New Archaeology and History PhD Funding Opportunities and Masterclasses

Published on by CIGH Exeter

Interested in pursuing a PhD in Archaeology or History at the University of Exeter?

Then be sure to check out these new funding opportunities and free masterclasses for writing a strong proposal.

AHRC South, West and Wales Doctoral Training Partnership (SWWDTP)

  • This is for projects that fall within the Arts and Humanities, so appropriate for any student wanting to do a PhD in Archaeology or History
  • They are advertising up to 39 studentships this year: this includes up to 35 student-led and up to 4 Collaborative Doctoral Awards.
  • Students are expected to apply with supervisors drawn from two separate participating institutions (the other institutions are: Aberystwyth, Amgueddfa Cymru (National Museums Wales), Bath Spa, Bristol, Cardiff, Cranfield, Reading, Southampton, UWE). Any single-institution supervisions must be strongly justified and made clear that there are no reasonable alternatives within the DTP.
  • Applications will open on 25 November 2024 and close on 20 January 2025.
  • More details can be found here: https://www.sww-ahdtp.ac.uk/prospective-students/how-to-apply/

ESRC South West Doctoral Training Partnership (SWDTP)

  • Up to 34 studentships available through disciplinary and interdisciplinary pathways spanning the social sciences for full or part-time study. These can 1+3 (MRes plus PhD) or if the student already has an MA, it offers funding for 3 years and 3 months, with extra time available for placements and top-uptraining.
  • The Economic and Social History pathway is most relevant for History students, appropriate for students working on any of the following:
  • economic and social history from medieval to the present day.
  • historical research with a significant quantitative element.
  • historical research that uses social science methodologies to a significant degree.
  • The other participating institutions are Bristol, Bath, Bath Spa, Bournemouth, Plymouth, Plymouth Marjon and UWE. Bristol is the other institution on the ‘Economic and Social History’ pathway, and so there is potential for cross-institutional supervision.

HASS Faculty Studentships

  • There are several HASS-funded studentships for any discipline covered by the Faculty:
  • The studentships will be for a period of up to 3 years (36 months) and will cover full tuition fees and an annual maintenance grant.
  • Applications are open with a closing deadline of Monday 17 February 2025.
  • Applications are welcomed for full-time and part-time studentships, but not for distance-learning programmes. Studentships are only open to new starters, not current HASS/Exeter students.

China Scholarship Council

  • Exeter has up to 50 studentships available with the China Scholarship Council. These are open to all disciplines – the final awarding decisions will be taken by the China Scholarship Council in line with their funding agendas.
  • Candidates must: be a citizen or permanent resident of the People’s Republic of China and intend to return to China upon completion of studies at the University of Exeter; meet the entry requirements of the programme to which they are applying as well as the English language proficiency requirements.
  • There are two opportunities to apply, either with a student’s own research proposal or by applying for one developed by a colleague. For the latter see here for a list of available projects: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/study/pg-research/csc-scholarships/facultyofhumanitiesartsandsocialsciences/
  • Applications are open now and the closing deadline is midnight 2 December 2024.

Wolfson Postgraduate Scholarships in the Humanities PhD Studentship

  • The research project must fall within the broad subject area of ‘history, literature and languages’.
  • Open to Home and International fee-paying candidates
  • Studentships for 3 years and provides funding of £36,250 per year. This covers the full tuition fees and remaining balance supports maintenance, research travel and training costs – the allocation of this funding is at the discretion of the student. For international fee-paying students, as tuition fee costs are higher and will take up a greater portion of the funding award, the Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences will provide a top-up for the maintenance element to bring this up to the UKRI minimum stipend level of £19,237 (2024/25 rate).
  • This studentship is for new postgraduate students only.
  • The deadline for applications is 17 February 2025
  • Further details are available here: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/study/funding/award/?id=5317

There are other opportunities advertised through the year and I’d recommend students keep an eye on the Faculty funding page (https://www.exeter.ac.uk/study/pg-research/funding/phdfunding/fundingbyfaculty/hass/).

SUPPORTING PGR RECRUITMENT

We will be holding free online Masterclasses, ‘How to get PhD Funding’, aimed specifically at Archaeology and History Students. These will take place online on 4 December 2024 at 10am and 4pm, offering advice to potential PGRs on how to write a strong funding application. Please do encourage students to sign up to one of them via Fixr: