ABSTRACT
This study examines middle managers’ career opportunities in public administration and identifi es factors that encourage women to remain in management positions. It is argued that concepts such as ‘habitus’, ‘gender’ and ‘positioning’ are useful in considering the situation of women and men in the public sector. This analysis identifi es a power structure within the social welfare service in Sweden that results in the prioritisation of a certain type of competence. The research shows that women and men have different strategies when they apply for higher level appointments and that women keep their children at the centre of their concerns, even when they follow traditional career paths. Despite women outnumbering men in this sector, it is contended that public administration is structured according to a traditional model that benefi ts men.
