The establishment of the National University of Ireland (NUI) in 1908 brought an end to a protracted dispute over the "Irish university question" which had dominated the Irish political agenda at least since the 1850s. The central issue throughout this entire period was the provision of acceptable university education for lay Catholics, who argued that their entitlement to a university of their own was not being met. Despite the highly charged nature of the Irish university question, the issue of women's place within any university settlement received scant attention. The issue of providing for a more egalitarian model of university education was narrowly understood in terms of denominational equity. This article describes the historical context of how women had to fight for meaningful inclusion under the co-educational model in the Irish university system.