Bio

Jean Tzu-Yin Chou (周姿吟） is a Ph.D candidate in Economic and Social History at the University of Glasgow (UofG), United Kingdom who works on social history of medicine in Singaporean history during the Straits-Settelements-Era.

Beyond her research, Chou serves as a PhD tutor for nearly three years in Scotland, leading seminars in Foundations of Welfare, Health Policy, Urban Studies, Global Economic and Social History, and Social and Cultural European History. She also had one-year tutoring experience (in Taiwanese Mandarin/Chinese Tradtional) as a teaching assistant for World History during her Bachelor’s studies in Taiwan.

Jean has three-year teaching experience (in English) in Scotland as PhD tutor/Graudate Teaching Assistant and Besides, Jean is awarded for visiting fellowship at Asian Research Institute, National University of Singapore (Singapore) in 2024 Summer (June-July, hybrid).

Prior to Jean's Ph.D studies, she holds a Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Theory from National Taiwan University (Taiwan) and a Master of Science in History of Science, Technology and Medicine from the University of Manchester (UK). Her academic training includes additional graduate studies in Contemporary India at the University of Oxford (UK) and Historical Research at the University of Edinburgh (UK).

Chou was also awarded a visiting fellowship at the Asian Research Institute, National University of Singapore for Summer 2024 (hybrid).

Academic Publication, Book Review, and Academic Conference

1 Jul 2025. University of Otago. Dunedin, New Zealand (online). 27th ICHST (International Congress of History of Science &Technology). ‘Technical collaboration, institutional leadership, and partnerships of Singapore in Southeast Asia: BCG vaccination campaign, SATA, and Singaporean Vaccination Diplomacy, circa 1960s-1980s’ in ‘Symposium 099: The Flow of Knowledge, Technology, and Materials in the 20th Century from the Perspective of Science Diplomacy: Focusing on Asia’.

2 May 2025. 2025 Boston, MA, United State. 2025 Meeting for American Association for History of Medicine. "Commodification of Acupuncture in the UK: Examining the perceptions of TCM patients/Customers from 1970s to the Post-Covid Period".

16-19 Jul 2024. Athena Institute at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU), Amsterdam (the Netherlands). European Association for the Study of Science and Technology (EASST) and the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S). 

"Establishing Singaporean Nationhood by Servicing Pharma-Manufacturing in the Biopolis: Centralised-Control and Governmentally-Funding Supplement for Germfree and Gnotobiotic Mice through Experiments." Panel Convenor (with Dr. Po-Shun Chen, University of Manchester and Mr. Tsung-Jen Hung, University of Sydney) and panellist for ‘Trial Animals for Nationhood: Constructing Nationalist Medicines through Animal Experiments’ at the EASST-4S 2024 Amsterdam: Making and Doing Transformations.

24-28 Jun 2024. Asian Research Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore. The 19th Singapore Graduate Forum on Southeast Asian Studies. "The first phase of institutionalization for Traditional Chinese Medicine: A Case Study on establishments and relocations of Thong Chai Medical Institute between c. 1880s and 1900s."

14 Sep 2023 at University of Cardiff, Cardiff (United Kingdom). British Society for the History of Medicine (BSHM). ‘Chinese temples in the British colonial Singapore: medical therapeutic functions of religious spaces for Traditional Chinese Medicine’, presented at the BSHM Congress 2023.

20-25 Aug 2023 at the Goethe University Frankfurt (Frankfurt, Germany). The International Society for the History of East Asian Science, Technology and Medicine (ISHEASTM). "Rethinking the complexities and entanglements of Straits Chinese communities in the colonial Singapore: Discourses and advertisements of opium consumption and detoxification, circa 1830s-1930s," presented at the 16th International Conference on the History of Science in East Asia (ICHSEA).

3 Jul 2023 at Newcastle University, United Kingdom. Memorial Studies Association (MSA). ‘Kinmenese Luò Fan and sojourning in Singapore, c. 1880s-1910s: the forming of compatriotism among the Kinmenese,’ presented at PhD Forward workshop of the 7th Annual Conference for MSA: Communities & Change.

20 Jun 2023 at Singapore Management University, Singapore City, Singapore. The Society for Global Nineteenth Century Studies.
"Walking the Edge of Empire: Hospital Fundraising and Establishments by Trans-Local Chinese Communities in British Colonial Singapore, c. 1860s-1910s," presented in the Panel: Professional and Trans- imperial Networks on the First World Congress of the Society for Global Nineteenth Century Studies: Comparative Empire: Conflict, Competition, and Cooperation, 1750-1914.

3 Sep 2019 at The National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS), Tokyo City, Japan. The GRIPS. ‘People are equal, but some are more equal than others’, presented at the 8th GRIPS Student Conference: Public Policy for Peace and Sustainable Growth.

