Table 3.

Theme 3: Retention and the “Leaky Pipeline” (Key-Informant Interviews in the National Faculty Survey)

Descriptions of the theme	Quote	Rank	Years at institution	Gender	Role
“Leaky pipeline”	“We still have more women than men dropping out at the assistant professor level, or staying at the assistant professor level and not going on to associate professor.”	Professor	29	F	GWIMS
	“I still worry at all levels—really nationally—why we are losing [women] in the pipeline, especially from the K award to their first R01, moving from assistant professor to associate professor.”	Associate professor	13	F	GWIMS
	“It's harder to find women in higher ranks like full professors.”	Associate professor	9	F	GWIMS
	“The climate is welcoming to bring people in. Females tend to start at the instructor, assistant professor rank and it is difficult for them to go through the ladder.”	Professor	17	F	GWIMS
	“What it has done to me…perhaps leaving because I can't find anything suitable to my level.”	Professor	17	F	GDI
	“It's not uncommon that people have toxic bosses…one woman left the university because of him and another had to leave his section…the climate was just too hostile.”	Professor	29	F	GWIMS
Midcareer issues	“Middle management, which seems to be a kind of forgotten group…there's still a ways to go.”	Professor	18	F	GWIMS
	“There are fewer things in place for midcareer, more senior-level faculty.”	Associate professor	13	F	GWIMS
Promotion	“We have women on promotions…people who are in each of the different pathways…If people do the work they get promoted.”	Professor	20	F	GWIMS

K, NIH Career Development Awards; R01, independent Investigator Resources grants.