The Wolfson Postgraduate Scholarships in the Humanities programme has been renewed and a sixth cohort of scholars will begin their studies in 2018. Since the scheme began, 27 DPhil students at Oxford have been awarded scholarships in support of their ambitious, innovative and wide-ranging work in the fields of history, languages and literature.
The Wolfson Foundation, which has a long history of support to higher education, launched the Wolfson Postgraduate Scholarships in the Humanities in 2012 in response to concerns about funding for the humanities, and the impact of increased undergraduate student debt on postgraduate studies.
Nine UK universities are involved in the programme, and will benefit equally from a £2.2 million award for postgraduate scholarships this year. The partner institutions, which stretch from Southampton to Oxford to St Andrews, are carefully selected based on the quality of their research.
Since the start of the programme, over 200 doctoral researchers have been supported across the UK, at a cost of more than £13 million. 'Our aim is not only to support some of the most exciting students, but also to make a statement about the value of the humanities. We believe that high quality academic research in this field is of critical importance to British society,' explains Paul Ramsbottom, Chief Executive of the Wolfson Foundation.
Wolfson Scholarships are awarded to outstanding students who demonstrate the potential to become future academic leaders, and make a significant impact on their chosen fields.
'I would like to express my utmost gratitude to the Wolfson Foundation for my scholarship, without which I would definitely not have continued with postgraduate studies as I could not afford it,’ says current Wolfson Scholar Olivia Thompson, who is studying for a DPhil in Ancient History at Balliol College. ‘I have been very encouraged by the welcoming atmosphere in the Foundation, which I sense really wishes to foster a relationship with scholars.'