The gender gap between highest-earning faculty at Ryerson is closing.

Data released last month through the public sector disclosure act of 2009 states that women make up about 42 per cent of faculty earning at least $100,000 per year. This is up compared to 35 per cent two years ago.

Women comprise 53 per cent of the top 30 earners, consisting mostly of administrative, executive and chair positions.

The highest paid female professor is Beth Swart in nursing, at $186,145.04. Meanwhile, the highest paid female in any department is Linda Grayson, vice-president of administration and finance.

Ken Jones, dean of the Ted Rogers School of Management, is not surprised that the male-female ratio is starting to even out. “We don’t differentiate between genders (when hiring),” he said, adding that salaries are not about gender, but qualifications and interests.

“If more men interested in financing have PhDs compared to women, then the numbers are proportionally better for men to get hired,” he said. “(Thus) increasing the number of potential tenured faculty making the top salaries being male.”

While Jones makes the most out of all the deans, earning $209,773.49, three of the five highest paid deans are women.

But Mitchell Kosny, interim director of the school of urban and regional planning, said the stats are misleading.

“You can’t make a full comparison (of any two faculty),” he said. “There’s different criteria for different positions,” said Kosny.

As for Ryerson president Sheldon Levy, his salary is $344,583.34, a raise of $50,000 since 2007. Including benefits he’s the highest paid person.