February 11, 2014, by H Cotterill

50 years of Medical School records

2014 marks 50 years since it was first announced that a new medical school and teaching hospital was to be built in Nottingham. The announcement, made in Parliament on 27th July 1964, led to the creation of the University of Nottingham Medical School, part of the Queen’s Medical Centre. Now with the help of funding from Sir Peter Rubin’s Research Fund the records of the medical school have been made available for the first time via the Manuscripts and Special Collections online catalogue.

On 4th February Professor Sir Peter Rubin, Chair of the General Medical Council and Boots Professor of Medicine at the University of Nottingham, visited Manuscripts and Special Collections to view the archive of the Medical School. Cataloguing the records of the Medical School has uncovered a wealth of material relating to the School’s early years. Highlights of the collection include over 300 architect’s plans of the QMC, which allow researchers to trace the development of the design for the hospital and school. Over 350 photographs and 100 slides detail both the construction of the building and the academic life of the school whilst planning files describe the enormous amount of work that went into creating the School and getting it ready for the first intake of students in 1970.

Committee papers give researchers a unique insight into the planning of the medical school curriculum. The University of Nottingham Medical School was the first new medical school to be built in the UK in the twentieth century. Staff took the opportunity to rethink the way in which medicine is taught and designed a curriculum which includes a research element as an integral part of the degree. This continues to this day and all graduates of the Medical School receive a BMedSci degree after successful completion of the first three years of the course as well as the BMBS degree required to graduate as a doctor at the end of the five year course.

Photograph of staff of the Medical School with the first class of medical students

Are you a past student of the University of Nottingham Medical School? Do you have photographs or other records that would help to enhance the history of the School? If so we would love to hear from you. Please contact Manuscripts and Special Collections on mss-library@nottingham.ac.uk

The catalogue of the Medical School collection is available to view online

Further information about the history of the Medical School and the contents of the archive is available on the Manuscripts and Special Collections website at http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/manuscriptsandspecialcollections/collectionsindepth/university/university-collection/university-of-nottingham-medical-school.aspx

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