Placement Opportunities Available

The AHRC International Placement Scheme (IPS) is now open for applications. Offering short term fellowships of 2-6 months, the scheme provides access to internationally renowned collections and expertise at IPS host institutions in Japan and the US. It is open to AHRC-funded doctoral students (and ESRC-funded doctoral students for the Library of Congress only) and early career researchers whose research falls within the remit of AHRC.

Fellowships are expected to take place for 2-6 months between July 2023 and September 2024 and for this year are available at the following host institutions:

• Harry Ransom Center, Texas, US
• Huntington Library, California, US
• Library of Congress, Washington DC, US
• National Institutes for the Humanities, Japan
• Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, US

Applications must be received by 4pm on Thursday 23^rd February 2023.

Full details are available on the UKRI website.

Current PhD students are invited to apply to the British Library PhD Placement Scheme. Placement projects are offered from a variety of areas across the Library for 3 months or part-time equivalent, to be undertaken from June 2023 onwards. Many of the projects are suitable for partial or full remote working.

A list of all available placement projects and full details of how to apply are available on our website here: https://www.bl.uk/news/2023/january/phd-placement-opportunities

Deadline: 5pm on Monday 20 February 2023.

If you have any questions, please direct these to pgr@bl.uk.

The project intends to make the provenance information in an early-20th century accessions register accessible today. It can be completed remotely, and would fall into three parts, which can run concurrently:

1. Transcribing the handwritten ledger entries in summary. They record the author, title and date of the book, and details of who donated it or where we bought it, and when we acquired it. Most of this data hasn’t previously been included in our main library catalogue.
2. Matching the entries to books in the library catalogue today, and updating the catalogue entry with the provenance info.
3. Researching interesting or major donations – who gave the books, what books were given – and writing that up for library website and social media channels.

Start & end date of placement: Ad hoc placements to be agreed with the student.

Hours of work: Negotiable, part-time preferred

Essential criteria: Ability to read or to learn to read early 20th century handwriting.

Deadline: No specific deadline, placements are available throughout the academic year.

To apply, please complete the expression of interest and return it to lahp.partners@london.ac.uk

For further details, please contact Katie Birkwood (Rare books and special collections Librarian) katie.birkwood@rcp.ac.uk

The National Archives is rich in records on Britain’s engagement with the rest of the world. Admiralty, Colonial, and Map collections, amongst many others, tell the story of the growth of imperial power, commercial expansion, and the trade in enslaved people from the sixteenth century onwards.

These records contain ideas, text and imagery which reflect the viewpoints and attitudes prevalent at the time the records were written. They may be considered offensive today but should be considered as accurate representations of government records to help highlight the issues as they were at the time.

We currently have a placement opportunity in the Collections Expertise and Engagement department, working with a discrete collection from the records of the Royal African Company. The National Archives would like to invite LAHP students on a placement for twelve weeks, full or part time, depending on student requirements, to work with some of these records.

From its inception in the late seventeenth century, the Royal African Company was predominantly concerned with trading enslaved people but it also traded  gold and ivory. This set of records is crucial to preserve for both historical and ethical reasons.

The candidate will work on improving the catalogue descriptions for the Royal African Company letter books, which detail a range of subjects from the transportation of enslaved people across the Atlantic to the business of the company in London and activities on the West African fortifications. They will work closely with the Eighteenth Century Record Specialist to read through the letter books and extract information on senders, recipients, locations and subject matters. Each letter book summary will be uploaded to The National Archives’ catalogue, Discovery, to aid researcher’s use and navigation of this important collection.

This is an opportunity for a student experienced in archival research, specifically the late seventeenth and/or eighteenth century.

This placement will help us deliver the aims of being an inclusive and disruptive archive, contained in our corporate strategy Archives for Everyone and to create better resources for marginalised and underrepresented histories. The placement student will receive guidance and experience in conducting this research, build their palaeography skills, and have the opportunity to tailor this research to their interests and future career aims.

If you would like more information about the placement or wish to discuss  your suitability for the placement, please contact Philippa.hellawell@nationalarchives.gov.uk.

Start & end date of placement: Autumn 2022/Spring 2023, with precise dates to be agreed with the student, please contact research@nationalarchives.gov.uk

Hours of work: To be agreed with the student. The placement will involve working with original documents onsite, but with the potential for some work to be conducted at home.

We welcome applications from all sections of the community and from people of diverse ages, experience and backgrounds, including people with disabilities. We are keen to explore the widest possible pool of talent.

To apply, please contact Philippa.hellawell@nationalarchives.gov.uk.

As the archive of Crown and State government, The National Archives (TNA) holds a vast range of records on life in the British Isles and beyond over the past 1000 years.

TNA is pleased to invite students to apply for a placement to explore and analyse records of photographs, paintings and drawings registered for copyright protection with the Stationers’ Company under the 1862 Fine Arts Copyright Act. The successful applicant would conduct an image-focused content analysis of the first ten years of images submitted for copyright protection, and produce a report and blog on the results of the analysis. We would encourage the student to extend and adapt the research to explore an area of personal interest in relation to these records.

The placement will last approximately 10 weeks full time, or part-time equivalent, depending on student requirements.

This placement will be based within our Collections Expertise and Engagement department. For the length of the placement, we will ensure that the student is embedded in a small team, working closely with experienced specialists, but they will also gain a broad understanding of the varied work of this government organization.

