Studying in a local café (image by University of Exeter, used under CC license)

The University of Exeter is offering a variety of funding opportunities in the interconnected fields of World, Global, Colonial, and Imperial History. Its history department is ranked in the top 5 in The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2017, in the top 10 in all major UK university league tables for the subject, and the top 50 in worldwide rankings for history (QS World University Rankings 2016). It also ranks 8th in the UK for world-leading research.

The University of Exeter has two research centers in the broad field of world history: the Centre of Imperial and Global History and the Centre for War, State and Society. Work at these spans Africa, Asia, North America, Latin America, Eastern and Central Europe, from the early-modern period to the contemporary era. The department also has close ties with the Institute for Arab and Islamic Studies Centre.

Both research centers have strong inter-disciplinary links across the humanities and social sciences. Areas of interest include the past and present of globalization, comparative empires and transnationalism, humanitarianism, development and human rights, law and colonialism, political economy and the imperial state, decolonization and the legacies of empire, colonial warfare and counterinsurgency, and gender, race, and empire.

If you are thinking of doing a PhD in world history, or colonial and imperial history, and in need of funding, the department offers several dozen scholarships to residents of the UK and European Union, such as the RC South West and Wales Doctoral Training Partnership (deadline: January 12, 2017, for entry in September 2017) and the ESRC South West Doctoral Training Partnership (deadline: February 4, 2017).

Funding is also available for students from other countries. The university offers 20 international postgraduate research scholarships. These are for all disciplines, not just history, and provide up to 3.5 years’ funding. The deadline to apply is January 15, 2017, for entry in the 2017/18 academic year. The award covers fees, and provides a research allowance and a stipend to support living costs, fixed at UK research council levels (currently £14,295 a year).

Successful applicants for the international postgraduate research scholarships will have excellent academic records, research potential, and a solid research proposal. They would be expected to start their studies in September 2017.

Scholarship applicants must fulfil standard entry requirements for the program of study. The online application must be accompanied by a CV, research proposal with a supervisor agreed in principle, transcripts, two references, and IELTS or equivalent score if you are from a non-English-speaking country.

Alumni gathering in Mumbai in June, 2016 (image by University of Exeter, used under CC license)