Last updated: 10.25.2005.

Insight into the researchers in Europe and in Bulgaria

Elissaveta Gourova, Sofia University

Abstract

                The paper focuses on the research profession. It considers consequently the trends in the researchers’ profession in Europe towards achieving the objective of employing new 700 000 researchers by 2010. The paper notes two important trends – slight growth in the numbers of researchers, and ageing of the profession in several countries in Europe. The paper further highlights the distribution of researchers in the different sectors- business, state and universities, as well as the specificities in the European countries.

                A special emphasis is paid on women in science. There is a slight increase of their participation in research in several Western European countries, whereas in the new member states of the EU the gender gap is growing. The paper further stresses the gender disbalance in several disciplines, whereas in engineering profession the women participation is very small compared to humanities and social sciences.

                The mobility of researchers is also taken into account, in particular the foreign students in European countries as possible future inflow in doctoral and post-doctoral studies.

                The whole paper emphasizes the trends in Bulgaria in the researchers’ profession compared to the European ones.

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