FEMALE scientists at Oxford University are being put in the spotlight on a new website to encourage others to follow in their footsteps.

The new site, womeninscience.ox.ac.uk, delves into the experiences of successful scientists who studied at the university.

It features a collection of video interviews with 39 women at various points in their careers to tell the story of an ongoing culture shift for women in the field.

Those interviewed, who hail from departments including biochemistry, computing and plant sciences as well as medicine, say that discrimination is rarely experienced.

Sue Ziebland, professor of medical sociology at the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, said: "We found that many women feel that working in science is hugely rewarding, though it is evident that women had to work incredibly hard to succeed.

"While women were aware of persistent gender inequalities at senior levels, they could also see that this was changing.

"The University needs to continue its commitment to transparency, regular appraisals, mentorship, and maintaining awareness of unconscious bias to facilitate a continued culture shift for women working at all levels of science."

Interviews were conducted by Dr Alison Chapple, a research lecturer at the university's Health Experience Research Group.