Women in Higher Education in the 19th Century

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  • Introduction

    Introduction
    Throughout history, women had been excluded from higher education in America due to gender norms, as they were expected to fulfill domestic roles in the household. This expectation began shifting in the 19th century with the rise of coed and women's colleges. Even so, coed institutions did not always treat male and female students equally, and women faced many barriers in their pursuit of academic degrees.

  • Oberlin College becomes the first coeducational institution of higher learning

    Oberlin College becomes the first coeducational institution of higher learning
    Oberlin College in Ohio was coed from its founding in 1833, but the Bachelor's program was open exclusively to white male students. Female students could only receive diplomas from the "Ladies Course". In 1835, the college began permitting black men to apply as well. Finally, in 1837, Oberlin accepted four female students to the Bachelor's program, and three of them graduated in 1841 with degrees.

  • Wesleyan (Macon, Georgia) becomes the first women's college in the world

    Wesleyan (Macon, Georgia) becomes the first women's college in the world
    Wesleyan College in Georgia was founded as the Georgia Female College in 1836. It was a result of the collaboration between the Georgia Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church and other Macon citizens involved in the antebellum women's rights movement. The college began enrollment in 1839, accepting 90 women.

  • University of Iowa become the first coed public university

    University of Iowa become the first coed public university
    The University of Iowa was founded in 1847 but did not begin admitting women and men equally until 1860. Public university education was further developed when the Morrill Act passed in 1862, reserving land for each state to open a university focused on educating the agricultural and industrial populations. These were more accessible to the general population than private colleges. Every state land-grant charter included women's admission by 1890, increasing women's access to higher education.

  • Mary Jane Patterson earns a bachelor's degree

    Mary Jane Patterson earns a bachelor's degree
    Mary Jane Patterson was a pioneering African American woman who graduated from Oberlin's bachelor's program in 1862 with high honors. This made her the first Black woman in the United States to earn a degree. In 1869, she went on to become an educator at the Preparatory High School for Colored Youth in Washington DC, becoming principal of the school in 1871.

  • Harvard established Radcliffe College to educate women separately from men

    Harvard established Radcliffe College to educate women separately from men
    Most Ivy League schools didn't admit women until the 1960s or later but paired with sister schools as a compromise. A group of women's rights reformers founded the Harvard Annex in 1879 where women could take classes from Harvard professors. By 1894 it was officially established as Radcliffe College, and degrees were countersigned by the Harvard president. During WWI, Harvard finally began accepting female students and the colleges merged in 1999.

  • Sources

    Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. Encyclopedia of the Great Plains | WOMEN IN HIGHER EDUCATION. (n.d.). Retrieved April 10, 2023. A history of women in Higher Education: BestColleges. BestColleges.com. (2023, March 20). Retrieved April 10, 2023. History. Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University. (n.d.). Retrieved April 10, 2023. Mary Jane Patterson. (n.d.). Retrieved April 10, 2023. Memory, O. (2021, December 3). Learning and labor: The history of oberlin college.

  • Sources (Continued)

    Milestones in University of Iowa history. Celebrating 175 years - The University of Iowa. (1970, January 1). Retrieved April 10, 2023 Wesleyan College history. Wesleyan College History. (n.d.). Retrieved April 10, 2023. Women in higher education: 5 key facts and statistics: Bestcolleges. BestColleges.com. (2023, April 6). Retrieved April 10, 2023.