By Analiese Jackson

A recent letter to the Human Rights Commission by Dr Paul Callister of Victoria University has questioned whether scholarships for women to pursue tertiary education are still relevant in today’s educational environment. Dr Callister’s assertion that “Gender is no longer the clear marker of disadvantage that it once was”, suggests that scholarships aimed solely at women are now essentially redundant. However, to the recipients of these scholarships, to those administering them, and to many in the tertiary sector, there remain many reasons as to why it is imperative that scholarships that have been established for women to succeed in their tertiary studies continue to be offered.

Central to Dr Callister’s challenge to scholarships for women is the claim that with higher numbers of women now participating in tertiary education, equality has been achieved and therefore targeted assistance is no longer required. Yet how do you determine that the goal of