By Damilare Famuyiwa,Ddamilare Famuyiwa
Copyright pulse
Progress in education, changing hiring practices, and stronger role models have led many sectors to shift from a male-dominated culture to one with visible female leadership.
More women are now enrolling in professional training, reaching senior ranks, and starting businesses that reshape workplace expectations.
Factors such as mentorship, expanded scholarship programmes, flexible work arrangements, and deliberate promotion policies have helped women move into roles that were once closed to them.
The result is practical change in who leads teams, runs firms, and shapes policy across sectors.
Below are seven careers where Nigerian women have moved from the margins to the mainstream, and how that shift has occurred in practice.
1. Law and legal practice
Law used to feel like a male preserve in courtrooms and leadership roles, but women now occupy significant portions of chambers and senior counsel positions. Female lawyers lead litigation teams, run corporate departments, and accept judicial appointments more often than before.
However, a study by the International Bar Association in 2023, highlighted problematic gender disparities across the country’s senior legal roles. Greater access to legal education and mentorship programs, as well as firm policies that prioritise diversity, explains much of the change.
There is a 50:50 by 2030 project which hopes to have fully tackled gender disparity in law by the year 2023.
2. Medicine and pharmacy
Medicine and pharmacy were once top-heavy with men in specialist roles, but today many hospitals and clinics are staffed and led by women clinicians and pharmacists. Women run outpatient units, head clinical departments, and own private practices.
Increased female enrolment in medicine and other medical-related courses, along with better workplace support for maternity leave and shifts, made clinical careers more sustainable.
3. Accounting, audit, and finance
Professional accounting was historically male-dominated, especially at the senior partner level, but women now lead audit teams, finance functions, and run accounting firms.
Professional training scholarships, female networks, and targeted mentorship opened promotion pipelines. Women in finance also utilise certifications and continuous learning to advance into executive roles and board positions.
4. Banking operations and retail management
Banks once promoted men to branch and regional manager jobs; yet, today, many branches and corporate units are led by women who manage operations, credit, and customer portfolios.
Targeted leadership programmes, inclusive policies, and more precise parental leave terms helped women advance. Their visibility encourages more young women to aspire to executive positions.
5. Human resources, corporate communications, and people roles
These functions were once viewed as support areas with limited strategic influence. Yet, women in HR and communications now play a significant role in shaping hiring strategy, employer branding, and leadership development.
Their impact on talent pipelines, culture, and retention gives them clear leverage and pathways into chief of staff and director-level roles across sectors.
6. Academia, research and education leadership
Men in senior positions once long dominated academic faculties and research teams, but female professors, department heads, and research leads are now more common.
Women secure grants, lead labs, and set curriculum priorities, which changes who trains the next generation. Fellowship schemes and hiring reforms accelerated this progress.
7. Media content creation and creative leadership
Editorial boards, production studios, and agency leadership once skewed heavily male, but women now run newsrooms, produce hit shows, and lead creative agencies.
Female founders in digital media and production build monetisation strategies and scale teams. Mentoring circles and more affordable digital tools lowered barriers for women to create and lead in the media.
These shifts demonstrate that sustained access to education, mentorship, and workplace policies can turn once-closed career doors into visible pathways for young women.
