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Postgraduate research in Drama

We are an internationally recognised centre for research and we have a strong culture of excellence in learning and teaching provision.

Nora Williams

Thesis title: Between Performances, Text, and Editions: The Changeling
Supervisors: Prof Kate Newey, Prof Jane Milling

I study the after life of an early modern play that is not by Shakespeare. As part of Humanities at Exeter there is the opportunity to present your work in front of peers in a really supportive environment at our yearly conference. We're a really cosy community.

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Kate Holmes

Thesis title: Aerial Stars: Femininity, Celebrity & Glamour in the Representations of Female Aerialists in the UK & US in the 1920s and Early 1930s
Supervisors: Prof Kate Newey, Dr Adrian Curtin
Funding: AHRC

Exeter’s strong reputation for research into histories of popular performance and its ethos of praxis made it the ideal institution to support my research. My methodology uses embodied understanding gained as an amateur aerialist to interrogate a range of historical sources. For that reason, I wanted a place that could improve the rigour of my historiographical approach and that also understood how practice could illuminate aerial histories.

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We are one of the largest and best equipped Drama departments in the UK and offer a supportive and stimulating environment for postgraduate research and practice, welcoming students from all around the world. Our impressive reputation is backed up by consistently high scores for student satisfaction. Whatever your field of study – theatre, performing, directing, theory, writing for performance, dramaturgy, criticism, new media, analysis or historiography – you will have access to expert supervision, excellent practical resources and creative association with fellow students.

The department has a lively tradition of research and creative activity and many members of staff are writers and performers. We work with external artists and theatre companies to produce research-based theatre and performance. Students benefit from collaborations with organisations such as the Globe Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare Institute, local and national theatre companies, and public sector bodies such as hospitals, prisons and schools.

Our research in the area of Art History and Visual Culture is interdisciplinary in scope, reaching across and beyond the Humanities disciplines.

Art History and Visual Culture staff publish on the history of art, curate exhibitions, work with a variety of arts institutions and lead major externally funded research projects on curatorial engagements with performance archives; the history of French art institutions; the history of Spanish cinema; Victorian medievalism; histories of sacred spaces; and the culture of the suburbs.

Explore our research centres and projects to find out more about our current research topics.

Visit our staff pages for details on individual staff research interests and publications.

Our current PhD students

We're proud of the research carried out by our PhD students. Follow the links below to find out more about our PhD students and their research projects.

Student	Research title	First supervisor	Second supervisor
Ohood s. Alaqeel	The Female Playwrights in Saudi Arabia	Dr Jane Milling	Dr Adrian Curtin
Francesco Bentivegna	The human-cyborg dialogue	Dr Konstantinos Thomaidis	Dr Bryan Brown
Chloe Bradwell	An exploration of the cultural value of performing arts for people living with dementia	Professor Kerrie Schaefer	Margaret Ames (Aberystwyth)
Lin Chen	Comparative analysis of framing in theatre/performance studies	Dr. Michael Pearce	Professor Jane Milling
Giorgia Ciampi	Practicing affectivity: a phenomenological study of the contemporary actor’s affective expression	Professor Rebecca Loukes	Professor Giovanna Colombetti Dr Thomas Kampe (Bath Spa)
Bojana Daw Srdanovic	How does the production of professional theatre affect the wellbeing and community participation of artists living with learning disabilities?	Professor Kerrie Schaefer	Professor Manuela Barreto, Professor Martin Levinson
Sinibaldo De Rosa	The Alevi Semah as Intangible Cultural Heritage and Transnational Transcendence.	Professor Jerri Daboo	John O'Connell
Nazlihan Eda Ercin	Performing Virginity: A Practice-Led Research about the Perceptions and Practices of Virginity in Turkey	Professor Jerri Daboo
Sophia Edlund	Voicing Thelxis	Dr Konstantinos Thomaidis Dr Adrian Curtin
Roger Farrell	Rules, roles, relationships: exploring creative pathways between imaginary play and structured drama in late childhood and the implications for creativity in education and society.	Professor Kerrie Schaefer	Dr Rebecca Hillman
Elaine Faull	Theatre Alibi project	Professor Cathy Turner
Giselle Garcia	Translation, Adaptation and Flanerie: the Fate of Shakespearean Performance in Manila's Urban Forms	Dr Kara Reilly	Professor Cathy Turner
Aldith Gauci	A Living Masquerade: A study of Jola’s Kumpo in Senegambia (Working Title)	Prof Heike Roms	Prof Jerri Daboo
Zhiyue Hu	Representing East Asian identities in 21st Century British Theatre	Dr Rebecca Loukes	Dr Michael Pearce
Alexandra MacKenzie	When you're here, we are here also. An examination of how contemporary sacred re-enactments reveal Mormon faith and strengthen Mormon Identity in the 21st century.	Dr Sarah Goldingay	Dr Rebecca Loukes
Aparna Mahiyaria	Understanding Politics, Aesthetics and Performance: A Study of the Development of Street Theatre in Delhi, India	Professor Cathy Turner	Shivali Tukdeo
Josip Martincic	Cultural Authority of Theatre Critics in Late 19th Century London	Professor Kate Newey	Dr. Adrian Curtin
Kate Massey-Chase	How can my Applied Drama practice support young people in the transition between Child and Adolescent and Adult Mental Health Services?	Professor Jane Milling
Tom Nicholas	Representations of regional English cities in contemporary drama	Professor Cathy Turner	Dr Katie Beswick
Elizabeth Philps	Parents Performing Walking: how can understandings of walking performance be enhanced through participatory live art works which include children?	Professor Cathy Turner	Dr Rebecca Loukes
Alison Rockbrand	Rite of Performance: Identity Construction in Contemporary Esoteric Performances.	Dr Sarah Goldingay

