National University Women Graduates’ Association

Administrative history

The National University Women Graduates’ Association [NUWGA] was founded in 1902 and originally called the Irish Association of Women Graduates and Candidate Graduates [IAWG & CG]. Its initial mission was to improve the rights of women in and through education and broadened to include campaigning with other women’s organisations against legislative measures discriminating against women. The IAWG & CG was affiliated to the Federation of University Women, London in 1909. It was decided in 1914 to divide the association—which until then had included all university women—into three associations: Dublin University, the National University of Ireland and Queen’s University, Belfast.

The three associations joined to form the Irish Federation of University Women in 1925 which affiliated to the International Federation of University Women in the same year.

Archival history

The records of the UCD branch of NUWGA have been deposited in UCDA in three accessions, 1983, 1984 and 1991. Each collection has been numbered respectively according to the order of its deposit: NUWGA 1 (1928–82), NUWGA 2 (1903–80) and NUWGA 3 (1961–85).

Scope and Content

IAWG & CG:Minute books, correspondence, financial records, photographs and printed material concerning its general (membership and regulations) and financial administration and activities (meetings, educational issues, women’s rights). Includes material concerning the Robertson Commission: Equality in Education and annual reports, correspondence and other material concerning the Federation of University Women.

NUWGA:Minute books, financial records, printed material, correspondence, annual reports and other records concerning the general (membership and constitution) and financial administration of NUWGA. Includes material on the activities of the association (relief work, opposition to the 1937 constitution and social events, charitable acts, dealings with Seanad Éireann and so on). Contains letters, reports and memoranda concerning organisations to which NUWGA was affiliated and reports from international conferences. Includes material concerning the British Federation of University Women and the American Association of University Women. Minutes, circulars and reports, correspondence, financial records concerning the general and financial administration of the UCD branch of NUWGA, including material concerning its charitable activities (correspondence, printed material, information circulars), publicity material, material concerning women candidates for the Governing Body elections and contact with literary figures.

Access: Available byappointmentto holders of a UCDA reader's ticket. Produced for consultation in microform and original format.Original material will be retrieved on Fridays only. It will be made available for consultation in the UCD Special Collections reading room on Level One of the James Joyce Library.

Language: English

Finding aids: 

NUWGA1 descriptive catalogue

NUWGA2 descriptive catalogue

NUWGA3 descriptive catalogue