Newnham College, Cambridge passionately that equality could only be expressed by women doing the same courses as the men, on the same time-table. This meant that Girton attracted a much smaller population in its early years. But the Newnham Council held its ground, reinforced by the commitment of many of its members to educational reform generally and a wish to change some of the courses Cambridge was offering to its men. In 1948 Newnham, like Girton, attained the full status of a college of the university. The university as an institution at first took no notice of these women and arrangements to sit
Murray Edwards College, Cambridge Murray Edwards College, Cambridge Murray Edwards College is a women-only constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It was founded as "New Hall" in 1954 but, unlike many other colleges, it was founded without a significant endowment and thus did not bear a benefactor's name. This situation changed in 2008 following a donation of £30 million by alumna Ros Edwards ("née" Smith) and her husband Steve Edwards to secure the future of the College as a college at the University of Cambridge in perpetuity. In recognition of this, New Hall was renamed Murray Edwards College - honouring the first President,