The second female pioneer of our Women’s History Month campaign is Dr Carol Rivas (Zoology BSc, 1981; Medical Sociology PhD, 2012), Professor of Health and Social Care at University College London (UCL).
In her own words, Dr Carol Rivas shares a short biography:
"After I graduated from Queen Mary with a Zoology degree in 1981, I was fortunate to get a research studentship analysing earthworm evolution mathematically at the Natural History Museum. Following this, and a stint as a medical journalist, I obtained funding from various conservation organisations to go to St Helena in the South Atlantic to study their endemic plover, the wirebird. Its behaviour and habits were of interest because of the island’s plan to build an airport in one of its main nesting sites.
I found it hard to get funding for a PhD or get a job in Zoology because of Thatcherite funding cuts and also my gender. Luckily when applying for work as a hotline adviser at the Poison’s Unit, I was instead offered a Senior Researcher post for a Professor in Toxicology, who became my mentor; I followed him to St Mary’s Hospital and remained here for 8 years. Thus began my career in medical research, which I managed to sustain whilst having four children! I was a quantitative researcher at St Mary’s Hospital and a pioneer in health economics (regarding antidepressants).
As a student at Queen Mary I was active in several political societies; now my teaching and research focuses on social justice and the removal of inequities.
I then undertook a complementary MSc at Birkbeck on Cognitive Neuroscience and after I returned to Queen Mary to research domestic violence, which included my undertaking a PhD in Medical Sociology there. My research eclecticism comes from a desire to use the right methods for the research question combined with deep transdisciplinary interests. I stayed at Queen Mary for 11 years, undertaking diverse projects, including a collaboration with a design graduate which continues to this day. With her I undertook participatory ‘co-design’ work before it became the fashion it is now in medical research. I finally left to gain promotion, and was fortunate to get major funding at Southampton to lead a project to develop AI analyses of survey freetext (‘have you any other comments?’) data, which drew on my programming skills (gained originally as a Queen Mary undergraduate), my linguistic skills (my parents come from countries with complex grammar, Germany and Ukraine) and my MSc work.
From Southampton I moved back to London, to UCL, where I was soon promoted to Professor of Health and Social Care. I chose this title because staff at the Blizzard Institute at Queen Mary had developed in me skills in research into the patient experience of chronic conditions and healthcare, and to this I have added personal lived experience, since some family members are disabled. As a student at Queen Mary I was active in several political societies; now my teaching and research focuses on social justice and the removal of inequities."
Women's History Month is a designated period of reflection on the efforts women have made historically to advance opportunities for people of all genders. As such, it is an important celebration that helps to inspire those who continue the efforts today. And it is a time to remember the Rosalind Franklins of this world who got walked over by lesser men. But though it may only come once a year, we are women all the time. So reflection should continue beyond this dedicated space.
When applying for PhDs I got rejection letters from academics (which I have kept) saying, ‘Sorry, you are the best candidate, but we decided to take a man as the funders do not like to fund women given that they are likely to go off and have babies.’ So, I went and got the funding myself to do my St Helena project. Subsequently, I was made redundant when I announced my pregnancy with my first-born. I took my then employer to tribunal and won. As you can see, this did not destroy my career! Now I am more passive; although I am on my Faculty’s Athena Swan executive team, my main influence is as a role model. I am proof that you can have children (including children with disabilities) and a healthy academic career!