A Note on Women Fellows in Chemistry

3 THE UNDERGRADUATE ENTRY INTO OXFORD AND THE CHEMISTRY COURSE 

As explained in the previous chapter before the Second World War the chance of coming to Oxford for many students was limited by the English class structure with its educational and financial biases. In general, undergraduates in the 1920-44 period were likely to be from relatively rich families with an 

These numbers could give a false impression of the total change in the University that show that numbers of undergraduates in Science subjects as a whole increased from 20% in 1939 to somewhat below one half of the total in 2000. 

to reach the standard of ability in required subjects for entry into a specific Oxford course via an entrance, scholarship examination, the candidates were restricted by their schools to subjects suitable for Oxford sub-faculty courses describable in terms of Higher School Certificate or Advanced school examinations (A-levels) as follows fundamental mathematics, with a physical science, only for mathematicians advanced mathematics and physics for physicists mathematics (at a lower level), physics and chemistry for chemists. All Arts subjects were virtually outside a science course from age 15 to 18 and no examination results in biological subjects were in general acceptable to these sub-faculties and so were excluded for aspiring school chemists. These restrictions are much less marked today but they characterised attitudes in the chemistry school for many a year. The requirement of having passed a national test in Latin was only removed in 1960. 

A very interesting development in the university was the idea of mixed colleges of men and women, unknown in 1945. In the years from 1945 to 1965 

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