April 20 will make 150 years since Aletta Jacobs became the first woman to enroll at the RUG
The University of Groningen and its associated community is to honour Aletta Jacobs with a so-called ‘Aletta year’. Jacobs successfully passed her state medical exams in 1877 and 1878 and became the first female doctor in the Netherlands. In 1879 she obtained her doctorate and started working as a general practitioner in Amsterdam. Jacobs was the first woman in the Netherlands to complete a full academic education at a Dutch university. As reported by the GIC.
The registration of Aletta Jacobs in 1871 was a turning point in Dutch history, and so across the ‘Aletta Year’, the University of Groningen, together with the UMCG, AJSPH, University Museum and Studium Generale, will organize multiple activities to commemorate her life.
The ‘Aletta Year’ will start with the release of the first of two special podcasts on the influence of women on Dutch science on April 20. The podcasts will include Marian Joëls, dean of the UMCG and author of the new book “Baanbreeksters”. A second (English) podcast will follow on 28 April in which the influence of women is placed in an international perspective. Cisca Wijmenga, Rector Magnificus of the RUG, will be one of the guests.
During the Aletta year, the RUG is developing several activities, including the spring launch of a city walk aimed at following in the footsteps of the first women at the University of Groningen. There is also an artist project with Aletta Jacobs as the central theme, which will lead to the unveiling of a mural in a special place in Groningen. More information is available via the RUG website.
