The University of Brighton Faculty of Arts is to nurture new arts and humanities researchers.
16 Oct 2013
The University of Brighton has been successful, alongside its academic partner institutions, in two consortia bids to the Arts and Humanities Research Council. The funding will nurture the next generation of arts and humanities researchers, bringing opportunities to high-calibre postgraduate students in design and across the major disciplines at the Faculty of Arts.
The consortia will receive more than £15m in grants which will fund around 200 new full-time studentships per year over the next five years with the aim of training highly-skilled researchers and recognising the importance of quality research in the arts and humanities.
The grants, which were unveiled on 15 October by the Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC), offer funding to a total of 18 consortia starting in 2014. The University of Brighton's contribution, notably through its expertise in design research, led to a successful award in two of these.
Professor Jonathan Woodham, the University of Brighton's Director of Research and Development (Arts and Humanities), said: "The Faculty of Arts has systematically pursued an explicit strategy of disciplinary and interdisciplinary research, inter-relating critical theory, contemporary practices and their histories. This has generated fresh fields of interdisciplinary enquiry, stimulating insights that question current practices and foster new understandings. The researcher development programme reflects best practice in the field and offers development opportunities for students and supervisors."
Professor Woodham noted that the formation of the consortia themselves "reflect our reputation as a partner of high quality, while Professor Anne Boddington, Dean of the University of Brighton's Faculty of Arts, affirmed: "This success recognises the research study culture at Brighton and the Faculty's international standing in the creative and performing arts, architecture, design, media and the humanities."
Professor Bruce Brown, the University of Brighton's Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research), said: "This double success confirms that the university's strategic investment in a new Doctoral College and £5m for doctoral studentships has been a wise investment. The Doctoral College brings together research degree students, their supervisors, directors of postgraduate studies and specialist research degree administrators. Within this the distinctive character of doctoral research across the arts and humanities, especially in practice-based subjects, has been embraced and advanced."
The TECHNE consortium brings in Brighton's expertise in design research and will collaborate with the V&A, Museum of London, Natural History Museum, Science Museum, National Maritime Museum, Barbican Centre, Rose Theatre, British Film Institute, and Brighton Festival and Dome; the Design Star Consortium- 'strength in diversity', is led by University of Reading, and will deliver postgraduate supervision, training and skills development across a range of arts and humanities disciplines.
The AHRC said the new funding "provides greater flexibility for higher education institutions, creating rich training environments both within and across disciplines. This will include an allocation of resources for placement opportunities and additional skills training. The awards will also provide for cohort development activities to support joint supervision of students, sharing of resources from across the consortia, further activities such as student events, conferences and the fostering of peer support networks."
Professor Mark Llewellyn, Director of Research for the AHRC, said: "This investment by the AHRC will not only support university researchers but also enrich the contexts in which arts and humanities skills and capabilities engage with and contribute to advancement and growth in sectors across the wider UK economy."
