Post-doctoral positions
Post-doctoral and research fellows are valued participants in the life of the LSE’s Department of Anthropology, enriching and benefitting from our strong research environment. Besides a few LSE fellow positions (mostly teaching-oriented) which we announce publically, the Department of Anthropology does not award post-doctoral fellowships. But as a host institution the department regularly supports applicants for such awards from other bodies (e.g., the British Academy, the Leverhulme Foundation, Marie Curie). The competition for such places is intense, all applications are vetted, and not all will be supported. As some awarding bodies require candidates to apply for matching funds from the LSE’s school-level research committee (technically ‘RIIF’) funds, be sure to read all instructions from the prospective awarding body carefully.
Applications from post-doctoral candidates wishing to be hosted in the Department of Anthropology are considered by the department’s research committee. Successful outcomes are greatly aided by timely submission of materials to this committee, which must receive them well in advance of deadlines set by the relevant awarding bodies.
Applicants should first approach a prospective mentor within the department who will liaise with the committee and assist with the application process. Candidates should feel free to contact members of the department, who are accustomed to and welcome such mentoring opportunities.
All applications must be sent to the chair of the departmental research committee, Professor Katy Gardner, k.j.gardner@lse.ac.uk, no later than one month prior to the deadline set by the awarding body. (Please note that, for applications with a deadline between mid-July and mid-October, the committee must receive materials six weeks prior to the deadline set by the awarding body, as many members of staff are on research leave over the summer.)
All applicants should note that in addition to the departmental deadline ALL approved applications must be sent to the LSE Research Development Support team five day before the scheme deadline. Please contact L.Gibson4@lse.ac.uk.
ESRC post-doctoral fellowships
Applicants must be in communication with their prospective mentors and the Chair of the Departmental Research Committee, Katy Gardner, at least one month prior to the deadline. However, this does not necessarily amount to departmental ‘approval’, nor will it automatically rule out those who haven’t done so. Either way, applications are made through the PhD Academy. Please visit the information on their webpage here. The PhD Academy will check applications for eligibility, and the department will rank them once they arrive with us.
The LSE’s Visiting Fellows scheme enables practitioners and academics to carry out research in Departments and/or to be involved with departmental activities. The Department of Anthropology will only accept applicants proposed by a current permanent staff member who has similar interests and can therefore act as a mentor. Applicants will also need to be able to demonstrate that their research aligns with that of the Department.
We receive a number of requests for affiliation every year and can only accept a few of them. For this reason we are very keen that the people who do come should make an active contribution to the life of the department while they are here. Probably the simplest way of doing this is through regular participation in the departmental Friday morning seminar, and other relevant social events. Visitors could also, of course, meet separately with individual members of staff and/or research students to discuss shared research interests – e.g. over a coffee or sandwich lunch. At the more active end of things, visitors might want to organise seminars, workshops or even conferences with departmental colleagues or they might make a contribution of some kind to departmental teaching. Obviously the range of options is very wide, and the constraints on individual visitors vary. But the main point is that we will expect some signs of commitment and engagement from all visitors during their time at the LSE.
Arrangements
• Fellowships normally run between 1 and 3 years, and fellows may start at any time of the year subject to agreement with their mentor and with the Head of Department.
• The title of Visiting Fellow is given to individuals from outside the School who are associated with LSE Departments. Visiting Fellows have access to various facilities at LSE, including the library. They will also be provided with an LSE login and email address enabling use of computer facilities. However, the Department regrets that we cannot provide desk space.
• The Department does not provide a research allowance.
• We are not able to make any arrangements for Visiting Fellows’ accommodation.
• At the end of a Fellowship, Visiting Fellows are asked to submit a brief written report to the Head of Department summarising their contribution to the Department.
Application deadlines
The Anthropology Department deadlines are as follows:
Monday 9 December 2024
Monday 24 February 2025
If applicants have special reasons why they cannot meet these deadlines, they should discuss this with their prospective mentor and/or Head of Department.
Application process
- You should identify the person in the Department who will act as your mentor/contact and discuss with them how your work and research interests align with those of the Department and how your proposed visit will benefit the department.
- You should submit an application and current CV, including full contact details, to your proposed mentor.
- Your application should cover the following points:
- what academic benefits you hope to obtain from your affiliation with the Department
- what contribution you think you will be able to make to the intellectual life of the Department (including possible teaching contributions) what research activities you are planning to undertake while affiliated with the department
- the exact start and end dates of the proposed visit
- whether you require a work permit for the UK
- details of any grant you have obtained or are applying for to cover your stay and travel costs
- Your mentor/contact will complete the School’s nomination form and this will be considered by the Department at its next meeting along with your application and CV.
- If your nomination gets Departmental approval, it will need also to be approved by the School’s Human Resources division. If successful, they will issue a formal letter of invitation confirming your appointment.
- In a separate letter, the Head of Department will outline your duties, such as attendance at relevant seminars.
We welcome research students from other universities to spend from one term up to one academic year at LSE as a Visiting Research Student (VRS).
The VRS scheme allows students who are registered as doctoral researcher at other institutions to participate in research activities in the Department and the School, to interact with other research students, and to benefit from the expertise of LSE faculty, the training offered by the PhD Academy, and LSE Library facilities. Note that Visiting Research Students do not have access to any LSE taught courses. Further details can be found here.