25-28 Jun 2019 at Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain. Memorial Studies Association (MSA). "The Grand Tour of Majolica: A Colonial History among Indo-Pacific Ocean (circa 1920s-1030s)’ in the Panel ‘Sites of Memory," on the 3rd Annual Conference for MSA.

3 Oct 2018 at The National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS), Tokyo City, Japan. The GRIPS. ‘Japan-India Strategic Partnership: A case Study on 2008 Japan-India Nuke Deal Plan’, presented at the 7th GRIPS Student Conference: Public Policy for Peace and Sustainable Growth.

21 Jul 2018 at Toronto Convention Centre, Canada. The International Sociological Association.
‘From Taihoku Imperial University to National Taiwan University: The Spector of Colonialism in Historical Research in Taiwan’ in the Panel: Global Higher Education at the XIX ISA World Congress of Sociology: Power, Violence and Justice.

14 Jan 2016 at University of Oslo, Norway. The Centre for Development and Environment. "The Road to Sati Abolition in 1829," presented at the UiO. NORASIA VII Conference: Maritime Asia.

Jean's doctoral thesis, 'Local mobility, medical investments, and the founding of hospitals by the Chinese communities in the Straits-Settlements-Era of Singapore, circa. 1826-1942', focuses on hospital fundraisings and establishments; the forming of Chinese medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine; and networks between the Straits Chinese, Peranakans Chinese, and Diasporic Chinese Diaspora.

Her academic interests cover the social history of medicine under the British Empire, East and Southeast Asian Studies, Hospital finance, and Chinese migration and diaspora, especially migration networks in Southeast Asia.

• Social history of medicine
• The Strait-Settlements and British Malaya
• East and Southeast Asian Studies
• Hospital finance and fundrasings
• Diasporic Chinese
• Scotland and Scottish Industries in British colonial Southeast Asia
• Welfares before Welfare States

Jean welcomes fellows to reach out for networking of organising and participating conferences, book reviews, publication collaboration, and public writings invitations relating to her scholar interests. Please contact for potential collaboration, thanks.

Research groups

• Urban Analytics
• Social & Urban Policy
• Economic & Social History

Her doctoral studies are funded by various sources, including a Taiwanese governmental scholarship for Graduate Studies Overseas.

1.           16 Apr 2025.

SPS PGR Research Travel Grant, School of Social and Political Sciences, UofG
Amount: $1089.69 USD/£800.00 GBP
 
2.           26 Mar 2025.
Travel Grant for 2025 Meeting for American Association for the History of the Medicine.
Amount: $850 USD/£636.30 GBP
 
3.           Aug 2021-31 Jul 2024.
Taiwanese Governmental Scholarship for Overseas Studies, Ministry of Education in Taiwan. Subject: Demography/ Sociology
Amount: $120000.00 USD/£94162.00 at maximum 4-year tuition fees plus $21000.00 USE/£16478.00 studentship per year.
 
4.           5 Dec 2023.
Conference Fee Waiver/Grant for the 17th ICHSEA Conference, Frankfurt.
Amount: $220.53 USD/200.00 €/£170.65
 
5.           19 Jun 2023.
SPS PGR Research Travel Grant, School of Social and Political Sciences, UofG
Amount: $918.75 USD/£700.00 GBP
 
6.           12 Jun 2023.
Travel Grant for the 1st History Lab Plus Conference, Institute of Advanced Historical Research, University of London.
Amount: $197.8 USD/ £150.00 GBP
 
7.           14 Jan 2020-31 Dec 2020.
Taiwanese Governmental Scholarship for Overseas Studies, Ministry of Education in Taiwan. Subject: Demography/ Sociology
Amount: $120000 USD/£94162.00 for 4-year tuition fees at maximum plus $19000/£15010.28 studentship per year.
 

N/A

N/A

Jean has 3-year English teaching experience across various pre-honour courses in the School of Social and Political Sciences (SPS) and College of Humanities at the UofG-in subject group/department inlcuding Economic and Social History (SPS), Urban Studies (SPS), and History Department (CoAH).

1. Economic & Social History 1A (ESH1001): c.1750-1918
2. Economic & Social History 1b (ESH1002) 1918-2008
3. Social & Public Policy 1A(PUPOL1001) : Foundations of Welfare
4. Social & Public Policy 1B (PUPOL1002): Understanding Glasgow
5. History 2A(HIST2016): The Social and Cultural History of Europe, 1500-2000
6. History 2B (History 2015): An Introduction to Global History
7. 2024 Summer School in Economic and Social History summer school, UofG

Additionally, she was tutoring in Mandarin as a teaching assistant in World History: Pre-history to the Pax Romana, compulsory course for level 1 history major UGs, in History Dep., National Taiwan University (Taiwan) during her last year of Bachelor’s studies.

