People

Dr Patricia Medcalf

Lecturer in Advertising and Marketing

Dr. Patricia Medcalf brings extensive academic and industry- aligned expertise to her teaching and research in advertising and marketing communications. She holds a Doctor of Philosophy, a CPD Certificate in Sustainability, a Postgraduate Diploma in Education, an MBS in International Marketing, and a BA (Mod) in Economics and Business Studies. Patricia currently serves as the Programme Coordinator and Year Tutor for the BA in Advertising and Marketing Communications.

Her teaching portfolio includes a range of undergraduate modules such as Introduction to Advertising, Marketing Communications Industry, Event Management, Industry Project, Advertising Portfolio, and Design. A strong advocate for experiential learning, she regularly incorporates live briefs, guest speakers, and industry evaluations into her modules. Notably, she has collaborated with Saoirse, a domestic violence charity, as part of the Event Management curriculum, and was awarded a GROWTHhub Entrepreneurship Education Bursary with a colleague for a project focused on action learning and authentic assessment.

Dr. Medcalf also supervises PhD research in her field and actively promotes student engagement with real-world issues through research and community partnership.

Research Interests

Alcohol Advertising (with a particular focus on Guinness)
The Interplay Between Advertising, Society, Culture, Economy, and Legislation
Advertising Heritage and Brand Identity in Ireland

Her scholarly output includes numerous peer-reviewed publications and edited volume contributions with Peter Lang, as well as case studies and conference proceedings. Her work explores advertising’s cultural significance, with a deep historical lens on Guinness’s advertising strategies and their socio-economic context.

Selected Publications

Advertising the Black Stuff in Ireland: 1959–1999: Increments of Change, Peter Lang (2020)

“Calling Time on Alcohol Advertising in Ireland,” in Margins and Marginalities in Ireland and France, Peter Lang (2021)

“Irish Cultural Heritage through the Prism of Guinness’s Ads in the 1980s,” in Patrimoine/Cultural Heritage in France and Ireland, Peter Lang (2018)

“Sport: Part of the DNA in National and Brand Identities,” in Voyages between France and Ireland, Peter Lang (2017)

Marketing Communications: An Irish Perspective, Gill and Macmillan (2004)

Multiple peer-reviewed journal articles and case studies published via Arrow@DIT and other academic outlets.

Professional Engagement

Member, Marketing Institute of Ireland (MII)
External examiner for programmes at IADT, NCI, and TUS (formerly LIT)
Programme Review Panel Member at IT Sligo and Letterkenny IT (now ATU)
Interview Panel Member, MTU Cork
Judge, EdCom AdVenture Student Competition (European Institute for Commercial Communications Education)
Erasmus Mobility Participation in Nancy, France, and Ghent, Belgium