As part of Women at Imperial week, we asked Professor Mary Matthews some questions around her proudest career achievement so far, her role models and what advice she wishes she’d received earlier in her career journey. 
Mary is an Associate Professor in Ultrafast Laser Science investigating attosecond science and chirality at the quantum level in the Department of Physics and a Royal Society University Research Fellow.
What has been your proudest career achievement so far?
My first two students Kasia and Hortense completing their PhDs with stunning success. They will be swiftly followed by Rose and Madison. So I have four immensely talented women who will always make me feel proud that I had them in my group.
What barriers to progression do you think women in academia still face today?
“It is tiring to always be the only woman”
This is the chicken and egg problem, more women would progress and succeed in an environment with more women… It is tiring to always be the only woman, not to mention abnormal, in most other industries.
The other barrier is that is far harder when women make mistakes, these are often made much more visible, than for our male counterparts. But being perfect is impossible, and quite frankly boring and over-rated.
How can we better support women in STEM, where they remain underrepresented?
Change our expectations: One should always remember that there are plenty of mediocre men (by definition, this is the average) even at Imperial, so a woman shouldn’t be expected to shine any brighter than a typical male counterpart.
Is there anyone you’d consider a role model?
Ursula Keller (ETH Zurich) and Lesley Cohen (Imperial). Both forged ahead in an even more difficult world, but took the time to try and bring other women with them. This is a rare but amazing characteristic.
What is one piece of advice you wish you had received earlier in your career journey?
“Focus on your science first. If that is right, no one can argue with you”.
Also I was told, “never take it personally, however upsetting it is” and this was great advice to stay calm and understand that some poor behaviour wasn’t personally directed towards me, but that (disappointingly) any woman would have experienced it. It doesn’t make it right, but it does give some context.
What role can Imperial play in better supporting women’s career progression?
Imperial should recognise that many prestigious fellowships are now awarded with close to 50:50 gender balance. We make ourselves uncompetitive by not fostering internal female talent for fellowships across the board.
Policies such as having to wait two years between promotion rounds if unsuccessful are deeply off-putting to women and anyone who might have a career break.
More women at Faculty level committees would be helpful and an EDI champion to sit on these Faculty committees and remind the room of “best practice”.