History of Women at ETH
The ETH Zurich Library's platform "Explora" provides an exciting overview of the history of ETH Zurich and the long road to equality and equal rights for men and women in academic institutions in Switzerland. Learn more here.
1855 When ETH opened its doors women were explicitly entitled to study.
1871 The first female student, Nadezda Smeckaja from Russia, begins her studies in mechanical engineering.
1877 The first female graduate, Marie Kowalik from Russia, finishes her studies in agronomy and forestry.
1879 The first female pharmacologist, Concordia Isotomine from Russia, finishes her studies.
1895 The first female Swiss student, Maja Knecht, graduates in natural sciences.
1909 The first woman, Hedwig Delpy from Germany, acquires a doctor’s degree from ETH. She is the sixth doctoral candidate since ETH was entitled to confer the doctorate in 1908.
1910 The first woman to qualify as a senior lecturer is the geologist Laura Herzner from Germany.
1919 The first woman to qualify as a civil engineer is Elsa Diamant from Hungary.
1923 The first woman to graduate as an architect is Flora Steiger-Crawford from Scotland.
1976 The association of students at ETH elects its first female president, Barbara Haering, the later member of the Federal Assembly of Switzerland.
1979 The first woman to acquire the title of a honorary professor is the geobotanist Krystina Urbanska.
1985 The first woman to acquire a full professorship is the architect Flora Ruchat-Roncati.
1987 The VESADA association is founded by committed female students, assistants, lecturers and graduates from ETH. It fosters networking under women scientists and demands increased efforts for the advancement of women at ETH.
1991 A staff unit for women affairs is founded to coordinate and implement the suggestions for improvement concerning the advancement of women.
1992 The first woman to receive the title of a honorary doctor from ETH is the American environmental activist Donella H. Meadows.
1993 ETH’s Office for Equal Opportunity is founded.
1997 ETH already counts eight full, three associate and eight assistant women professors. Besides five women researchers are entitled a professor.
2007 The first woman to be elected as rector of ETH is Heidi Wunderli-Allenspach, professor for biopharmacology. As such she is member of the Executive Board and responsible for education at the ETH.
2019 The Office for Equal Opportunities for Women and Men becomes the Office for Equal Opportunities and Diversity.
2021 By the strategical expansion of the diversity topics in 2021, it was renamed to ETH Diversity.
Sources:
Eidgenössische Kommission für Frauenfragen (Hg.): Frauen- und gleichstellungspolitische Ereignisse in der Schweiz 1848-1998, Bern 1999.
Stelle für Chancengleichheit von Mann und Frau an der ETH Zürich (Hg.): Wege in die Wissenschaft. Professorinnen an der ETH: 16 Portraits, Zürich 1997.