This full time, Leverhulme Trust funded post is available from 1 October 2023 to 30 September 2026 to participate in the research project ‘The Material Culture of Wills: England 1540-1790’.
The post
The project will analyse 25,000 wills from England’s Prerogative Court of Canterbury to explore changing attitudes to material culture. This involves the digitised transcription of manuscript wills using Transkribus and crowd-sourcing via Zooniverse to check transcriptions. The successful applicant will be an expert in early modern history with some knowledge of wills and excellent palaeography.
The post will include designing contents for the website, recruiting and working with the expert volunteers, running the ‘transcribathon’ and an online workshop. Assisting a digital humanities expert in recruiting and managing volunteer checkers via Zooniverse. You will also analyse the transcribed wills, presenting a paper at an international conference; jointly research and write an article with Jane Whittle; jointly edit an edited volume with Laura Sangha; jointly write the introduction to the volume; and research and write a sole-authored chapter.
This role may offer the opportunity for hybrid working – some time on campus and some from home.
About you
You will:
- be able to develop research objectives, projects and proposals
- identify sources of research funding and contribute to the process of securing funds
- be able to make presentations at conferences and other events
- possess a relevant PhD or equivalent qualification/experience in a related field of study
- be a nationally recognised authority in early modern history and possess sufficient specialist knowledge in the discipline to develop research programmes and methodologies
- be able to work collaboratively, supervise the work of others and act as team leader as required
- be able to read and transcribe early modern documents, have some experience of public engagement, and an interest in developing digital humanities skills.
Expertise in early modern history including the analysis of wills as documents and/or historical approaches to material culture and/or early modern English social structure are essential.
Please ensure you read the Job Description for full details of this role.
What we can offer you
- Freedom (and the support) to pursue your intellectual interests and to work creatively across disciplines to produce internationally exciting research
- Support teams that understand the University wide research and teaching goals and partner with our academics accordingly
- An Innovation, Impact and Business directorate that works closely with our academics providing specialist support for external engagement and development
- Our Exeter Academic initiative supporting high performing academics to achieve their potential and develop their career
- A multitude of staff benefits including sector leading benefits around maternity, adoption and shared parental leave (up to 26 weeks full pay), Paternity leave (up to 6 weeks full pay), and a Fertility Treatment Policy
Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Commitment
Whilst all applicants will be judged on merit alone, we particularly welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented within our working community. Reasonable adjustments are available for interviews and workplaces.
Further information
Please contact Professor Jane Whittle, j.c.whittle@exeter.ac.uk
ARiSE 