Supervisors - all students have a primary and a secondary supervisor who provide regular, high quality advice, support and direction in their academic endeavours. You will work closely with your supervisors over three to four years (full time PhD) or six to seven (part-time PhD) to develop, investigate and write-up a project at the cutting edge of theological research.

Visit our staff profiles for more information about individual research interests or use the search box on the right of this page to find a supervisor.

Mentor - each student will also be assigned a mentor who will take on a pastoral role and mediate on any problems that arise during the period of study. Your mentor will keep in regular contact and will provide background stability and support.

Graduate School Office - the College of Humanities has a dedicated Graduate School Office that supports our postgraduate research students during their study with us. The Office promotes intellectual and social contact between research students in all our disciplines to foster a vibrant research community within the College.

Funding opportunities available to students on our research degree programmes in Drama:*

More information on the funding process.

Award	Value	Application deadline	Description
Commonwealth PhD Scholarships 2020 (for least developed countries and fragile states)	Tuition fees, approved fares and stipend	Wed 30th Oct 2019	Commonwealth PhD Scholarships are for candidates from the least developed countries and fragile states in the Commonwealth, put forward by various nominating bodies, for full-time doctoral study at a UK university.
Said Foundation Scholarships	Varies	Fri 1st Nov 2019	The Said Foundation offers around thirty postgraduate scholarships to nationals from Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine and Syria who are also permanent residents in these target countries.
2020/21 Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships (low and middle income countries)	Visiting scholar tuition fee, approved fares, and personal maintenance	Wed 6th Nov 2019	Commonwealth Split-site Scholarships are for PhD candidates from low and middle income Commonwealth countries, to spend up to 12 months at a UK university as part of their doctoral studies in their home country.
The neural circuit basis of spatial memory loss in Alzheimer’s disease. PhD in Medical Studies (MRC GW4 BioMed DTP)	Stipend matching UK Research Council National Minimum (£15,009 p.a. for 2019/20, updated each year) plus UK/EU tuition fees	Mon 25th Nov 2019	The loss of memories of places is an early symptom of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). These “spatial memories” are generated by networks of space coding neurons, called place cells, in a key brain structure for memory called the hippocampus. This project will use cutting-edge in vivo brain imaging to discover how place cells become disrupted in AD, and attempt to treat this using drugs that target AD pathology.
China Scholarship Council and University of Exeter PhD Scholarships	Full tuition fees and Living Allowance	Mon 6th Jan 2020	The University of Exeter alongside the China Scholarship Council is pleased to offer fully funded studentship available for September 2020 entry.
US Department of Education - Federal Student Loan	Variable	Tue 30th Jun 2020	The federal government offers a number of financial aid programs, including these loans, to help pay for your education.
Fulbright Scholarships: Postgraduate Student Awards	Full tuition waiver for one year of Masters / PhD & living stipend	Deadline passed (Tue 8th Oct 2019)	Our UK Partnership award with Fulbright is available for Masters or Doctoral students who are USA or dual USA:UK citizens wishing to study at the University. The award takes the form of a tuition fee waiver for the first year of graduate study (either Masters or PhD) and a living stipend. We also accept scholars in receipt of Fulbright 'Open Awards' (also referred to as the All Disciplines Award).

_{*Please note that if you have submitted an application to one of our MPhil/PhD programmes you will not automatically be considered for funding. You must submit a separate funding application, including all required supporting documents, via the link provided in each award to be considered for that award.}

We are committed to ensuring you receive high quality research supervision to maximise your potential and prepare you for a rewarding career.

Postgraduate students have access to the wide range of support offered by our Career Zone. In addition, postgraduate research students can access our Postgraduate Researchers' Programme, which covers a range of topics to help you to succeed during your research degree and to act as a springboard for your research career.

Employers

Millennium Forum Theatre
Municipal and Regional Theatre of Veria
Oily Cart
Thammasat University
Theatre Royal
University of Exeter
University of Portsmouth
Volkstheater Wien
Yoda Press

Occupations

Actor
Assistant Director
Assistant Practitioner
Associate Lecturer in Drama
Drama Facilitator
Educational Assistant
Freelance Arts Practitioner
Freelance Trainer and Applied Dramatist
General Manager
Lecturer
Publishing Trainee
Social Activities Co-Ordinator
Teacher

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