Spanish Association of University Women
The Spanish Federation of University Women (FEMU) is a group for women in Spanish universities. It began in 1920 as a women’s association called the Female University Youth (JUF), and its first president was Elisa Soriano Fischer. The JUF joined the International Federation of University Women (FIMU) in London. At the first international meeting in London, Maria de Maeztu spoke about higher education for women; at the 1922 Paris meeting, her report showed that conditions were getting worse.
In 1928 Spain hosted the XII Conference and, by then, almost 1,700 women were enrolled in universities. The association’s goals were to defend women’s right to access university study and to change laws that prevented women from entering higher education equally with men. From 1929 to 1936, the JUF began addressing broader political and social issues for women, influenced by changes in Spain and by a new president, Clara Campoamor.
The Civil War stopped the association’s work, and although there was an attempt to restart in 1953, it had to proceed carefully with the new government. The new group, now called the Spanish Association of University Women (AEMU), was led by María Teresa Bermejo and Justina Ruiz Malaxechevarría, who connected with American women and Spanish exiles. By 1955 the association had more than 100 members, including notable women such as Isabel García Lorca and Jimena Menéndez Pidal. Its aims remained defending equal access to university and supporting women as students, while fostering international friendship and a liberal outlook.
Between 1970 and 1973 there were many changes and tensions as feminist and leftist ideas grew in Spain. Natacha Seseña pushed to open the association to young university women, and Jimena Alonso's leadership from 1973 to 1976 strengthened the feminist dimension. The arrival of democracy in the 1980s brought changes that the association struggled to fit into, and economic difficulties led to its decline and eventual disappearance in 1989, with Helena Araluce as its last president.
The federation resumed in 2007 when members from Álava, Bilbao, and Madrid met in Lerma (Burgos) to revive the spirit of the founders and form what is now the Spanish Federation of University Women (FEMU). By 2023, the federation included AMUB (Bizkaia), AMUM (Marbella), and AMUMU (Murcia). Its mission remains to provide equal opportunities through education.
One program is the Spanish-Speaking Cultural Bridge, created under FEMU’s leadership as part of the GWI twinning program. It connects the Federations of University Women from Argentina, Bolivia, Spain, Mexico, Panama, and Paraguay, creating a cultural and twinning forum among Spanish-speaking countries.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 12:58 (CET).