Whilst attending a conference hosted by the fantastic University of Padua I learnt that this university awarded the first PhD to a woman. Helena Lucretia Cornaro Piscopia was born to a noble family in Venice and after being refused for a degree in theology she completed a doctorate in philosophy and became a professor of mathematics at the University of Padua. All of this in the 17th century!
Helena Lucretia Cornaro Piscopia was a multi-talented woman. She is best known as being the first woman to obtain a doctorate in philosophy. In her short life she became proficient in many academic fields and she dedicated her life and energies to serving the book.
http://www.women-philosophers.com/Helena-Lucretia-Cornaro-Piscopia.html
