AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (CDP) PhD Studentship - 'The Provenance of Asian Collections (PAC)'

Ref Number

B03-02014

Professional Expertise

Research and Research Support

Department

UCL SLASH (B03)

Location

London

Working Pattern

Full time

Salary

See advert text

Contract Type

Permanent

Working Type

Hybrid

Available for Secondment

No

Closing Date

19-May-2024

University College London (UCL), and the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) are pleased to announce the availability of a fully funded Collaborative Doctoral Studentship from October 2024 under the AHRC’s Collaborative Doctoral Partnerships (CDP) scheme .

This interdisciplinary doctoral project aims to critically assess and visualise the complex networks behind the acquisition of the V&A’s Asia collection, comprising over 165,000 objects. By employing digital humanities methods to the V&A’s registers and archives, the project seeks to address gaps in provenance data and contextualise the collection within the wider frameworks of imperialism, trade, and collecting practices.

This project will be jointly supervised by Dr Elizabeth Lomas, Dr Jacques Schuhmacher, Dr Jin Gao, Anna Jackson and Richard Palmer, and the student will be expected to spend time at both UCL and the V&A, as well as becoming part of the wider cohort of CDP funded students across the UK.

The studentship can be studied either full or part-time. The CDP consortium organise an extensive range of professional and skills development activities designed to enhance CDP researcher’s PhD experience and future employability.

This doctoral project will use digital methods to explore the acquisition of the V&A’s extensive Asia collection of over 165,000 objects from regions including East Asia, South and South-East Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa, acquired 1852-2023. It aims to contextualise the collection, revealing wider networks of imperialism, trade, and collecting, and address the gaps in provenance data caused by incomplete digital transfers from V&A registers. The project will develop a comprehensive dataset about the V&A Asia collection from the museum's registers and archives, hitherto, incorporating overlooked dealers and collectors. It will utilise text recognition and network visualisation to uncover hidden patterns in collecting history, aiding in identifying trends. This initiative will not only deepen understanding of the collection's history but also offer insights to mitigate knowledge loss in digital transitions, benefiting documentation and comprehension in global cultural institutions.

This research studentship is one allocated to the V&A by the AHRC to support the strategic research priorities of the organisation. The successful student will be expected to spend time carrying out research and gaining relevant experience with the partner in the Asia Department and the V&A Research Institute, National Art Library & Archives as part of the studentship. The student will become part of a dynamic cohort of PhD researchers working in collaboration with V&A staff.

Research questions include:

• How can advanced digital humanities research methods rediscover the stories of previously marginalised individuals associated with the acquisition of the V&A's Asia Collection?
• How does the visualisation of socio-cultural networks reshape our understanding of the historical development and position of this collection within the broader context of Asian art acquisition, thereby contributing to the decolonisation of collecting practices in Western museums, 1852-2023?
• What is the role of historical museum records in the task of understanding collections, and can this project offer insights applicable to broader object management and documentation practices?

How to Apply

CLOSING DATE: Sunday 19th May 2024

INTERVIEW DATE: TBC, late May or early June. Shortlisted candidates will be asked to give a 5-minute presentation during the interview.

Please DO NOT click the 'Apply Now' button next to the advert.

To apply for this studentship, you must submit a PhD application to the UCL Department of Information Studies by Sunday 19th May 2024 via:

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/prospective-students/graduate/research-degrees/information-studies-mphil-phd

Your application needs to include the title of the CDP project – the Provenance of Asian Collections (PAC) project with the V&A Museum, and please also indicate the supervisors - Dr Elizabeth Lomas, Dr Jacques Schuhmacher, Dr Jin Gao, Anna Jackson and Richard Palmer.

For further details of the post contact Dr Jin Gao ([email protected]) or Dr Jacques Schuhmacher ([email protected]).

Should you require any reasonable adjustments or support throughout the application process, please contact Terrie Fiawoo, Department Manager, UCL ([email protected]) or Dr Oliver Cox, Head of Academic Partnerships, V&A ([email protected]).

This studentship is open to both Home and International applicants.

To be classed as a home student, candidates must meet the following criteria:

• Be a UK National (meeting residency requirements), or
• Have settled status, or
• Have pre-settled status (meeting residency requirements), or
• Have indefinite leave to remain or enter
• Further guidance can be found on the UKRI website .

International students are eligible to receive the full award for maintenance as are home students. They will need to pay themselves the difference between what the AHRC provide to the university for tuition and the charge made by the university for tuition fees for international students studying for a doctoral degree in Information Studies. The UCL international fees for 2024/25 is £28,100.

We want to encourage the widest range of potential students to study for a CDP studentship and are committed to welcoming students from different backgrounds to apply. We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian, Minority, Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds as they are currently underrepresented at this level in this area.

Applicants should ideally have or expect to receive a relevant Masters-level qualification in a relevant subject: Digital Humanities, Art History, Archives and Records Management, Museum Studies, Provenance Studies, History, Information Studies, Archaeology, Anthropology, or be able to demonstrate equivalent experience in a professional setting in any of the fields mentioned above.

Applicants must be able to demonstrate an interest in the Information Studies and/or Museum sector and potential and enthusiasm for developing skills more widely in related areas.

As a collaborative award, students will be expected to spend time at both the University and the V&A.

CDP doctoral training grants fund full-time studentships for 48 months (4 years) or part-time equivalent up to a maximum of 8 years.

The award pays tuition fees up to the value of the full-time home UKRI rate for PhD degrees. Research Councils UK Indicative Fee Level for 2024/2025 is £6,035*

NOTE: The studentship does not cover full international fees which at UCL for 2024/25 have been set at £28,100. The difference between UK and Overseas fees is the responsibility of the successful candidate or via any additional funding the candidate may have already secured.

The award pays full maintenance for all students, both home and international students. The National Minimum Doctoral Stipend for 2024/2025 is £19,237 plus London Weighting of £2000/year. There is also a CDP maintenance payment of £600 per year.

Further details can be found on the UKRI website .

The student is eligible to receive an additional travel and related expenses grant during the course of the project courtesy of V&A worth up to £1250 total over the duration of their project.

CDP students will also have access to training and development opportunities throughout the course of their PhD, supported and facilitated by the CDP Consortium itself, UCL, and the V&A. CDP students are expected to undertake a work placement or development opportunity for a minimum of a 3-month period (or part-time equivalent).

As London's Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world's talent. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. UCL and the V&A therefore particularly welcome and encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in doctoral student cohorts.

The V&A has made a commitment to the principle of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) for all and strives to go beyond public duty placed upon us by the Equality Act 2010. We believe that all our employees, volunteers and contracted suppliers should find the V&A to be a supportive and nurturing environment free from bullying, harassment, discrimination or victimisation, and we hope that we can support this to be the case through our proactive EDI work. Full details of our EDI intentions can be found in our Corporate EDI Strategy and Action Plan 2022-2025 .

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