This book considers the structure and demographics of the workforce in nursing and midwifery higher education, observing the gender divide, highlighting the impact of intersectionality and exploring the challenges and opportunities this provides. Divers and Chenery-Morris look at the power of clinical practice, the perception of nursing and midwifery as ‘women’s work’, perceptions of meaning around being female, social mobility, race, sexuality, the ‘caring role’, academic identities and the role of men. To investigate these issues, they introduce intersectional case studies of the lived experiences of women working in higher education and make connections to the wider international literature, in particular sociological, feminist and gender theories.

The chapters are linked to larger questions that encompass the purpose of universities more generally, including social mobility, generating new knowledge, challenging irrelevant practices or those rooted in colonisation and reflexivity culminating in visions of the future for the professions. Showcasing a range of experiences and voices from nursing and midwifery academics, this is an important contribution to discussions of gender in higher education and in the caring professions.

It will interest advanced students and researchers from nursing, midwifery, education, sociology and gender studies.