In 2023, the American Philosophical Society presented Pursuit & Persistence: 300 Years of Women in Science, an exhibition at the APS Museum. The exhibition celebrated the resilience and achievements of women scientists throughout history. It delved into how women carve out their places in science, achieve breakthroughs, and generously assist others along the way.

In conjunction with this exhibition, the APS, with the generous support of the Mellon Foundation, established a year-long postdoctoral fellowship to conduct oral history interviews with prominent women scientists within the APS membership. These oral histories are now a part of the APS Library & Museum collection.

The women who participated in the Women in Science Oral History Project shared their personal journeys, discussing the origins of their interest in science, the challenges they experienced in their fields, and the profound personal and intellectual satisfaction they gained through their careers.

The following page highlights several of the oral histories conducted for this project. Each section features an individual scientist and contains links to printed transcriptions of their interviews. Select oral histories also contain audio content. The APS will add more oral histories to this website as they become available.