SGSAH - Interdisciplinary Research

Apply for this SGSAH-funded internship with SGSAH, up to 12 weeks FTE, between February & July 2025.

The project is titled Interdisciplinary Research and will involve exploring the potential of interdisciplinary working in the Arts and Humanities, and ways to potentially enhance interdisciplinary training for future researchers.

Deadline for Applications is 15th November 2024.

Location

The Researcher could be based in Lilybank Gardens at the Univeristy of Glasgow (which will offer a base) but may work largely remotely (reflecting on mentor's work pattern) as appropriate to their needs and locations. 

Project

The Scottish Graduate School for Arts & Humanities (SGSAH) is the World’s first national graduate school of this type, with members from across Scotland, from the Highlands and Islands to the Scottish Borders, the oldest and the newest universities in the country, four art schools and the national Conservatoire. 

SGSAH has a long-standing commitment to interdisciplinary research (IDR), whether through its cross-cutting strategic priorities or through the whole cohort approach to training. This internship offers an exciting opportunity to research and identify means to explore the potential of interdisciplinary working in the Arts and Humanities, to consider how that potential fits within the wider landscape of UK Higher Education, and on this basis to make a major contribution to enhancing interdisciplinary training for future researchers.  

The project will involve three strands: summarising SGSAH’s existing offer, mapping the wider HEI landscape to chart future IDR opportunities (both for SGSAH-funded and the widerr PGR researchers); gathering information on the IDR aspirations and needs of PGR researchers. These will be analysed with a view to presenting recommendations to further develop SGSAH’s interdisciplinary training. 

Outputs

During the internship, the Researcher would undertake the following research activities: 

• Summarise existing interdisciplinary activity undertaken under SGSAH’s auspices 

• Execute a desktop mapping exercise of wider interdisciplinary trends across the HE sector, especially within the strategies of key stakeholders including Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) esp. the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), and the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) 

• Undertake stakeholder analysis to capture the experiences and requirements of the Postgraduate and Supervisor Community. This could encompass designing and running focus groups/workshops with the SGSAH Discipline+ Catalyst Leads and Doctoral Researcher Committee, and the wider PGR/Academic Community. Appropriate opportunities would be identified within the SGSAH cycle of events 

• Synthesise these research findings and analyse the current position using an appropriate analytical tool (e.g. SWOT) 

• Develop recommendations for innovations and enhancement 

Key outputs would be: 

• A report including executive summary, synthesising and the research and offering recommendations 

• Plan and deliver an event at an appropriate point to stimulate discussion of the findings and how they might be taken forward 

• A poster presentation on IDR and SGSAH as a support for ongoing discussion and engagement with the project findings 

Timescale

Application Deadline: 15th November 2024

Start date (or must start by): February 2025

End date (or must end by): July 2025

Project can be worked full time, part time or flexibly in blocks

Benefits to the Researcher

• Opportunity to contribute to future of PGR training in Arts and Humanities in Scotland 

• Practical experience working with a dynamic team within a fast-moving and multi-faceted environment 

• Developing insight into interdisciplinarity within Arts and Humanities and across the UK HE sector 

• Practical experience developing a HE policy report and developing strategy and policy recommendations based on clear evidence base 

• Gathering evidence through range of methods  

• Widening network of key contacts and engaging with wide range of individuals and organisations 

• Understanding strengths and limitations of different evidence sources in strategic development 

• Enhanced employability in HE sector (academic and professional services) and in associated research and policy orientated fields 

 Skills include:  

• Applying self-direction and motivation 

• Solution-focused approach 

• Well-developed written and oral communication 

• Understanding and synthesising concepts and ideas quickly 

• Responsiveness to needs of partners and stakeholders 

• Teamwork, skill sharing and support with a wide range of people 
  
  

Key Relationships

• The core SGSAH team constituting a combination of academic and professional services staff, and blended working practices.  

• The Discipline+ Catalyst Leads and Doctoral Researchers Committee. 

• Supervisors, Academics and PGRs working across the 11 Catalysts and deploying a wider range of methodologies. 

• Potentially other key stakeholders in academic and professional services within HEIs, e.g. SGSAH Executive Members 
  
  

Person Specification

Apply here

Return to the Internships & Artists Residencies 2025 page to see other internship opportunities.

First published: 4 October 2024