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Awards and funding for history

IHR Fellowships and Prizes 2009-10

The Institute administers a number of fellowships and prizes which aim to help postgraduate, postdoctoral and other historical research. Details of the recipients of the latest awards are listed on the page Junior Research Fellows at the IHR, 2009-10.

Details of the membership of funding committees convened by the IHR are listed on the page Composition of IHR Funding Committees.

Fellowships

Prizes and Awards

Fellowships

IHR Research Fellowships

The Institute of Historical Research administers up to six Research Fellowships in History each year, tenable at the Institute, for PhD candidates who have already completed at least two years' research on their chosen topic.

The Fellowships funded by the Royal Historical Society are open to candidates without regard to nationality or academic affiliation.

The Fellowships funded by the Scouloudi Foundation are open to UK citizens or to candidates with a first degree from an UK university.

The Isobel Thornley Fellowship is open to any candidate registered for their doctoral degree at the University of London.

The closing date is 1 March 2010.

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Economic History Society Fellowships

The Economic History Society in conjunction with the Institute of Historical Research offers up to four one-year Research Fellowships in Economic/Social History. The Fellowships will be awarded either to:

  1. Postdoctoral candidates who have recently completed a doctoral degree in economic/social history (broadly defined)
  2. Graduates who are engaged in the completion of a doctoral degree in economic/social history (broadly defined) but who must have completed at least three years' (full-time) research on their chosen topic.

The Fellowships are open to UK citizens or to candidates with a degree from an UK university.

The closing date is 5 April 2010.

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Past and Present Fellowships

The Past and Present Society and the Institute of Historical Research offer up to two one-year postdoctoral Research Fellowship in History tenable at the Institute.

The Fellowship will be awarded to a graduate who expects to have submitted his/her doctoral thesis in history (broadly defined) by 1 October of the year of the Fellowship. Preference will be given to applicants who demonstrate a broad interest in processes of social, economic, political and cultural change, as manifested in their particular field of study. The Society wishes to promote work of a kind that might be published in the journal Past and Present and its book series, Past and Present Publications.

Applicants may be of any nationality, and their PhD (or equivalent) may have been awarded in any country.

The closing date is 16 April 2010.

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The Alan Pearsall Fellowship in Naval and Maritime History

The Alan Pearsall Bequest and the Institute of Historical Research will offer a one-year postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Naval and Maritime History, tenable at the Institute. The Fellowship stipend will be £22,000 for a full academic year. It will be payable in four quarterly instalments through the Institute.

The closing date for applications is 16 April 2010.

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IHR Mellon Fellowships in the Humanities

The Institute of Historical Research offers fellowships funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation for both pre-dissertation and dissertation research in the humanities using original sources. The purposes of this fellowship programme are to:

  • help doctoral candidates in the humanities who may otherwise not have opportunities or encouragement to work with original source materials in the United Kingdom;
  • help doctoral candidates in the humanities to deepen their ability to develop knowledge from original sources;
  • provide insight from the viewpoint of doctoral candidates into how scholarly resources can be developed most helpfully in the future.

The competition is now closed. Forms and regulations for the 2011 competition will be available from November 2010.

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Prizes & awards

The Parliamentary History Prize

The Parliamentary History Prize, which is worth £400 (together with a prize of £100 for a proxime accessit essay), is offered for the best essay submitted on any aspect of the parliamentary history of Britain, England and Wales, Ireland, Scotland or British colonial assemblies. Candidates must normally not at the date of submission be over the age of 35 (exception may be made for candidates with unusual academic CVs), and must submit a brief CV with their entry. The essay must be a genuine work of original research, not hitherto published or accepted for publication . The text and notes should not exceed 10,000 words. Candidates must consult the style sheet of Parliamentary History, available from the Editor. Essays must reach the Editor of Parliamentary History by 1st June. The winning essays, and others judged meritorious will be published in Parliamentary History.

Dr Clyve Jones
The Editor
Parliamentary History
Institute of Historical Research
University of London
Senate House
Malet Street
London WC1E 7HU.
Tel: 0207 862 8768
e-mail: clyve.jones@histparl.ac.uk

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The Annual Pollard Prize (sponsored by Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd.)

The Pollard Prize is awarded annually for the best paper presented at an Institute of Historical Research seminar by a postgraduate student or by a researcher within one year of completing the PhD.

Applicants are required to have delivered a paper at an IHR seminar during the academic year in which the award is made. Submissions should be supported by a reference from a convenor of the appropriate seminar.

Two copies of papers should be submitted, double spaced throughout. Papers should be fully footnoted, although it is not necessary at this stage to follow Historical Research house style. All papers submitted must be eligible for publication.

The closing date for entries will be 28 May 2010

First Prize

Fast track publication in the prestigious IHR journal, Historical Research, and £200 of Blackwell books.

Runner Up Prizes

Publication in Historical Research, and a selection of Blackwell books. A variable number of runner up prizes will be awarded, depending on the quality of applications in any given year.

Enquiries and submissions should be directed to:

The Editor
Historical Research (Pollard Prize)
Institute of Historical Research
University of London
Senate House
London WC1E 7HU

email: Jane.Winters@sas.ac.uk

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Scouloudi Historical Awards

The purpose for these awards are

  1. as a subsidy towards the cost of publishing a scholarly book or article, or an issue of a learned journal in the field of history.
  2. To pay for research, and other expenses, to be incurred in the completion of advanced historical work, which the applicant intends subsequently to publish. This does not included expenses incurred in the preparation of a thesis for a higher degree.

