Forging a more inclusive new generation of physicists

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: The episode examines QWIP Plus, a UK conference for undergraduate women and non-binary physics students, as a response to the persistent leaky pipeline and isolation in physics. Through organizers and student attendees, it shows how the event builds confidence, visibility, mentoring, and community while also benefiting host departments. It also discusses inclusion, funding challenges, and the 2026 Birmingham conference.

Main Topics: Origins and evolution of QWIP Plus (Priority: 5/5): June McCombie traces the conference from its grassroots start in California in 2006, its UK launch via Daniela Bortoletti at Oxford, and its expansion around UK universities to broaden access and impact. Gender imbalance and the leaky pipeline in physics (Priority: 5/5): The discussion centers on the persistent drop-off from GCSE to A-level and then to undergraduate physics, where women remain around one-fifth to one-quarter of the cohort, highlighting why intervention is needed. Student experiences of exclusion and belonging (Priority: 5/5): Harriet and Tantrabury describe gendered stereotypes, poor teaching, social isolation, and the benefits of finding a supportive peer network that makes them feel like physicists for the first time. Inclusion beyond gender (Priority: 4/5): The conference is presented as intentionally welcoming to non-binary students and attentive to broader barriers affecting people of color, working-class students, mature students, migrants, and Open University students. Conference culture and role models (Priority: 4/5): Participants stress that speakers and attendees interact informally, making elite physicists accessible. Jocelyn Bell Burnell’s presence becomes a symbolic and practical example of inspiration without hierarchy. Funding, access, and institutional value (Priority: 5/5): June explains that the event depends on mixed funding and host-university support, while students note that registration and travel costs are often reimbursable. The conference is framed as an investment in departmental culture and retention. Birmingham 2026 and practical advice (Priority: 3/5): The episode previews the 19–22 March 2026 conference at the University of Birmingham and encourages students to attend, talk to people at their own pace, and use quiet rooms if needed.

Key Arguments: QWIP Plus exists to counter the persistent underrepresentation of women and non-binary people in physics by creating a supportive conference environment where students can network, see role models, and feel they belong. The pipeline problem is not fixed by generic outreach; it requires targeted community-building because the drop-off from GCSE to A-level remains stubborn despite years of investment. School culture and outdated stereotypes discourage girls from physics, especially when they are pushed toward biology or chemistry or encounter sexist teaching and a lack of specialist physics teachers. The conference is intentionally intersectional: while centered on women and non-binary students, it also makes room for experiences shaped by race, class, age, migration, and alternative study routes such as the Open University. A major strength of QWIP Plus is that it feels authentic rather than performative; speakers are treated as physicists first, and inclusion is embedded in the program rather than used as a token gesture. The event benefits departments as well as students by raising the profile of inclusion, strengthening networks, and encouraging diversity of experience in research groups. Funding remains the main practical constraint, with host universities typically expected to cover a substantial share and organizers needing long lead times to secure future editions. The conference has a lasting psychological effect on attendees, helping them reframe difficulties in physics as structural rather than personal failures and improving confidence and persistence.

Data Points: First QWIP conference: 2006 - June says the original grassroots conference began in California in 2006. US APS takeover: 2012 - June notes the American Physical Society took over an institutional role in the United States in 2012. UK launch: 2013 - Daniela Bortoletti moved to Oxford and started QWIP in the UK in 2013. UK Oxford run: 5 years - June says Oxford hosted and built momentum for the conference for five years. Traveling UK model: last 6 years - June explains the conference has traveled around the UK for six years. Recent and upcoming host cities: York, Southampton, Glasgow, Liverpool, Limerick, Warwick; Birmingham 2026; Edinburgh 2027 - June lists the sequence of rotating hosts and future venues. Women in undergraduate physics: around 20–25% - The introduction and June emphasize the persistent underrepresentation in UK physics departments. Specialist physics teacher gap: 3,500 - June cites a gap of three and a half thousand specialist physics teachers. Student registration contribution: £45 - Harriet says the conference contribution is about £45 and should usually be covered by the department. Conference dates: 19th to 22nd March 2026 - The closing segment announces the University of Birmingham conference dates. Funding share from host university: about 50% - June says the host university normally has to find about half of the total cost. Funding horizon: 2–5 years desired - June says the steering group needs several years of funding visibility and her dream is a five-year stream.

Pivotal Quotes: "it helps people to connect with their work" — Tantrabury Corr: On why bringing personal experience and human context into physics matters. "we feel like physicists, finally" — Tantrabury Corr: Describing the confidence and belonging gained from attending QWIP Plus. "it was just sort of a non-issue" — Harriet McCormick: On the presence of trans and non-binary inclusion at the conference feeling natural rather than tokenistic.

Implications: QWIP Plus shows that retention in physics improves when underrepresented students are visibly welcomed, mentored, and funded. Its model suggests departments should treat inclusion as core infrastructure, not outreach decoration, while building more accessible, intersectional communities.