The study was intended to assess the representation of female academic staff in selectedrncolleges of Addis Ababa University. This study is a qualitative research and wasrnconducted by using a case study method. Three colleges and one institute were selectedrnby purposive sampling method. From these 10 male leaders 10 female instructors, 1rnfemale leader, 3 experts, and 60 female post graduate students totally 84 individuals werernincluded in the study through purposive sampling technique. Questionnaire, interviewrnand document review were used to gather data. Data analysis was made by frequency andrnpercentile using SPSS version 16 and through in depth discussion. The qualitative studyrnrevealed that almost all of the respondents have said current female representation inrnAddis Ababa University is very low. The majority of students and instructors reportedrnlack of competent female is the main factor for uneven representation of female inrnacademic staff. As it is reported by majority of instructors and students; lack ofrnopportunity, Lack of interested female, Low acceptance and expectation of society arernalso the other factors for low representation. Social factors in relation to culturalrnbackground,classroom management, family responsibility wifely hood, motherhood, andrnpsychological disturbances in relation to self-esteem, self-confidence, poor educationalrnbackground and low motivation were reported as cause of the less participation of womenrnin the role of educational engagements. The findings of this study have indicated that,rneven though there was even female participation in primary and secondary schools, stillrnthere are a limited number of female students in higher education post graduate programsrnand as a result there is uneven representation of female instructors in the university. Thernimpact of this uneven participation of women is said to affect the development of thernsociety as well as the country at large in getting role model for the coming generation. Itrnis recommended that concerned bodies give close attention to the situation and takernaction to alleviate female participation in academia and ensure gender equality. Policyrnmakers must design policies and strategies which could help to change the current lowrnrepresentation of women in the university academia. Affirmative action and genderrnmainstreaming should also be incorporated in hiring procedures of the university as muchrnas possible.rnKey words: interest, uneven representation, gender audits, academia, mainstreaming