Medical Memories and Experiences in Post-War East Germany, 1945-1961 (Research)

(1) The Project

"Medical Memories and Experiences in Post-War East Germany, 1945-1961" is a postgraduate research project supervised by Professor Ulf Schmidt and Dr Stefan Goebel.

While medicine and health stood at the heart of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), how can we examine, capture and understand the highly paradoxical and ambiguous nature of East German medicine? Some sixty years after having been founded, fifty years after the building of the Berlin Wall, and twenty-years after German unification, we still know relatively little about the traumatic memories and medical experiences of soldiers returning home from the battlefields, of women and children fleeing from destroyed cities, of broken communities and painful memories which made many all the more determined to construct a new, visionary society. By the late 1950s, the GDR had turned into a ‘welfare dictatorship’ (Jarausch 1999) in which one of the most progressive health systems existed alongside medical paternalism, surveillance and repression, a society plagued by day-to-day intimidation and ethics violations, yet scholars have so far largely neglected this aspect of modern German history.

The successful candidate will have a good background knowledge in modern German history and a keen interest in theories and methodologies in social, medical and cultural history.

(2) The Scholarship

The scholarship is available to UK, EU and overseas students and will cover tuition fees (home/EU rate) plus a maintenance bursary.

The scholarship will be offered for one year in the first instance, renewable for a maximum of three years, subject to satisfactory academic performance.

(3) Applicant Specification

This opportunity is open to postgraduate research applicants who have applied or are applying to the School of History for entry in the academic year starting September 2013. Please visit Kent's postgraduate pages for comprehensive information about how to apply for postgraduate research study.

Candidates must hold a master's degree (merit or distinction) in a relevant subject.

(4) Application Process

To apply for this scholarship applicants must:
Provide a copy of their CV and write a covering letter explaining why they are interested in commencing a PhD on this project. This should include full name, address, telephone number and email address, as well as the names and contact details of two referees (address, e-mail, telephone number).

The deadline for receipt of applications eligible for this scholarship is 31 January 2013. Shortlisted applicants will be invited to a panel-led interview in February 2013.

CVs and covering letters should be sent by post or by email to:

Post:

"Medical Memories and Experiences in Post-War East Germany" Scholarship Applications
c/o Juliette Ashby
School of History,
Rutherford College,
The University of Kent,
Canterbury,
Kent.
CT2 7NX
Email:

Juliette Ashby (J.C.Ashby@kent.ac.uk)