The AHRC-TORCH Graduate Fund scheme runs every year during Michaelmas Term. The Fund supports student projects in three streams: interdisciplinary graduate conference awards, public engagement with research awards, and awards for podcast series (see below for more information). It is open to current graduate students, the lead applicant(s) must be a doctoral student with masters students welcome to apply as co-applicants.
Proposals will be assessed by the Student Peer Review College and by the Humanities Graduate Studies Committee. The deadline to submit applications this term is 20 November 2020 at 12pm (noon), applicants will be notified of the outcome via email by 18 December 2020).
For more information on how to apply, please attend one of our info sessions via Teams on Thursday, 29 October 2020 and Friday, 16 November 2020, 3.00-4:30pm. Information and booking details for this session can be found here.
Funding streams
In the 2020-21 academic year, applicants are invited to apply to the following funding streams:
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Conference
2 awards of up to £1500 for an interdisciplinary graduate conference led by at least two graduate students from different faculties.
- Public Engagement with Research (PER) Project
3 awards of up to £1000 for a public engagement project led by at least two graduate students from different faculties. The activities proposed by the project must involve collaboration with a non-academic organisation.
3 awards of up to £500 for an interdisciplinary podcast or series of podcasts created by at least two graduate students from different faculties.
Application procedure
Each project requires at least two lead applicants from different faculties within the Humanities Division. Applications are open to current doctoral students. Additional contributors from varying career stages and other Divisions are most welcome. The support of each lead applicant's supervisor, confirming that the project will not interfere with the applicant’s academic commitments, is required.
Applications should be made by completing the application form (click here), and returning it to gradprojects@humanities.ox.ac.uk by the deadline. Please refer to the application guidelines which can be found here. You will be required to supply the following information:
Project Proposal
Proposals should be 750 words maximum and outline the intellectual purpose, plan/programming and any outcomes or impact of the project.
Budget Plan
Applicants should include a detailed budget for their project, which should indicate if other funding has already been secured. Budgets ought to be thoroughly considered to provide reasonable and proportionate costs for items that would be covered by the Fund. Please also note other sources of funding for which you will be applying and provide evidence of how the budget would change if in-person events are not possible.
Research Benefit Statement (PER)
Applicants to the Public Engagement with Research stream will need to include a research benefit statement (max 250 words) outlining how the proposed project will benefit their academic research.
Partner Benefit Statement (PER)
Applicants to the Public Engagement with Research stream will also need to include a partner benefit statement (max 250 words) demonstrating the ways in which the partner organisation will benefit from the project. We would strongly encourage applicants to work in close consultation with the partner organisation when writing this.
Applicants will be asked to confirm they have the support of their supervisors that the project will not interfere with their academic commitments, and will also be asked to declare any conflicts of interest.
Assessment criteria
1. Intellectual Purpose of the Conference or PER project
2. Realistic Budget
3. Plan/Programming
4. Outcomes/Impact (PER applicants: include benefit for partner organisations)
5. Raise the profile of the Humanities Division/University
6. Demonstrated interdisciplinarity
7. Other Sources of Funding
Outcomes of application & taking up an award
Applicants will be notified of the outcomes of their applications via email by 18 December 2020. Applicants will have to confirm by 11 January 2021 to accept funding for the proposed projects. Awarded students will receive training to support the delivery of their project, be able to promote their projects through the TORCH website as well as use of rooms, in the Radcliffe Humanities Building, if required, subject to availability. Should you be awarded funding, you will be asked to produce a blog post about your project/experience that will be added to the Humanities Division website. Projects should be completed by 31 July 2021.
Queries
Applicants with questions regarding the Fund or application process should email the Graduate Project Coordinators, Francesca Kaes and Glenn Cahilly-Bretzin, at gradprojects@humanities.ox.ac.uk for further advice and assistance.
Application Form and Guidance
Click here
