Women PhD Candidates at KTH (WOP@KTH) is a network to support female PhD students across KTH. PhD candidates are in a decisive moment in their careers, but at the same time they are also in a rather vulnerable position within academia. Moreover, in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), women are often a minority and face additional challenges.
The aim of WOP@KTH is to contribute to better conditions for women PhD candidates at KTH by providing a forum for networking among female PhD students and for discussing challenges in academia and strategies to surpass them. The overarching principle is that everyone has the right to fulfill their professional potential and to balance career and family life, and that the knowledge and experience of both men and women should be used to promote progress in all aspects of society. WOP@KTH is dedicated to the cause of raising awareness to gender issues and promoting equal opportunity policies, especially within academia. WOP@KTH organizes activities such as workshops, seminars, testimonial talks with women in academia and industry, social events, among others on campus and off campus.
This network started in the fall of 2016 after a workshop for female PhD candidates arranged by initiative of the THS PhD Chapter and the Union of the Civil Servants (ST) at KTH. The idea of building a network was strongly supported by the students present, and hence a committee of volunteers was formed to make the project a reality. WOP@KTH is a network for women PhD candidates by women PhD candidates, and counts with the support of ST. As of February 2019, WOP@KTH is part of the THS PhD Chapter.
“Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.” (Marie Curie)