For more than 25 years, with the creation of the Diploma in Gender Studies in 1990, the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru has played an important role in the country by researching and making visible gender inequalities. Part of its work has been to create and promote spaces for research and social transformation in areas where women are underrepresented.

In 2012, the Diploma in Gender Studies became the M.A. in Gender Studies in response to the high demand for specialized gender training from the public sector, academia and civil society. Its aim is to promote the development of skills for the design, management, monitoring and promotion of equal opportunities in public and private institutions, in addition to renewing the narratives behind research topics on gender relations in Peru.

Following these efforts, in 2016 the UNESCO Chair on Gender Equality in Higher Education Institutions at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru was created under the direction of Dr. Patricia Ruiz Bravo, Professor of the Academic Department of Social Sciences.

The goals of the UNESCO Chair are the following: (1) to investigate the situation of women in higher education institutions in the country, (2) to raise awareness among the university’s community about gender inequalities, and (3) to promote the development of institutional policies that foster more equitable and inclusive academic spaces.