Related Resources • Advice for Female Grad Students • Resource for Female Academics • Purchase Lifting a Ton of Feathers

From Other Guides • Women and Work • Career Resources for Women • Women's Lives

Although intended for female academics, this book offers excellent advice to graduate students, postdocs, and faculty of both genders. Lifting a Ton of Feathers is both a detailed reference and how-to guide that documents the difficulties that women experience in academia and provides strategies for how to survive and thrive in a male-dominated environment. 

The first chapters provide data to document the ongoing mistreatment of women in the academic world. The author, Paula Caplan, uses anecdotes skillfully to illustrate the human stories behind the data. She examines the "maleness" of the  academic environment and provides concrete examples of how women are marginalized. If you're a female academic, you might be surprised to recognize yourself in some of the examples. Caplan points out that many women don't realize the magnitude of the problem and erroneously believe that they are at fault for the injustices they experience.  

Chapters discuss the unwritten rules of academia, myths about academia, and myths about women in academia. Throughout Lifting a Ton of Feathers, Caplan clearly discusses the pros, cons, and dangers of academic life for women. More importantly, she emphasizes what to do about marginalization. Caplan provides candid advice to help academic women bolster their self esteem, protect their mental health, and challenge the abuses of the system.

Lifting a Ton of Feathers closes with a checklist for attributes of women-positive institutions. It's a guide to assist female academics in making reasoned decisions about institutions and for institutions to engage in self-study. Finally, the extended bibliography of related material offers fantastic reading suggestions. Lifting a Ton of Feathers is a must-read for graduate students, postdocs, and facutly.