The Chevening British Library Fellowship is a collaboration between the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the British Library, offering international experts a year-long professional project-based placement. Fellows will have the privilege of working with the extensive library’s collections, and benefit from the broad range of professional expertise of library staff. Moreover, fellows will undertake a period of professional project-based activity at the British Library, receiving support and supervision from library staff.  Please note that this fellowship is not suitable for those wanting to pursue their own research.

Benefits 

Fellows will benefit from embedded working and hands-on training within a specific team, as well as having access to a range of organisational training and development opportunities, such as the British Library’s Digital Scholarship programme. The library’s postgraduate research manager will provide additional pastoral support and work with supervisors to monitor the progress and professional development. Each fellow will also be allocated up to £1,000 for approved project-related expenses.

Duration

The fellowship starts in September 2019 and is for a 12-month period of project-based activity at the British Library.

What does this fellowship include?

• 12-month period of project-based activity at the British Library
• Living expenses for the duration of the fellowship
• Return economy airfare from their home country to the UK
• Allowance package for fellowship-related activities
• Up to £1,000 for approved project-related expenses

Eligibility

To be eligible for a Chevening/British Library Fellowship, you must:

• Demonstrate the potential to rise to positions of leadership and influence
• Demonstrate that you possess the personal, intellectual, and interpersonal attributes reflecting this potential
• Be a citizen of one of the above listed countries, who will return to your home country at the end of the period of fellowship
• Have a postgraduate (PG) level qualification (or equivalent professional training or experience in a relevant area) at the time of application
• Have significant professional and/or academic research experience (at least five years)
• Be currently employed or a currently enrolled PhD candidate (PhD must not be with a UK/EU or USA university)
• Provide evidence of meeting at least the minimum English language abilities for Chevening Awards
• Not hold dual nationality where one nationality is British (other than for nationals exempt from this requirement).
• Not be employees, employees’ relatives (or former employees who have left employment less than two years before) of Her Majesty’s Government including the FCO (including FCO Posts), the British Council, DFID, MOD, BIS, UKTI and UKBA, the Association of Commonwealth Universities, or the British Library or any of their wholly-owned subsidiaries.
• Applicants who have previously received financial benefit from a HMG-funded scholarship or fellowship are eligible to apply after a period of five years following the completion of their first HMG funded award and are required to demonstrate their career progression from that point.