How Nominating Your Women Colleagues Can Tackle Gender Inequity

A fundamental act of allyship is recognizing and advocating for the innovative and impactful work of minoritized colleagues, including women. An article published in Nature  confirms that women’s contributions are often overlooked, hindering their advancement and retention, especially in fields like science. This pattern of erasure is even more pronounced for women of color, whose foundational contributions in science and the broader society frequently go unrecognized. 1, 2, 3

To support gender equity, it is crucial that we highlight and celebrate the achievements of women colleagues. Taking the time to write a nomination letter that acknowledges and spotlights their work is a simple yet powerful action that can help disrupt the cycle of systemic inequity. By ensuring their contributions are visible, we can combat the longstanding erasure of women, particularly those with other minoritized identities. You can find a list of faculty awards for which you can practice nomination of your women colleagues.

This week’s Ally Tips offers practical advice on writing nomination letters that serve to promote gender equity. Join us for our final workshop of the semester, which includes a free lunch, to deepen your understanding of allyship in action.

How Letters of Recommendation Can Promote Gender (In)Equity

Research has shown that stereotypes and biases can shape judgments in ways that the individual may not consciously recognize.4  Even those who openly reject prejudice may still exhibit implicit biases.  Researchers have found that recommendation letters are especially vulnerable to bias, impairing gender equity.5, 6, 7  They asserted that many letters are written with little guidance on how to avoid bias or adopt a standardized format, resulting in inconsistencies in length, content, and language. To address this, Machen and colleagues reviewed literature revealing biased language patterns in recommendation letters, especially against women and other underrepresented groups. They ultimately proposed guidelines to promote gender equity in letter writing.

Note: These graphs show differences in the contents of the recommendation letters by the candidate's gender (Trix & Psenca, 2003). For instance, research accomplishments were highlighted in 48% of the letters for men candidates but in only 18% of the letters for women candidates.

Ally Tips for Recommendation Letter

Including the nominee/candidate’s personal life stories in the letter? Not recommended but check with the nominee/candidate.

Many recommendation letters include personal stories of candidates overcoming life challenges as evidence of their resilience. However, letters for women are 7 times more likely to reference personal life.8 More critically, mentioning personal stories can risk disclosing private information that the candidate may not wish to share. Including such details could inadvertently do more harm than good. If you believe a personal story is relevant, consult with the candidate to confirm their comfort with including it in the letter. Another important factor is whether you can relate the story to the candidate’s accomplishments or, better, to the qualifications for the opportunity. If not, you probably shouldn’t include the story.

Follow this standardized format.

Machen and colleagues offered a standardized format for a recommendation letter. While letter writing allows for creativity, reviewers often read a high volume of letters and may be less likely to grasp the essential points than they would be if a structure was used to help enable a clearer impression and more effective assessment of each candidate.

Note. Adopted from the standard letter of recommendation format from Machen et al. (2023)

Consider using the suggested adjectives.

Trix and Psenca's research on gender differences in recommendation letters revealed a disproportionate use of performance-related nouns and adjectives depending on the candidate's gender. For example, nouns like “accomplishments” and “achievement” appeared in 13% of letters for men but only 3% for women. Similarly, the adjective “successful” was used in 7% of letters for men compared to 3% for women. Therefore, we recommend the intentional use of the specific language suggested in the box below when writing recommendation letters for women.

Note. Adopted from  Trix & Psenca (2003)

Continuous self-education on unconscious gender bias

As noted earlier, individuals often fail to recognize their own biases and the ways they may use biased language. Therefore, multiple studies recommend ongoing self-education and participation in workshops on implicit bias and equity. With that in mind, join us for our upcoming November workshop, “Beyond Bias: Bystander Intervention & Gender Allyship,” and enjoy a free lunch!

Participate in the Survey on Gender Discrimination at IUB! 

Please help us improve your experience by participating in a brief survey on gender discrimination on campus. 

See our Archived Ally Tips

Learn more about Advocates and Allies for Equity

Weekly Ally Resources

Article:  Avoiding gender bias in reference writing – This one-pager summarizes steps for writing equitably-minded recommendation letters.

Article:  How to write a successful nomination letter and submit a winning awards package –IU Department of Medicine offers guidelines for crafting nomination letters. 

 

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