Awards are not available to those registered for undergraduate or postgraduate courses or degrees.

Applications should arrive no later than 1 March 2010.

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The Huguenot Scholarship

There will be no scholarship in 2010.

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Richard III Society Bursary

The Richard III Society Bursary (valued at c. £250) is open to any person registered for a higher degree. Applicants should be intending to write a dissertation or thesis on (i) some aspect of late fifteenth century English history, literature, architecture or art history, (ii) any late medieval English or European subject relevant to the Yorkist period in English history, although applications for the first category will be considered first.

The closing date for the Bursary is 1 June 2010. New forms will be available from March 2010.

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The Julian Corbett Prize in Modern Naval History

A prize to the value of £1,000 is available annually for work not previously published and based on original (Ms. or printed) materials for Modern Naval History. The work shall be written in English and may take the form of either (i) a dissertation, (ii) an edition of an original document or series of documents, or (iii) a critical report on material at home or abroad. It is recommended that the length should not exceed 15,000 words.

The deadline date is 1 October 2010. New forms will be available from March 2010.

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The Sir John Neale Prize in Tudor History

The Neale Prize is awarded annually to a historian in the early stages of his or her career. Entries should take the form of essays of no more than 8,000 words including footnotes, on a theme related to Tudor history. It is intended that the terms of the prize include almost any subject appropriate to the study of the 16th Century in England . (Eligibility will ultimately be decided by the judges). The prize will consist of £1000 with an additional payment of £500 in support of the development of the prize- winner's scholarly career, normally in the form of research and/or travel expenses and conference attendance.

Candidates must either be registered for a higher degree at a British institution or have been registered for such a degree at a British institution within the last three years. Three double-spaced copies should be submitted. Electronic submissions will also be accepted. Entries must not have been published elsewhere, or accepted for publication elsewhere. The prize-winning essay will be published in the IHR's journal, Historical Research.

A suitable academic mentor will be appointed to provide advice on career development and research for the prize-winner. The prize-winner is expected to take part in the academic life of the IHR, for example, by attending seminars and presenting papers.The prize-winner must submit a report on his/her activity undertaken with the support of the award to the Director of the IHR at the end of the academic year in which the award is held.

The winner will be announced at the reception following the Royal Historical Society's Annual Prothero Lecture in July each year.

Entries should be sent to James Lees at the Institute of Historical Research. Further information can be obtained by emailing james.lees@sas.ac.uk.

The closing date is 31 May 2010.

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The David Bates, Alwyn Ruddock, and IHR Friends' Bursaries

Applications are invited from doctoral students registered at universities in the United Kingdom for ten bursaries (normally not to exceed £500) to undertake research at the Institute of Historical Research (IHR) during the academic year 2009-10. The bursaries are intended for students who are not registered at London-based institutions and who do not live within Greater London.

The aim of the bursaries is to enable students to undertake research at the IHR and at other London-based archives. All successful applicants will be expected to use the IHR as a base when in London and to participate in its activities. This means, for example, regular use of the IHR library and attendance at IHR seminars and conferences. It could also mean interaction with one or more of the IHR's research centres, and if appropriate, taking a research training course.

The deadline date is 7 June 2010. New forms will be available from March 2010.

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Conrad and Elizabeth Russell Postgraduate Emergency Hardship Fund

The Conrad and Elizabeth Russell Postgraduate Emergency Hardship Fund exists to support PhD candidates (in History) who meet with sudden and unexpected hardship.

Eligibility

Applicants should meet all the following criteria:

•  Have met with sudden and unexpected hardship.

•  Be members of the IHR community (usually defined as being either a regular attender at IHR seminars or a regular user of the IHR as a reader).

•  Be registered for a PhD in History at a British or North American university.

•  Be resident in London , whether temporarily for the purposes of their research or as their normal place of residence. London is broadly defined as within the Greater London area.

•  Have applied (wherever possible) to their own university or college for assistance before turning to the Fund.

NB Please note that the Fund cannot pay tuition fees.

Amount available

£1000 will normally be available for distribution during any one year and an individual student will not normally receive an award of more than £500.

Application procedure

•  The Fund is administered by the Director of the Institute of Historical Research and a small committee.

•  Applications will normally be considered by the Director and two members of the committee (to be rotated each year). Given the need to reach a decision quickly, in the absence of a response from one or both of these within five working days, the Director may act independently.

•  Applicants will be informed of the success or otherwise of their application within seven working days from receipt of their initial application.

Applications should be submitted on the form which can downloaded below, or from James Lees, Institute of Historical Research, University of London, Senate House, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU james.lees@sas.ac.uk For further information, please contact James Lees at the address above.

Russell Hardship Fund Form

Contact Information

Further details and application forms may also be obtained from James Lees, the Fellowship Officer, at:

Institute of Historical Research
University of London
Senate House
London WC1E 7HU
Telephone: 020 7862 8747
Fax: 020 7862 8745
email: James.Lees@sas.ac.uk

Completed applications and, where appropriate, letters of reference should also be sent to this address.

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