British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowships 2026

News

Posted on Wednesday 24 June 2026

The Department of History invites expressions of interest from suitably qualified applicants for this year’s British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship scheme, for awards to be taken up in autumn 2027.

Guidelines for expressions of interest to the Department of History at the University of York

The scheme is designed to “offer opportunities for outstanding early career researchers to strengthen their experience of research and teaching in a university environment which will develop their curriculum vitae and improve their prospects of obtaining permanent lecturing posts by the end of the Fellowship. The primary emphasis is on completion of a significant piece of publishable research”. Further details can be found on the British Academy website.

There are strict eligibility requirements and potential candidates are advised to check these carefully.

Department of History Application Process 2026

Due to the intensely competitive nature of this scheme, the Department of History will be holding an Expression of Interest competition to select applications for support through to the British Academy’s own deadlines. The department’s deadline for this process is 12 noon Tuesday 21 st July.

By this date, applicants must ensure the following documents are submitted via email, in Word or PDF format, to chris.renwick@york.ac.uk. We will be unable to accept any incomplete applications or those received after the internal departmental deadline.

A CV, no longer than 2 pages
A detailed description of the research programme, including methodology. This description should follow the guidance for “Proposed Programme” (.7.8) in the British Academy’s Application Notes for last year’s competition and should be no longer than 2,000 words, including references.
A statement of why York is a good fit for your project, no longer than 150 words.
A statement of support, no longer than 400 words, from a proposed mentor from within the department. This statement must be sent by the mentor to chris.renwick@york.ac.uk by the deadline.

The Department of History’s internal selection will be rigorous, and we will only put forward the strongest applications. We will be unable to accept any incomplete applications or those received after the deadline.

Successful candidates will receive support from the department through a peer review college, which will offer feedback on draft applications, and the Humanities Research Centre, which will help with all other aspects of the application.

Please note that successful candidates will be required to meet a final deadline for completed applications that is likely to be around two weeks before the British Academy’s own deadline of 30th September.

Chris Renwick, 22nd June 2026