Pandemic set back 96% of early-career researchers, particularly women

Key takeaways

• Most early-career researchers who were surveyed said the COVID-19 pandemic slowed their research projects.
• Women were more likely than men to report negative impacts of the pandemic on overall productivity (83.4% vs. 78.2%).

Four out of five early-career researchers were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of both career development and research productivity, according to data presented at the Women in Medicine Summit.

These setbacks were more often observed among women than men.

“Gender inequities are prominent in biomedical sciences. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, early studies showed that there was potential for worsening in terms of inequities,” Anna Volerman Beaser, MD, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Chicago, said in her presentation. “Further, early-career researchers are most vulnerable to disruptions, with great consequences professionally.”

Volerman Beaser and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study to assess how the pandemic affected early-career researchers, particularly relating to gender inequities. The survey, which was electronically distributed in the fall of 2021, asked about how the pandemic affected professional advancement, well-being and burnout, personal life and more.

The 1,587 participants were early-career researchers — those who had an active F32 or K-level award in 2020. About 61% identified as female, and nearly 64% were white. The majority of participants — about 70% — had a PhD, about 37% had an MD or equivalent and 80% were funded by a K-level award.

“Not surprisingly, most participants reported a negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. And this was true in several foundational areas,” Volerman Beaser said.

Nearly everyone — 96% — said their research projects were slowed during the pandemic, while 92% were negatively affected by in-person professional conference cancellation. Almost 82% of participants said the pandemic negatively affected their research productivity, about 80% said it harmed their access to facilities and research staff, and just under 62% said it had a negative impact on their overall career trajectory.

“The COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted early-career researchers in many foundational areas that are critical to their advancement as independent investigators. We saw that a higher percentage of female researchers reported negative effects in terms of current activity and manuscripts,” Volerman Beaser said. “These are areas that are most critical for developing independence as a researcher and also obtaining future grants as well as promotion and thus have the potential to worsen long standing gender inequities in our research and biomedical sciences.”

The researchers found that women were “significantly more likely than men to report negative impact of the pandemic on overall productivity” at 83.4% versus 78.2% (P = .01). They were also more likely than men to report negative impacts when it came to number of manuscripts submitted (62.4% vs. 53%, P = .0004) and number of manuscripts published (59% vs. 48.7%, P = .0002).

The researchers concluded that the pandemic hurt early-career researchers in the U.S. and that the data “show broad-based deleterious effects across areas that are foundational to advancing as independent investigators,” including:

• publishing research;

• attending conferences;

• submitting grant proposals; and

• access to facilities, staff and mentors.

For the recovery of research productivity, “programs and interventions that assist early-career researchers ... will be critical to mitigate the negative impacts of the pandemic and help them adapt career trajectories,” they wrote.

“Programs and interventions that practically and tangibly impact this group with a focus on females will be critical to mitigate the negative effects of the pandemic and to ensure that science does not suffer within our nation,” Volerman Beaser said.