Start & end date of placement: Ad hoc placements to be agreed with the student, please contact research@nationalarchives.gov.uk

Hours of work: To be agreed with the student

Essential criteria: This student placement at The National Archives will suit students with an interest in photography and print culture of the Victorian era and who would like to build their skills, knowledge and expertise across a range of areas. There are no minimum skills requirements, but it would be desirable for the student to have some knowledge of the history of photography and/or nineteenth-century history and experience using Microsoft Excel for documenting research. We also expect successful placement students will demonstrate a keen interest in the work of The National Archives and the ability to work both independently and as part of a team.

Expected project outcomes: The student would produce a written report (max 5,000 words) summarising the results of the content analysis and exploring the highlights and trends in image copyright registration over the ten year period. The report should also include recommendations for promising areas of research. The student would also contribute a short blog reflecting on the work placement to be published on TNA’s website (approx. 800 words). There may also be other opportunities for the student to get involved in internal or external engagement activities.

This placement would provide the successful placement student with a deepened knowledge of Victorian photography and print culture, direct experience of archival research and an understanding of the variety of work that goes on in a national archive. The placement will also offer opportunities for the student to improve their skills and knowledge in original document handling, content analysis and digital data analysis, as well as writing for different audiences.

Deadline: No specific deadline

To apply, please complete the expression of interest and return it to lahp.partners@london.ac.uk 

For further details, please contact either lahp.partners@london.ac.uk or research@nationalarchives.gov.uk

As the archive of Crown and State government, The National Archives (TNA) holds a vast range of records on life in the British Isles and beyond over the past 1000 years. TNA is pleased to invite LAHP students on placement for periods from four to twelve weeks, full or part time, depending on student requirements. We currently have placement opportunities in our Collections Expertise and Engagement department, our Archive Sector Development department, and our Research and Academic Engagement department. Placement work will focus on activities that enhance information about the contents of our document collections, improve access to records, broaden engagement to users beyond established academic and research communities, and support our role as archive sector lead. For the length of the placement, we will ensure that students are embedded in a small team, working closely with experienced specialists, but they will also work across TNA departments to gain a broad understanding of the varied work and wide responsibilities of this government organization. Depending on the department and the interests of the individual student, placement work might involve analyzing and reporting on survey data to support policy planning, contributing to cataloguing projects, or supporting digital humanities research.

Start & end date of placement: Ad hoc placements to be agreed with the student, please contact research@nationalarchives.gov.uk

Hours of work: To be agreed with the student

Essential criteria:  Student placements at The National Archives will suit students with an interest in cultural heritage or the GLAM sector and who would like to build their skills, knowledge and expertise across a range of areas. There are no minimum skills requirements, but we expect successful placement students will demonstrate a keen interest in the work of The National Archives and the ability to work both independently and as part of a team.

Expected project outcomes: Project outcomes vary from project to project but student work may contribute to cataloguing projects, and therefore to our catalogue Discovery, to ongoing research projects, or support policy planning. Students may also have the opportunity to contribute to blog posts for The National Archives’ website and to public engagement events.

Deadline: No specific deadline, placements are available throughout the academic year

To apply, please complete the expression of interest and return it to lahp.partners@london.ac.uk 

For further details, please contact either lahp.partners@london.ac.uk or research@nationalarchives.gov.uk

As the archive of Crown and State government, The National Archives (TNA) holds a vast range of records on life in the British Isles and beyond over the past 1000 years. TNA is pleased to invite LAHP students on a placement for six to twelve weeks, full or part time, depending on student requirements.

We currently have a placement opportunity in Collections Expertise and Engagement department, working with a small, discrete collection from the diverse records of the High Court of Admiralty. The placement will focus on letters, papers and legal records relating to early modern piracy, prize-taking, colonialism and overseas trade, 1551-1870 (the bulk pre-1770). The successful candidate will be responsible for conducting an initial survey of this small collection and subsequent work enhancing our information about its contents, with the aim of improving access to these materials. For the length of the placement, the candidate will be embedded in a small team of experienced specialists who work on the High Court of Admiralty’s records. The placement will also be tailored to the candidate’s interests and future career aims, with the potential to work on related projects with other departments at TNA, such as public engagement and exhibitions, with the intention of broadening engagement with these records beyond established academic and research communities, in support of our role as archive sector lead.

Start & end date of placement: early 2022, with precise dates to be agreed with the student, please contact research@nationalarchives.gov.uk 

Hours of work: To be agreed with the student. The placement will involve working with original documents onsite, but with the potential for some work to be conducted at home.

Essential criteria: the placement will suit students with an interest in academic and public history, collaborative research, cultural heritage or the GLAM sector. There are no minimum skills requirements, but a successful placement student will be able to demonstrate a keen interest in the history of international trade, colonialism, law, piracy or the age of sail. As this placement is focussed on original documents written in 16th and 17th century handwriting, it would desirable for the placement student to have some experience of reading handwriting from this period already. If not, the successful candidate will need to be willing and able to learn how to do so quickly, with support from the placement supervisor and team. Experience of archival research is also desirable.

Expected project outcomes: the results of the student’s findings will be primarily be used to enhance our online cataloguing for the specified collection. They will also be expected to utilise some of the records for publication, initially in the form of blogs for public and academic engagement. Other expected outcomes will depend on the student’s interests and any resulting work that they undertake with other departments at TNA.

Deadline: No specific deadline, placements are available throughout the academic year

To apply, please complete the expression of interest and return it to lahp.partners@london.ac.uk

For further details, please contact either lahp.partners@london.ac.uk or research@nationalarchives.gov.uk