ESRC Wales DTP Collaborative studentships
The Department of International Politics at Aberystwyth University, supported by the ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership for Wales (Wales DTP), invites applications for funded PhD study. These particular studentships, known as ‘collaborative studentships’, involve liaison with a non-academic organisation, often at many key stages of the research programme. They will commence in October 2023.
The following two collaborative studentships are available:
The British Labour movement and campaign for democractic and human righs in Iraq, 1984-2010, Dr James Vaughan (jrv@aber.ac.uk) in collaboration with the National Library of Wales
The project addresses an important topic in contemporary Welsh, British and International Politics in the light of the recent acquisition by the Welsh Political Archive at the National Library of Wales of an extensive archive donated by Ann Clwyd, Labour MP for Cynon Valley from 1984-2019. The successful applicant will analyse British Labour movement activism and campaigning for Kurdish and Iraqi democratic and human rights in the broader context of Labour Party policy towards Iraq. It will make important and original contributions to debates about Labour Party internationalism and foreign policy, as well as public controversies about the justifiability and effectiveness of the 2003 Iraq War.
Welsh Cultural Legacies of Colonialism and the Politics of Exhibition, Dr Catrin Wyn Edwards (cwe6@aber.ac.uk ) in collaboration with Amgueddfa Cymry/National Museum Wales
This research project responds to opportunities, obstacles and limitations of efforts of museums across the globe to decolonise their collections and reflect on their colonial and racist legacies. In the case of Wales, whilst its successful iron, wool and copper industries often represent a source of pride, there has been an absence of academic analysis and public discussion and reflexion on how these resources were tied up in the transatlantic slave trade and how Welsh industry, commerce, society and daily life was, and continues to be, embedded in colonialism. The project focusses on Wales’ colonial legacy and the narratives surrounding its role in the British empire and the transatlantic slave trade. In this vein, it will explore the tensions between Wales being both coloniser and colonised.
Applications are invited from exceptional candidates with a first class or strong upper second class honours degree, or appropriate Masters degree. Both the University and the ESRC Wales DTP value diversity and equality at all levels and we encourage applications from all sections of the community, irrespective of age, disability, sex, gender identity, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief and sexual orientation. In line with our commitment to supporting and promoting equality, diversity and inclusion, and to increase recruitment of currently underrepresented groups, applications from Black British, Asian British, minority ethnicity British and mixed race British candidates are particularly encouraged and welcomed. Studentships are available as either ‘1+3’ (i.e. one full time year of research training Masters followed by three years of full-time Doctoral study), or ‘+3’ (i.e. three years of full-time doctoral study), depending on the needs of the applicant.
Applicants should take careful consideration of the working title and description of the project, and may wish to contact the named member of staff for a discussion prior to applying.
For details about applying for doctoral study at Aberystwyth, please contact Dr Jan Ruzicka (jlr@aber.ac.uk), the Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of International Politics.
Applications welcomed by 1 March, 2023 (12:00pm GMT).