Wing Commander Guy Gibson, 1943. National Archives.
Margot Finn writes:
Applying successfully for grants is an essential part of developing a research profile and career in history. External grants are of value for many reasons. These include, for example: allowing you to undertake costly research trips to archives, libraries and museums; funding research assistants who can undertake research on your behalf or translate sources for you; supporting conferences and workshops that help to develop and disseminate your research; supporting periods of research leave from teaching duties; and providing external evidence (through peer review) of the calibre of your research.
This section starts with some generic tips to help you formulate your grant applications for optimal success, and then explores potential funding opportunities for different kinds of research activity.
Generic tips
- Start small, build up a profile, and then expand your ambitions
- Know your grants
- Read, address and adhere to the application criteria
- Work to the application’s deadline
- Proof-read your application carefully
Research trips and/or training events
Funding for research trips to archives and libraries or to undertake fieldwork or training is available from many sources. Obtaining one or more of these small grants as a PhD student lays excellent groundwork for making more substantial grant applications as a postdoctoral researcher. READ MORE
Conference Attendance & Conference Organisation READ MORE
Public engagement and/or impact work READ MORE
Post-doctoral projects
Very few historians gain permanent academic employment immediately upon completion of the degree. Most historians who succeed in gaining such posts experience one or more years of part-time or fixed-contract teaching, or serving as a research assistant on a senior academic’s grant, while they build a publication profile. READ MORE
Download PDF: ECH Grant applications