'An awfully ignorant mob' or 'Embryo doctors'?: Dissecting medical student culture and the shaping of medical professional identity in Ireland, c.1800-1950. (360G-Wellcome-101787_Z_13_Z)

This application seeks funding to visit relevant archives in London as part of a wider postdoctoral study I am undertaking on the history of Irish medical students' experiences, c.1800-1950. I will produce a public outreach blog post on the use of medical memoirs as a genre and on the importance of the Wellcome Library collections to Irish medical history. The research grant will also make a significant contribution to the outputs of the wider project which are a monograph and three peer-reviewe d journal articles. The postdoctoral study, funded by an Irish Research Council postdoctoral fellowship (2012-14) assesses how Irish medical schools inculcated students with the hallmarks of medical professional identity and whether there was anything distinctive about Irish medical students' educational experiences in the period. The fellowship does not provide funds for travel and a Wellcome Trust Research Expenses grant would enable me to undertake vital research at the British Library, W ellcome Library and Royal College of Surgeons Library, drawing upon relevant contemporary lecturers' addresses, student magazines, diaries, lecture notes, and student guides. These sources, many of which are archival in nature, are not available at Irish libraries and it is vital that they are viewed in person.