In the late nineteenth century, women had made considerable progress into the educational system. From societies with little or no formal education for women in the early 1800s, schools, exams and even universities had opened their doors for girls. In some cases, the origins of the development can be found in the Enlightenment, in other cases, political, economic or other local issues contributed to the increased inclusion of women in educational efforts. In large parts of Europe, however, the activity of the nineteenth-century women's movements focused on female access to education and the right to use accrued knowledge by taking office within wider society. The education system, healthcare and social care were logical extensions of the female sphere. The civil service, however, a logical enough route for educated women, was for a long time closed, until new innovations created activities deemed suitable for women. Female entry into social welfare activities related to women and children also found support in many quarters.

While the increase in access to education followed similar patterns of development, one should not ignore the influence of the higher degree of involvement by the state or local administration in continental and Northern Europe in comparison with the private nature of education in Britain and the USA.

The early steps for including girls into the education system in post-revolutionary France had their roots in the 1830s and the first teacher training school, the Normal School for Girls, was founded in 1838. For a long time the Catholic Church had a strong grip on the female educational sector and from 1867 this virtual monopoly was contested by the state. The private sector had been offering women teacher training from the 1850s but not until the 1880s was a state secondary schools system created for women.