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Russian Archives Training Scheme

The Russian Archives Training Scheme is funded by CEELBAS and CRCEES, after a highly successful four-year pilot funded by a grant from the Arts and Humanities Research Council's 'Collaborative Research Training Provision for Doctoral Students' scheme. It involves collaboration between the:

• School of Slavonic and East European Studies, University College London;
• Centre for Russian and East European Studies, University of Birmingham;
• Department of Central and East European Studies, University of Glasgow;

and, in association with the:

• British Association for Slavonic and East European Studies,
• Study Group on the Russian Revolution,
• Centre for Russian, Central and East European Studies (CRCEES)
• Centre for East European Language Based Area Studies (CEELBAS).

Following several successful UK workshops and trips to Russia, the scheme is organising a one week trip to Moscow for research students based in the UK and overseas, in order to introduce them to working in the principal historical, literary and cultural archives used by scholars of the Soviet Union and the Russian Empire. The visit will include visits to the two biggest archives, the State Archive of the Russian Federation (GARF) and the Russian State Archive of Social and Political History (RGASPI), where students will be given an introductory talk and will have the opportunity to speak with archivists and to investigate the extent of archival holdings on their own topic. Trips to other more specialised archives and libraries in Moscow will be included according to the needs of individual students, including the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art (RGALI), the Russian State Archive of Contemporary History (RGANI) and others.

During the trip there will also be some free time for exploring the city and becoming acquainted with its culture, and the opportunity to meet some leading Russian historians. The trip is led by experienced staff from the UK and is organised with the full cooperation of the archives. Students will stay in a hotel, mostly in shared twin rooms.

Applications welcome

The programme is intended mostly for students who have not yet carried out research in the Moscow archives, but are planning an extended archival research trip to Moscow in the future. It is therefore aimed primarily at students in their first year of doctoral study (or second year part-time), but applications from students at different stages of study will be considered where appropriate. Priority will be given to students registered for a PhD or equivalent at a UK institution (or students registered for an MPhil in their first year who are expected to have registration upgraded to PhD). It is also a condition of the scheme's funding that priority will be given to students at institutions which are part of the CEELBAS or CRCEES networks.

Timetable

The timetable for students to apply for and organise a place on the trip is as follows:

• 11 December 2009: Deadline for all applications to be received
• 31 December 2009: Latest date by which successful applicants will be notified
• 15 January 2010: Deadline for selected students to confirm participation and to pay the first £150 of the student contribution
• February 2010: Visa, flight and hotel arrangements to be confirmed. Note that successful applicants should ensure that any travel plans in February-March 2010 allow sufficient time for the visa application process. Your passport may be needed by the Russian consulate for 2-4 weeks.
• 12 May 2010: Deadline for students to submit report to the trip organisers and their supervisors.

For full details of the study trip, including Eligibility and Costs, and the Application Process download the trip information sheet (PDF Format, 57KB).

For more information contact the trip organiser Polly Jones (University College London).

 

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First published: 1 September 2011