Society launches second year of Applied History Fellowships, with the Institute of Historical Research and DC Thomson

15 October 2026

The Society is pleased to launch a second year of its Applied History Fellowships, to support recent post-doctorate historians, held in partnership the Institute of Historical Research (IHR) and publisher DC Thomson.

This initiative responds to three pressing challenges:

  • the need to build sustainable bridges across different parts of the history community;
  • the deeply challenging academic job market; and
  • the need to advocate for the utility of history beyond the HE sector. The new Applied History Fellowships seek to expand the range of futures open to early career historians and to enhance the applied skills of those who do pursue a university career.

The Fellowships offer a bursary of £12,250 per award for a 6-month period. Fellowships for this second year will normally be held between April and September 2027.

Applications for the second round of Applied History Fellowships are now invited between 15 October 2026 and 31 January 2027.

Further information about the 2027 programme is available here.

Applications for 2027 Fellowships may be submitted via the applications portal of the Institute of Historical Research.

Fellowships will provide financial and practical support for those wishing to develop the wider impact and application of their academic work. The Fellowship provides time to develop publication, impact and engagement profiles. It also facilitates a two-day a week online placement with The Social History Archive so that Fellows can develop skills within a commercial history context.

Successful Fellows will become members of the IHR and be offered a 12-month free Associate Fellowship of the Society, whose Councillors will also provide professional mentoring. Fellows will also receive 12-month free access to The Social History Archive.

Holders of the Applied History Fellowships for 2026

  • Dr Sadie Levy Gale whose project focuses on record collections concerned with social welfare, including material relating to healthcare, urban development, and social reform.
  • Dr Matthew Stephens who is curating new collections for The Social History Archive Primary Source Series. This work will focus on digitised newspaper archives which are central to Matthew’s own research.