“We wanted to create the support system that we ourselves lacked”
To mark International Women’s Day on 8 March, Halmstad University is looking back at the career advancement programme for women that began just over ten years ago. From 2012 to 2014, ten researchers were given time and support to advance their academic careers. Today, most of them are professors. Vaike Fors and Pia Ulvenblad describe the initiative as a turning point in their careers.
Vaike Fors, Henrika Jormfeldt, Linnea Gustafsson, Marie Mattsson and Pia Ulvenblad participated in the the career advancement programme for women just over ten years ago. Today, they are all professors.
“We did not have that support system from the beginning – we built it ourselves. That is what made the difference.”
Pia Ulvenblad, Professor of Business Administration
When the programme began, only 19 per cent of the professors at Halmstad University were women. The University wanted to change this and therefore launched a targeted initiative. Ten senior lecturers and associate professors were allocated 40 per cent of their working time for academic advancement. They formed a group that met regularly.
Pia Ulvenblad, who was a senior lecturer at the time and is now Professor of Business Administration, recalls that all participants brought substantial experience and expertise into the programme.
“Each of us had extensive experience and strong competence, and at the same time we were aware that there could be both social constructions and structural barriers slowing down our career development”, says Pia Ulvenblad.
Participants in the the career advancement programme for women
- Cecilia Björkén-Nyberg, then Senior Lecturer in English, now Docent (Reader) in English with a specialisation in literary studies.
- Catrine Brödje, then Senior Lecturer in Literary Studies, now Senior Lecturer in Swedish with a specialisation in education, and Docent (Reader) of Literary Studies at the University of Borås.
- Vaike Fors, then Senior Lecturer in Education, now Professor of Design Ethnography.
- Linnea Gustafsson, then Senior Lecturer in Swedish with a PhD in Nordic Languages, now Professor of Swedish.
- Henrika Jormfeldt, then Senior Lecturer in Nursing, now Professor of Nursing.
- Pia Ulvenblad, then Senior Lecturer in Business Administration, now Professor of Business Administration.
- Ann-Christine Wennergren, then Senior Lecturer in Educational Sciences with a PhD in Education, now Docent (Reader) in Education.
- Maria Åkesson, then Senior Lecturer in Informatics, now Professor of Informatics.
- Marie Mattsson, then Docent (Reader) in Plant Physiology, now Professor of Environmental Science.
Lena Ewertsson was one of the participants when the programme began, but sadly passed away during its course.
A network emerges
The career advancement programme was a strategic initiative from the University management. In addition to allocated working time, it included eight residential workshops covering topics such as research funding, academic publishing and leadership.
For many participants, what happened between the programme’s various activities was just as important. Through their discussions, new insights emerged.
“We talked a great deal about our experiences and suddenly realised that we all carried similar stories about how academic advancement works in practice. In that way, we did not only reflect on whether we, as individuals, were good enough to advance, but also on whether there were structural and normative barriers”, says Vaike Fors, who was a senior lecturer at the time and is now Professor of Design Ethnography.
Pia Ulvenblad describes an insight the group made together:
“We saw how some male colleagues were guided forward within a structure that we did not have access to. We had believed that you were expected to manage everything on your own, but that is not how it works.”
This became the starting point for something new. The ten participants began actively supporting one another and sharing their experiences.
“We learned from one another to make the structures visible and to help each other navigate and clarify them”, says Vaike Fors.
Still each other’s support
More than ten years later, several of the participants remain in close contact.
“The programme gave me both a network and an understanding of the structures surrounding me as a female researcher. Being able to call Pia or another colleague when needed has meant a great deal”, says Vaike Fors.
After the programme ended in 2014, the participants successfully applied for transition funding to establish a leadership network for women at the University. They named it LENA, after Lena Ewertsson, one of the participants who sadly passed away during the programme. The name also symbolised uniting women in their careers at Halmstad University.
The network was deliberately organised without hierarchies. At lunch seminars, experiences and challenges were discussed, and the person who organised wrote reflections in a book that was passed on to the next person. The idea was to make lessons visible, exchange experiences and advice, and create a shared knowledge bank.
“We wanted to create the support system that we ourselves lacked”, says Vaike Fors.
Vaike Fors and Pia Ulvenblad are now planning to relaunch the network.
The initiative delivered results, but more remains to be done
Six of the ten participants are now professors, and three are associate professors. The proportion of women professors at Halmstad University has increased from 19 per cent in 2012 to 31 per cent in 2025.
However, Vaike Fors and Pia Ulvenblad emphasise that the work is not finished.
“Understanding that discriminatory structures exist changes the way you think. Competence and capacity must always be the starting point in promotion, recruitment, appointments and salary setting, but sometimes you need to reflect further in order to make norms visible in the way we talk about people and their competence. This type of equality work probably never ends”, says Vaike Fors.
The proportion of women professors at Halmstad University has increased from 19 per cent in 2012 to 31 per cent in 2025.
“Listen to the experiences of others”
When Vaike Fors and Pia Ulvenblad look back on the programme, it is above all the community and the insights that they carry with them.
“We did not have that support system from the beginning – we built it ourselves. That is what made the difference”, says Pia Ulvenblad.
Both are clear about the message they want to share with early-career researchers today. Pia Ulvenblad stresses the importance of asking for support:
“Seek help and support and do not see it as a weakness. Listen to the experiences of others and understand that barriers are often structural rather than individual.”
Vaike Fors adds:
“I do not see this as a struggle, but as enlightenment. Change will grow from within. It is a justice issue that extends far beyond gender.”
Text and photo: Anna-Frida Agardson
LENA network meeting
LENA is a competence and leadership network for women in research at Halmstad University.
Are you a woman working as a researcher at the University and would you like to join? It’s simple. Bring your own lunch and come along. No registration required.
Meetings are held in English when needed.
The first meeting will take place on 17 March, 12.00–13.00, in the lounge on E2.
Contact
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Professor of Design Ethnography
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Professor of Business Administration
