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BUILDING THE NATION THROUGH WOMEN'S HEALTH: MODERN ...

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Materials on women like this are very limited or nonexistent. Name lists from professional<br />

associations and training schools record birthplaces and dates of their members and students.<br />

School records and yearbooks, articles from professional journals, and an occasional short life<br />

story give us a glimpse into the lives of the midwives themselves. Finally, missionary hospital<br />

reports occasionally give statistical information about the women who patronized them. We can<br />

also make some inferences about the midwives based on information we have about their<br />

training programs.<br />

The requirements to enter medical school were strenuous and therefore were open only to<br />

the most advantaged women. Admission requirements for the North China Union Medical<br />

College for Women in Beijing (established in 1908) included three years of English study. All<br />

coursework was in Mandarin, but students were expected to read English to keep up with the<br />

medical literature. It was a six-year course, with the first three consisting of lectures and clinical<br />

work at the Methodist and Presbyterian women’s hospitals. In addition to the medical college,<br />

there were also two nearby boarding schools where girls could study Mandarin or make up for<br />

other educational deficiencies. In 1908 they had two students from two provinces, and in 1910<br />

the school had at least six students from four provinces. 494<br />

In contrast, admission requirements for midwifery schools were not as stringent, allowing<br />

girls with less education to attend. For example, the Central Field Health Station (Central Field<br />

Health Station) Central Midwifery School in Nanjing curriculum was more easily accessible.<br />

Junior middle school graduates could take a three-year course, and primary school graduates<br />

could enroll in a six-month course in hygienic midwifery. 495 Some schools, like the Central<br />

494 Gloss, "Medical Education for Women in North China."<br />

495 LON-HO, "Collaboration with the Government of China: First Report of the Central Field Health Station," C.H.<br />

1195, (League of Nations Health Organization, 1934).<br />

199

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