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Two exciting PhD scholarships have been announced in a new collaboration between the �������� and �������� City Council.  The scholarships will focus on two important local facilities – libraries and the Cumberland House Natural History Museum. The students will have unlimited access to ‘hidden treasures’ from the city’s archives.  

The awards, each worth a total of around £100,000, have been given by the Arts and Humanities Research Council under the scheme. They will start from 1 October 2024 and run for four years.

The first scholarship student will study at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the ��������, and will have access to the collections of �������� City Council’s Museums, Libraries and Archives service.  

The project will investigate the role of ��������’s public libraries from their origins in 1883 to today. This will involve exploring how the public has used the service for various social, cultural and political reasons. The research will reflect ��������’s distinctive characteristics as a socially diverse, densely populated, coastal and naval city, with a strong commitment to public libraries. �������� City Council has continued to operate its public libraries whereas many councils have closed theirs or reduced their hours in response to funding cuts. 

Research questions will focus on how ��������’s public libraries have changed over time, how they have been shaped by class, gender and ethnicity, and how they compare with public libraries elsewhere. 

Dr Robert James, Senior Lecturer in Social and Cultural History at the ��������, will co-supervise the scholarship student. He said: ‘This is an exciting opportunity for a student to benefit from a fully-funded scholarship, and gain experience and training from both the �������� and �������� City Council. The doctoral research will involve exploring the hidden treasures within ��������’s libraries and archives. Public libraries are important civic institutions and they are at the heart of debates about education, community spaces and the nation’s wellbeing. By investigating their history, their aims, and how they are used, the student will contribute to discussions about the libraries of the future.’

The second scholarship student will study at the ��������’s School of Creative Technologies and will have access to the collections of , which is run by �������� City Council.

This research project will explore the adoption, appropriateness, and expressiveness of creative technologies used at the museum and how they might attract new audiences. The PhD candidate will investigate future opportunities for interactive emerging technologies in a local museum, aimed to help the cultural sector strive to adopt post-digital museum practices and leverage opportunities for digital literacy in heritage staff.

The student will have access to all of the Cumberland House Natural History Museum's collections – approximately 90 per cent currently hidden in the museum’s store. The aim - to attract new and existing diverse audiences and enrich community participation and engagement - a priority for the museum.

Dr Argenis Ramirez Gomez, Lecturer in Creative Technologies and Human-Computer Interaction at the ��������, will co-supervise the scholarship student.  He said: “Despite museums' long-standing commitment to impact, participation and engagement, evolving digital consumption patterns have changed museum audiences. These changes, coupled with ongoing public sector funding cuts, have put immense pressure on museums to justify their value and relevance to society.

Consequently, museum professionals are compelled to explore new ways to engage audiences. This PhD project focuses on understanding and addressing the challenges faced by regional institutions in the post-digital age, and address the need to build museums’ digital capacity and capability. It is an exciting opportunity to bring about positive impact in the sector.”

The AHRC’s Collaborative Doctoral Partnerships (CDP) awards give students the opportunity to develop new skills within academia and the workplace. Only about 50 scholarships are awarded throughout the country every year.  

Applications for both scholarships are now open. Apply via the links below:

• PhD with ��������’s Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and �������� City Council’s Libraries - apply here
• PhD with ��������’s School of Creative Technologies and Cumberland Natural History Museum - apply here