In 1939 women represented nearly one quarter of the student population in British universities. Though tantamount to a social revolution in the eyes of many contemporaries, the process has recieved scant attention from historians. Whilst prejudice and hostility towards women lingered on in Oxford and Cambridge, it has often been assumed that the female presence was welcomed elsewhere. The younger, civic universities commonly advertised themselves as making no distinction of sex in admissions, appointments, or in educational policy.; This work of social history, based on extensive archival research, examines the truth of these claims and explores the experiences of women teachers and students in this period.