The Visiting Fellowships provide scholars with the opportunity of carrying out their research in the environment of a College with a tradition for scholarship and research. The Parker Library of the College has an outstanding collection of medieval manuscripts and early printed books from the collection of Matthew Parker who was Master of the College and later the Archbishop of Canterbury in the reign of Elizabeth I. The Elizabethan playwright Christopher Marlowe was a student (1581-1587), Stephen Hales was elected into a Fellowship in 1703 and carried out pioneering research on blood pressure, and Sir George Thomson, who received the Nobel Prize for his work on electron diffraction, was admitted as Master in 1952. The current Fellows of the College are involved in research and teaching over a wide range of subjects in humanities and sciences.
Scholars can normally obtain permission to use and borrow from the University library, which has one of the most comprehensive collections of books and manuscripts in the United Kingdom. They can also use some Departmental libraries; this is arranged most conveniently after arrival in Cambridge. If the scholar hopes to have bench space in a laboratory, or a similar facility, it is essential that before approaching Corpus he or she should apply to the appropriate University Department or Faculty to enquire whether such facilities can be made available for the period of the applicant’s stay in Cambridge. If a personal contact is not available it is best to write to the Head of Department in the appropriate discipline. A full list of Faculties and Departments in the University of Cambridge may be obtained by requesting the University Handbook or through the University web-site.
Visiting Fellows also have the opportunity of interacting with post-graduate students in their own discipline and over a wide range of subjects researched by post-graduates resident at Leckhampton.