated way to create structural changes in the academic field.
  • In 2024 the Alliance put the focus on fostering synergies between the projects of the National Research and Development Agency, InES Gender, an Innovation in Higher Education instrument that finances the development of capabilities to reduce gender gaps in the domains of Research, Development, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship (R+D+i+e) based on scientific technology at the country's universities.
  • The 2023 signing of the Alliance Agreement by the 12 founding universities in Santiago. This pact commits to enhancing and systematizing support for women's academic career advancement, including mechanisms for promotion, qualification, induction, and training.
  • In 2023, the Alliance expanded to include Universidad Católica del Norte and Universidad de la Frontera.
  • A comprehensive Technical Review of the EMA survey from 2019-2023, reflecting five years of leadership in data collection and adaptation to contemporary realities.
  • The creation of a qualitative tool to complement the EMA Survey.
  • Under Universidad de Chile's stewardship in 2022, the EMA Instrument was coordinated with the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Science and Technology, leading to its presentation and further promotion.
  • Compilation of best practices from participating institutions into an institutional guideline, aimed at reducing academic gender gaps.

News about the Alliance for Women in Academia

Chilean Universities Strengthen Commitment to Women in Academia
The Alliance of 14 diverse Chilean universities for Women in Academia is dedicated to promoting policies and practices that reduce gender inequalities within academia. As a flagship initiative of the Harvard David Rockefeller Center for Latin American...
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