work-life balance

Balancing pregnancy, family, and a scientific career: a look at the challenges faced by women in STEAM

Katherine Villavicencio and edited by Constanza Rodriguez Piceda May 14, 2025

Women in STEAM: Balancing research with raising a family. (Image generated by SEAART.IA)

In this week’s blog post, Dr. Katherine Villavicencio (University of Pisa) explores how women in STEAM navigate pregnancy and family life while advancing in their careers and examines the support (or lack thereof) provided by academic and research institutions. Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) careers are undoubtedly demanding. For women in these fields, juggling the ...[Read More]

The Sassy Scientist – The crit fail

The Sassy Scientist November 24, 2023

While we are getting this close to unwrapping our advent calendars, here is a question that will keep us away from the first chocolate for a bit. Rowan asks: How do I tell my partner who is also in academia to talk less about work outside the office? Dear Rowan, Oh, this question hits home for many academics. Seriously, though. I don’t know the exact statistics but let me have a quick search…. Wel ...[Read More]

The Sassy Scientist – Diamonds in the Rough

The Sassy Scientist September 9, 2022

It’s that time of year again. The academic year is ramping up, everyone is back from their summer holiday and expecting miraculous things from you, the deadlines are rolling in and there is (unfortunately) no end in sight. So of course, Paxman, like many of you, is wondering: How can I feel less pressure/stress in my work? Dear Paxman, Stress? Pressure? Surely you love your research enough that ev ...[Read More]

The Sassy Scientist – Geolidays

The Sassy Scientist August 19, 2022

Recently, we’ve been discussing how you can fit a holiday into your busy schedule. But once you’ve found the time to take a few days off you then have to decide where to go. This can be almost as challenging, which is why Simone has asked me: What are the best holiday destinations for a geodynamicist? Dear Simone, Excellent question! There’s nothing worse than putting all the effort into organisin ...[Read More]