The University of Waterloo Police are investigating after the student election campaign signs of female candidates were postered over last week.

They were covered with a poster that included a photo of the Nobel Prize-winning chemist and physicist Marie Curie, whose work led to cancer treatment and nuclear technology.

The text on the poster read "THE TRUTH. The brightest Woman this Earth ever created was Marie Curie, The mother of the Nuclear Bomb. You tell me if the plan of Women leading Men is still a good idea."

The poster was also attached to a fraudulent email that purported to be sent from Feridun Hamdullahpur, the university's president.

According to the Daily Bulletin from the university's Communications and Public Affairs Department, Hamdullahpur said in an email "This kind of behaviour in our community is rare and unacceptable, and one I know our faculty, staff and students don't support."

He also said police services are taking "appropriate action."

Ellen Rethore, vice president of public affairs at the University of Waterloo, says "It's a very rare occurrence at the University of Waterloo and I think the region knows that, and very offensive, these posters denigrate women."

The university doesn't know how many posters were put up, but campus police have increased security patrols in the buildings as the criminal investigation continues.