Female geology students remain least needed

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Female students dominate geology classes but remain least needed for rewarding field jobs

Holli Chmela

AMMAN - Despite the growing need for professional geologists in Jordan and abroad, the Jordan Geologists Association (JGA) says there are too many women going into a profession where more men are needed.

The association called on the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research to limit the number of female students allowed to study geology and earth sciences at university due to the high rate of unemployment among female geology graduates and increasing demand for male geologists in the Gulf states. The request coincides with the Friday release of the Tawjihi (general secondary examination) results, which are a key factor to determine students' specialties at university.

President of JGA Bahjat Adwan said that 90 per cent of the students studying geology in Jordan universities are female, compared with only 10 per cent six to eight years ago. This goes against the demand, he said, because more men are needed to work for oil and mining companies, which often require hard manual labour.

“It’s not merely an office job,” Adwan told The Jordan Times. “To be a good geologist, you have to start your job in the field. Sometimes you have to stay in the field for one or two weeks, sleep in a tent. It’s very hard for ladies to work such long hours under the sun and you have to make special arrangements for them when there are only one or two in the field with all men.”

Adwan said some employers prefer not to hire women for these reasons, while most women prefer teaching geology to fieldwork. However, some female students at the University of Jordan (UJ) said the fieldwork is what they like best about the science.

Bety Saqarat, a 2009 PhD candidate in engineering geology at UJ and a mother of three, said she prefers research to teaching high school students, the other job female geology graduates often take.

"I like exploring the earth," Saqarat said in a recent interview. "I enjoy taking soil samples and fieldwork to make tests about soil and rocks for construction companies."

Geology Professor Elias Salameh said the high percentage of female students in his classes only reflects a trend in Jordanian universities and is not specific to the geology department. He said many male Jordanian students go abroad to universities, while in general families do not allow their daughters to study overseas.

"Twenty years ago, the field of geology was not that attractive to students because the job opportunities in the field were not very many,” Salameh said. "Now, mining companies and consulting companies need geologists. And applied environmental and geological studies is very attractive for students because there are big environmental problems not only in Jordan but also in other Gulf states."

In fact, Adwan said many companies from the Emirates and Saudi Arabia contact him looking for male graduates to work in the oil fields, a very attractive offer with salaries for practical geologists ranging from $4,000 to $15,000 per month, compared to JD320 to JD600 in Jordan. For teachers of geology in the Kingdom, the salary is even less: JD200-220.

But Ikhlas Hejoj, an MS candidate for 2009, said her goal is to teach geology at the high school level once she graduates. She has three years of teaching experience already, but says her salary might double after she earns her master's degree.

"There are many environmental problems: pollution in soil, air and water,” said Hejoj. “I want to teach solutions to my students. I want them to be good citizens."

In addition to asking the Ministry of Education to limit the number of female geology students at the university level, Adwan said he is also working with the Ministry of Education to hire more female teachers to teach at the high school level.

But head of UJ’s geology department, Hani Khoury, said there are many other job opportunities for female geologists in Jordan in areas such as cement, phosphates, fertilisers, ceramics, water, and exploration for oil shale and uranium.

“The girls who are enthusiastic and energetic and willing to learn about the field can be very successful,” Khoury said. “Most of the females who graduate can work here in Jordan in factories and industries. But you find very few such graduates who are highly dedicated and determined to succeed in the job.”

Saqarat may fall into that category. She said she is determined to continue her fieldwork and wants to one day open her own lab. "When I earn my degree, I'm not a woman or a man. I am a PhD holder," she said.

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I taught mostly girls as well in anthropology-- same deal. They were the most successful and the most abundant, but their hiring chances were so low.

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"It's not merely an office job," Adwan told The Jordan Times. "To be a good geologist, you have to start your job in the field. Sometimes you have to stay in the field for one or two weeks, sleep in a tent. It's very hard for ladies to work such long hours under the sun and you have to make special arrangements for them when there are only one or two in the field with all men."

These kinds of arguments really get under my skin. "It's not really discrinimation because it is for the protection of the women"

ugggh

[Nasturtium 500]

"It's not merely an office job," Adwan told The Jordan Times. "To be a good geologist, you have to start your job in the field. Sometimes you have to stay in the field for one or two weeks, sleep in a tent. It's very hard for ladies to work such long hours under the sun and you have to make special arrangements for them when there are only one or two in the field with all men."

These kinds of arguments really get under my skin. "It's not really discrinimation because it is for the protection of the women"

ugggh

Well, and as you can see from the article, women actually dominate the field.. so... it wouldn't be an issue of accomidation. But they are admitting to a practice of only really hiring men there. It's so frustrating!