This research guide provides an overview of the collections available and links to resources from the Department of Distinctive Collections. This guide will continue to evolve and grow as the initiative continues.

Materials available for research include correspondence, meeting minutes, course materials, and printed matter.

The below outside resources are selected as a primer to understanding the history of women attending and working at MIT. Like in many other areas, women have worked hard to gain a place in STEM fields. In 1999, MIT acknowledged the very real barriers women face in STEM at the Institute and have published further reports on women's experiences at the Institute.

Under the Lens: Women Biologists and Chemists at MIT (1865-2024)

A digital version of an exhibit at the Maihaugen Gallery in Spring 2024 looking at the legacy of Ellen Swallow Richards, the Woman's Laboratory, and the work women have done at MIT in Biology, Biological Engineering, Chemistry, and Chemical Engineering.

A Wider Horizon - How Katharine Dexter McCormick changed the world and MIT

A digital version of an exhibit in the Hayden Loft in Spring 2025, this exhibit celebrates the 150th birthday of Katharine Dexter McCormick, tracing McCormick’s journey from MIT biology student to fearless suffragist, scientist, visionary philanthropist and driving force behind the world’s first birth control pill. In her later years, she also funded McCormick Hall, MIT’s only on-campus women’s dormitory.

Women's and Gender Studies Program at MIT

Founded in 1984, MIT's Women's and Gender Studies Program (WGS) currently houses two interdisciplinary research groups: the Borders Research Initiative; and the Gender and Technology Initiative. The Graduate Consortium in Women's Studies, was established in 1993 by MIT and six other Boston-area institutions. Harvard University, Boston College, Brandeis University, Tufts University, Northeastern University, Boston University, and Simmons University. WGS offers an undergraduate curriculum. Students may concentrate, minor, or major (by petition) in WGS.

MIT Diversity Timeline Project

Created by the Institute Community and Equity Office to ensure that they adequately represent the depth and breadth of the MIT community, timelines were compiled for five groups to date.  Note: This is an archived webpage and the links are still active but not obvious. To access one of the timelines, click on the title of it.

MIT Diversity Reports

A collection of reports addressing issues of diversity and inclusion, curated by the Institute Community and Equity Office.

AMITA 120 Timeline

For it's 120th anniversary, the Association of MIT Alumnae created a timeline documenting the history of women at MIT.

A Lab of Their Own

A history of MIT's Woman's Laboratory, which was started by MIT's first woman graduate, Ellen Swallow Richards. 

The Women@MIT archival initiative seeks to add the records of cis and trans women faculty, staff, students, and alumnae to the historic record by collecting, preserving, and sharing their life and work with MIT and global audiences. Extending from this initiative we are also making efforts to acquire, preserve, and make accessible the papers of non-binary and gender non-conforming individuals at MIT to help share their stories and contributions. 

Collections, events, fellowships, and exhibits created by the Women@MIT initiative are open to all regardless of background or identity.

Questions about the Women@MIT Initiative? Contact Distinctive Collections here or at ask-ddc@mit.libanswers.com.