In the early summer of 1972, 69 young women graduated from the SwedishSchool of Sports Science and were thus given the prestigious title of Gymnastic Director. The aim of this article is to analyse the professional careers of thegraduates. This is done by means of a collective biographical study of the 43 whoanswered a questionnaire. To widen the scope the answers have been comparedwith results from studies of women who graduated from the school in 1893 and1932. In terms of age and geographical origin the women who graduated in 1972did not differ in any significant way from their predecessors. However, they differed from them in several other regards, including social background. Until themiddle of the 20th century this education had been for the daughters of the elite,in the early 1970s it was an education for young and ambitious daughters of theSwedish welfare state with career ambitions. They were also able to sustain theircareers when they started a family. In light of what we know about them, it isright to categorize them as successful social climbers, which thanks to the socialbroadening of higher education were given previously unseen opportunities toutilize their talent.