One of the leading centres in Europe for American and Canadian Studies, the department is committed to postgraduate education. It is the strongest unit of its type in the country in terms of research power rating: one that takes into account both quality of research and the number of research-active staff who made returns to the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2008. According to the RAE, 25 per cent of the school's returns were judged 4* or 'world-leading' in terms of originality, significance and rigour. A further 20 per cent were of 3* quality or 'internationally excellent'.
We offer research supervision and taught courses in the areas of American literature, history, foreign policy, politics, intellectual and cultural history, film studies, visual and cultural studies, and Canadian literature and culture. Single disciplines as well as interdisciplinary interests are welcomed.
We currently have more than 25 full- or part-time PhD students. We also offer a range of full and part-time taught masters courses that allow students to indicate a disciplinary speciality and to study in Europe.
There is a lively research culture based on reading groups and work-in-progress seminars, together with guest speakers. Students have access to excellent video, slide, CD, tape and DVD collections. Research students receive selective financial help with inter-library loans, photocopying, printing and conference costs.
Recent developments
As the discipline changes and American Studies is recognised as a global and transnational phenomenon, the school has recently appointed staff to teach and research in the fields of Latin American immigration history, Asian American literary cultures and criminal justice in the South. Building on existing strengths, recent Post-Doctoral fellows have worked in the fields of American realist and early modernist writing and painting, African American civil rights history, Irish-American culture and late 19th century racial anthropology. The Department has recently hosted several postgraduate-run conferences on themes including American intellectual history, 19th century literature and 21st Century American and Canadian fiction and also hosted the British Association for American Studies Postgraduate Conference. The Department has also hosted a range of other conferences which have brought major scholars in their fields to the University of Nottingham on topics including: the CIA and the culture of the Cold War; Conflict in Post-Cold War Media and Anglo-American Relations; the Vietnam Wars, 1945-75; crime fiction; 19th century periodical culture; and Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath.
The Department also regularly hosts visiting Leverhulme and Fulbright professors from the US. Recently these have included Allison Graham, professor at the University of Memphis and award-winning documentary film maker; Angel Kwolek-Folland, professor of history and women's studies at the University of Florida; and Fredrik Logevall, one of the leading American-based scholars of the US involvement in the Vietnam War and of US diplomatic history in the Cold War. In 2007-08, the Departtment welcomed Howard Brick, professor of history at Washington University, St Louis.
Current research projects
As well as individual research projects, American Studies at Nottingham has had several long-term research projects in recent years funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. These include the Three Cities project, an inter- and multi-disciplinary study of the iconography, spatial forms and literary and visual cultures of New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles in the period of 1870s to 1930s; Criss Cross, a project which examined the intersections of 20th century African American music, visual art and literature; and Social Capital and the Southern Christian Leadership, a major long-term research project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and the Economic and Social Research Council.
Information for applicants
The Department of American and Canadian Studies welcomes applications from students who wish to pursue MRes, MPhil or PhD degrees in American Studies. These research programmes form a central and thriving part of the school’s activities, with more than 40 students currently enrolled, either full-time or part-time. The school enjoys an energetic research culture. The Postgraduate Professional Development Programme in which all research students are involved includes weekly work-in-progress seminars at which postgraduates students present their work as do academic staff, and a programme of talks by visiting speakers. More informal reading groups meet on a regular basis. For example, currently there are active reading and listening groups on jazz, poetry, the city and intellectual history. Students who join the school join a large and lively graduate community. The research programme includes a number of international students from the US, India, Poland, Italy and Ireland for example, and the school welcomes applications from overseas students.
To apply for admission to the research programme, a prospective student should submit an application form available online. The application requires an outline of the research plan and this should be as specific as possible though it will develop and change as you study. There are no specific deadlines for entry to the programme. Most students start at the beginning of the academic year in October, though entry is possible at any point during the academic year. It should be noted, however, that early applications are advised.
The department welcomes applicants interested in a range of topics across the research programme and all members of academic staff are active researchers willing to supervise students in their areas of expertise.
PhD and Masters Studentships 2012
Applicants are invited to apply for studentships in the School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies. Please visit the Studentships webpage for further information.