Barriers to administrative advancement for women in academe are discussed. A study of perceived managerial style and leadership skill of women two-year college presidents was designed to fill a gap in research during an era of significant advancement opportunities for women. Leadership in higher education in the United States is gradually changing; in the period from 1975-1984, there has been a 93% increase in the number of women chief executive officers. Still, in 1985, less than 10% of presidential appointments were women. Leadership image is one of the major problems facing women trying to rise to the top level of their professions, since role models are few. In college and university administration, women administrators do "women's work," and they rarely serve as deans of business, engineering, or technology. Problems include such specific on-the-job factors as differential reward systems, discrimination in pay or promotion, and lack of support for professional growth. Other findings include: the higher the rank, the fewer the women; the higher the prestige of administrative jobs, the fewer the women; and women are promoted more often in smaller steps, while men are promoted less often but make greater leaps. Contains 32 references. (SM)