The Meritocratic Glass Ceiling: Students' Perception of Meritocracy in Two Highly Selective Study Programs With Opposing Gender Compositions

This paper explores gendered dynamics of meritocracy by examining how the meritocratic ideology is either perpetuated or contested within two highly selective university programs with contrasting gender compositions. Through an analysis of interviews with students from two of the most selective and sought-after programs in Denmark, the study examines the students' perceptions of meritocracy, deservingness, legitimacy and their views on the gender imbalance of their program. Drawing on Bourdieu's concepts of capital conversion, symbolic capital, and meritocracy as a legitimating ideology, the analysis shows that while students in both programs have succeeded within a merit-based system, the meritocratic ideology is upheld in the male-majority program and contested in the female-majority program. The paper suggests that women may encounter a meritocratic glass ceiling, which prevents them from accessing the legitimacy and self-assurance that typically accompany success in an educational system grounded in meritocratic ideology.