I guessed you were from the U.K.! (The "lecturer" terminology was a tip-off.)

I went to co-ed schools, but my late mother (1931-1995) was a microbiologist/toxicologist, and she got her masters and doctoral degrees when we were old enough to remember her working on classes and papers. She also faced sexism and agism in getting jobs, so I had pretty realistic ideas about women in the sciences.