In an important update to its membership package, the Society has introduced two new ways to join and engage with the RHS. Details of its new Associate Fellowship and Postgraduate Membership categories were announced at the Society’s 2021 AGM, held on Friday 26 November, and are effective from that date.
As a result, there are now four ways to be part of the Royal Historical Society: as a Fellow, Associate Fellow, Postgraduate Member and Member.
The changes better align the Society’s membership options to today’s historical profession, within and beyond Higher Education, and bring three important benefits to membership:
- creating more opportunities for historians, of all backgrounds, to join the Society
- enabling the Society to better tailor what it offers members based on their career stage and interests
- providing members with opportunities for continuous involvement with the Society, with options to change membership type to reflect career progression
Further information on the changes is also available via the Society’s blog, Historical Transactions.
Associate Fellowship
The Society’s new category of Associate Fellowship recognises the contribution to history made by those who do not currently qualify for the full RHS Fellowship, which is typically available to historians on publication of a monograph, a substantial set of scholarly articles, or an equivalent body of work.
By contrast, the Associate Fellowship recognises individuals within Higher Education who’ve made a substantial contribution to historical knowledge (for example, with a completed PhD thesis or first set of articles) but have not (yet) reached the level required for election to the Fellowship.
The Associate Fellowship will also recognise those active in sectors other than HE—including heritage, conservation, libraries and archives, teaching, publishing, broadcasting, and community and public history—whose contribution to history is equally significant but was not previously adequately recognised within the Society’s Fellowship structure.
As for full Fellowships, the new Associate Fellowship is recognition, by the members of the profession, of a contribution made to historical knowledge and understanding, and voted for by the RHS Council at its regular meetings.
The principal benefits of the Associate Fellowship include:
- Print copy of latest volume of the Society’s academic journal, Transactions
- Discounts on new print volumes in RHS Camden Series and personal subscriptions to the ‘Bibliography of British and Irish History’ online
- Access to the Society’s Library and Archive at University College London
- Eligibility to apply for RHS grants and fellowships, where applicable
- Eligibility to participate in the Society’s Annual General Meeting
- Access to RHS members events, including Early Career training programmes
- 30% discount on all Cambridge University Press academic books (print only)
Full details, and pricing, of the new Associate Fellowship are available via the Join the RHS section of the Society’s website.
Postgraduate Membership
The Society’s second new category of Postgraduate Membership is open to all those currently enrolled for a further degree (MA and above) in history or a related discipline, in the UK or overseas, and for the duration of the university course, plus one year.
The principal benefits of the Postgraduate Membership include:
- Online access to latest volume of the Society’s academic journal, Transactions
- Discounts on new print volumes in RHS Camden Series and personal subscriptions to the ‘Bibliography of British and Irish History’ online
- Receipt of weekly e-circulars with news relating to History events + regular RHS communications and Newsletters
- Access to the Society’s Library and Archive at University College London
- Eligibility to apply for RHS grants and funded fellowships
- Eligibility to participate in the Society’s Annual General Meeting
- Access to RHS training events, including Early Career workshop programme
- 30% discount on all Cambridge University Press academic books (print only)
Full details, and pricing, of the new Postgraduate Membership are available via the Join the RHS section of the Society’s website.
The launch of the Associate Fellowships and Postgraduate memberships also sees an end to the Society’s current Early Career Membership category, which previously catered for all research-focused historians who were not full Fellows.
Spanning PhD students at different stages of their research—as well as a wide range of post-docs several years out of a doctorate—the previous ECR category included a very broad range of members. The Society now seeks to support these members via more closely defined categories composed of historians at equivalent career stages.
Following these changes, in 2022 all existing members of the Society’s Early Career category will be given the option to convert their membership to one of the two new categories: i.e. to Associate Fellowship, for those current advanced ECRs who have completed a PhD; or to Postgraduate Membership for those currently studying for a further degree.
From now, anyone wishing to join the Society—who was previously eligible only for ECR membership—will be able to do so via the new Associate Fellowship or Postgraduate membership routes, as appropriate for their career stage.
Existing Fellowship and Membership options
November’s changes to the Society’s membership will not change the criteria for joining the full Fellowship or becoming a Member of the RHS—the latter being a category open to anyone with an interest in history, but without the professional contribution required for full Fellowship or Associate Fellowship; or who are not studying for a research degree as required for the Postgraduate category.
Many current Members of the Society are, of course, practising historians. Those Members who wish to apply for the new Associate Fellowship, on account of their contribution to history, will also be invited to do so. As for the current ECR members, we will contact these Members in 2022 to invite them to consider converting to the Associate Fellowship.
The new RHS membership categories at a glance
The Society’s previous three membership categories now become four with the creation of the new Associate Fellowship and Postgraduate Membership, which replace the previous Early Career Research option.
What the new Associate Fellow and Postgraduate categories offer
Following November’s changes, the Society will be better able to provide tailored packages and support (e.g. training courses or access to specialist networks) to suit members’ specific interests.
This is especially so for those in academia at the start of their research or professional careers: historians who are either studying for a higher degree (and may take advantage of Postgraduate Membership); or who’ve completed a PhD and are beginning to publish or start a teaching career (Associate Fellowship).
The final content of these offers, by category, is currently being developed and will be communicated to the RHS membership in the coming months.
The Associate Fellowship also has the potential to broaden the Society’s membership beyond higher education, offering a means to recognise the contributions made by those in other professional sectors and via personal research.
By encouraging greater diversity of membership through broader definitions of historical work, we hope to enrich members’ experiences through closer co-operation with historians of different kinds and professions.
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For more on the November 2021 changes to the Society’s Membership categories, please see the accompanying post on the RHS blog Historical Transactions, and the individual category pages in the Join the RHS section of the Society’s website.
