The General Medical Council (GMC) requires, and society expects, doctors to act professionally. Medical students are also expected to behave in a professional manner. Consequently, development of professionalism is a vital part of the undergraduate medical curriculum.

Social media and Web 2.0 tools are increasingly popular and this has blurred the boundaries between the personal and professional lives of healthcare practitioners and students, with serious implications for professionalism online.

The aim of this project is to investigate the ways medical students think, feel and behave with regard to social networking and communication.

The pilot project currently underway has been part funded by the Bowland Trust.