Research students
Key information
The Museum has a large research student programme working across a wide range of different academic disciplines.
Our students carry out new research to support the Museum's work and have opportunities to develop their future careers by researching with us.
All our research studentships are collaborative doctoral studentships, which means:
- All our students work for a doctoral degree at a UK university.
- Their research is supported by two or more supervisors – at least one from their university and at least one from the Museum.
Current students
Since 2006, the Museum has supported more than 90 students working with over 30 universities. The fresh perspectives and expertise brought by our university partners are crucial for the success of our research student projects and the impact they have on the Museum.
Most of the Museum's students are funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) through their Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (CDP) scheme.
Other students are funded through the Leverhulme Trust, Wellcome Trust and individual university scholarships. For information about working with us on non-CDP doctoral projects, please email cda@britishmuseum.org.
Current students
Past students
Since 2006 over 70 PhD students have completed their Doctorates with the British Museum, in collaboration with 26 universities across the UK including the University of Oxford, Liverpool John Moores University, Nottingham Trent University, Kings College London and University of Reading. Based across the Museum, these students have produced PhDs on wide-ranging subjects including Historicising the British Museum's Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Collection (Alison Clark, 2009), and Ceramic Traditions of Early Northern China: Painted Pottery in Context (Evgenia Dammer, 2017). The research for these PhDs has informed exhibitions, displays, collecting practices and the conservation of the British Museum collection and has been published as books, articles and British Museum Research Publications. The successful Doctors have gone on to work at cultural institutions and universities across the UK and as curators and conservation scientists at the British Museum.
