noether was born to a jewish family in the franconian town of erlangen; her father was a mathematician, max noether. she originally planned to teach french and english after passing the required examinations, but instead studied mathematics at the university of erlangen, where her father lectured. after completing her dissertation in 1907 under the supervision of paul gordan, she worked at the mathematical institute of erlangen without pay for seven years. at the time, women were largely excluded from academic positions. in 1915, she was invited by david hilbert and felix klein to join the mathematics department at the university of göttingen, a world-renowned center of mathematical research. the philosophical faculty objected, however, and she spent four years lecturing under hilbert's name. her habilitation was approved in 1919, allowing her to obtain the rank of "privatdozent".