Invited Talks, workshops, writings, video production

Video
Apr-Aug 2022, Taiwan Bar.
Research Report and Consulting for textual scripts and ideas of the video ‘Cram Exam Factory’, The Pilot episode of ‘That’s so Asian’Video series. (in American English and Taiwanese Manderin)
•       Achieved 250k watched from both two links on YouTube (no. is updated on 6 Feb 2023), in Mandarin with English subtitles.
•       Shortlisted for the Best Documentary for the 5th Walk Bell John Awards.
•       Awarded for the Best Producer for the 5th Walk Bell John Awards (Producer: Mr. Mu-Chian Ruan, Taiwan Bar).
•       Sponsored by Ministry of Culture, Taiwan.

Workshop
7  Sep 2020 at National Taichung Girl’s Senior High School, Taichung, Taiwan.
Invited as a guest mentor for ‘Series of Workshops for Research Methodologies of Social Science for High School Teachers in Taiwan’. Organised by the Taiwanese Sociological Association, National Tainan Senior High School and sponsored by the Ministry of Education, Taiwan. Led group discussion for on-progress- workshop for high school teachers for course design and assisted the keynote speaker Prof. Yen-Wei Miao in Workshop ‘Practice and uses for archival research for high- school teaching design’.
•       The workshop is held and funded by Ministry of Education, Taiwan.

Reading group leading
8  Nov 2020 (hybrid). A guest speaker to lead one section in a medical history reading group with an introductory talk for ‘GarethMillward’s Vaccinating Britain: Mass Vaccination and the public since the Second World War’ for master’s and PhD students in theMusto Center for Drugs and National Security Studies and History Department at Shanghai University, Shanghai. (Invited by Miss Betty Kong Wang (previous a master’s student in Shanghai University/ now PhD student in Beijing University). With 20 participants in that month’s reading discussion (in Taiwaense Mandarin)
 
Public Talk
Mar 24, 2019 at Monsoon Zone Bookstore, Taipei, Taiwan.
Public talk ‘Before the 24 May-Introduction, prediction and analysis of 2019 Indian
with Mr. Roberto Shin-Yu Lin (the Ex- Assistant Research Fellow in Asia-Exchange Foundation). With more than 40 audiences in this public talk (in Taiwanese Mandarin).
 
Arts Critics
Apr 2019, invited by Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts for writing an article on a special issue of Art Accrediting: ‘How art can do? Making the border fluid and constructing artefactual border in an Asia: Induction to “SUNSHOWER: Contemporary Art from SoutheastAsia 1980’s to Now”’,
Art Accrediting is a Bimonthly Art Magazine published by the Kaohsiung Museum of Modern Fine Arts (Written in Mandarin). Thisspecial issue was for an exhibition: ‘SUNSHOWER- Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of ASEAN, Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia 1980s to Now’.
•       The exhibition was co-organized by the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts (Kaohsiung, Taiwan), Mori Art Museum (Tokyo, Japan), and The Japan Foundation Asia Canter (Tokyo, Japan) and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture (Taiwan) and Bureauof Culture, Kaohsiung Government.
 
Public History Writings
21 Jul 2021       ‘The stories of anti-vaccination in human history’, in ‘The Monthly Keywords’ Pandemics, published onGushi/Story Studio. (Written in Mandarin).
26 Nov 2020      A series of articles for Southeast Asian Studies and an illustrated book being published on Gushi/Story Studio.
Project 1: ‘Luo Fangbo and Canton Hakka migration in South-East Asia’; ‘Hakka migration in South-East Asia: Pawnbrokers, Chinese Medicine Practitioners and “Tongmenghui” in the Strait Settlements’, and ‘Failing the exam? No worries. Why not immigrate to ‘Southsea’, occupy a land and build a nation/country: A life story of Hakkateenager Luo Fango’.
Project 2: Designing for stories and scripts for an illustrated book: A Cowardly Hero. A story of Luo Fangbo, Lan Fang Company/The Lanfang Republic, and Hakka migration in Southeast Asia, published by Taiwan Bar. Sponsored by Hakka Public Communication Foundation of Taiwanese Government. (Written and printed in Taiwanaese Mandarin).
•       This project was sponsored by Hakka Public Communication Foundation, Taiwanese Government (Written in Taiwanese Mandarin).

Public Engagement
 
2021-21 Jan 2022.
 
Co-running a non-profit Facebook page ‘Vaccine Taiwan’ to promote vaccination during the COVID-Pandemic in Taiwan and sharescientific knowledge, legal-theoretical debates and related historical research.
 
We worked together as a team, of which included a scientist Chloe Farquhar (Post-doctoral Researcher at the Francis Crick Institute, London),a law scholar Dr. Li-Kun Chen (visiting scholar at National University of Singapore, Singapore), me and four undergraduate interns (threeTaiwanese students and one American exchange student with Fulbright Scholarship) for almost 8 months with daily postings to updateinformation for vaccination rates in Taiwan and globally. Besides, we also held four-time discussing sections within the team for topicssuch as methods to interpret and analyse scientific data, the latest research about COVID vaccines on journal papers, legal issues of COVID passport/pass, and the history of vaccination and anti- vaccination.