Gender gaps in academic promotions: does parenthood matter? An event history analysis of academic careers in Italian universities

A substantial body of literature highlights the existence of persistent gender gaps in academia, where women are underrepresented in senior positions and experience slower career progression than men. Among the factors contributing to these disparities, the motherhood penalty is frequently cited. However, less is known about how gender disparities unfold across successive stages of the academic career, at which transitions they become most salient, and whether the role of parenthood in career advancement varies by gender and career stage. Drawing on original retrospective data that reconstruct the career and fertility histories of a large sample of Italian academics, this study examines gender differences throughout academic career progression, from entry into early academic positions to promotion to full professorship. Using Cox proportional hazards models, we find no significant gender difference in the transition from PhD completion to non-tenure-track assistant professorship. A pronounced gender gap emerges, however, in subsequent transitions, with women experiencing significantly longer waiting times than men. This disparity persists after accounting for parenthood, second births, scholarly productivity, and other covariates. For women, childbearing does not significantly shape career advancement. By contrast, fatherhood has a dual effect: the birth of a first child is associated with faster progression to more advanced academic positions, whereas a second child is associated with slower early-career progression but faster advancement at later stages. These findings highlight the enduring career disadvantages experienced by women and the gendered implications of parenthood in academia.