Notions: The Lives of Irish Working Class Academics (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781837080359)

Working-class academics often experience difficult and turbulent times during their journey into and through academia. The terms working class and academic are somewhat paradoxical, as the assumption is, since becoming an academic, they have moved away from their class. For some, this may be true, for others, not so.

Presenting a collection of life stories written by Irish-identifying working-class academics, Notions explores the lives of those not born into the elite but occupying an elite position in higher education -- how they got there, what their journey was like, what their experiences were, if they faced any struggles, and if they had to, or still do, (re)negotiate their identities.

The first autoethnographic collection of working-class experiences of academia in Ireland, Notions is a valuable contribution to the existing body of literature on social class, inequalities, widening participation and higher education that will be of interest to any reader interested in Irish society and culture.