An annually awarded, two-year PMC Early Career Fellowship is to be granted to an early career researcher working in the field of British art history. The fellowship is part of the New Narratives set of funding opportunities designed to increase the diversity of perspectives of researchers and students within this field.
The fellowship is an award of £35,000 per year for two years and is designed to cover the living and sustenance costs of undertaking research in the field of British art history.
As well as funding, the Centre will offer mentorship and guidance for the duration of the fellowship, from both Centre staff and members of the wider British art history community. In turn, the fellows themselves will be expected to provide guidance and mentorship to the recipients of the PMC Doctoral Scholarships and MA/MPhil Studentships being provided under this scheme.
The New Narratives scheme particularly welcomes applications from those who are under-represented within the academic field of the humanities in the UK.
Applications are now closed, the next round will be Spring 2026 with applications opening on Friday 28 November 2025.
A two-year fellowship designed to sustain an early career researcher in undertaking significant art-historical research in the field of British art.
‘Early career’ is defined in this context as individuals who are within five years of receiving their doctorate or of having completed an equivalent form of research training or work experience.
Two payments of £35,000 will be paid to the successful applicant in the September of each year they are an PMC Early Career Fellow.
The Centre can be used by the fellow as a base for their research and writing, and a workspace will be made available if required. The PMC Early Career Fellow will also be invited to participate in the PMC’s academic events programme, and in the Centre’s life more generally. Longer term, they will form part of a network of awardees who, both during and after their period of funding, will be affiliated with the PMC and who will be encouraged to use the Centre as a base to meet and exchange ideas.
To apply for a PMC Early Career Fellowship candidates must:
- Have a doctorate (or equivalent research training or work experience) in the field of British art studies
- Not hold a full-time permanent post or be in receipt of any other early career fellowships
- Have prepared a detailed two-year programme of the research they intend to carry out during the fellowship. Though fixed outcomes are not required, there must be evidence that the research is planned to contribute to one or more substantial outputs, such as books, articles or exhibition projects
The subject of the Fellow’s research is open; the only requirement is that it must be in the field of British art history, understood in its most diverse and international contexts.
In addition to academic background and demonstrated scholarly achievement, PMC Early Career Fellowship awards will take into account such factors as an applicant’s:
- Intent to pursue research, activities or a career pathway that contribute to the reframing of British art history and that challenge the received histories of British art
- Demonstrated interest or involvement in such research and issues in their work, community, academic or educational experience
The successful applicant is expected to begin their fellowship from September 2025. Fellowships cannot run concurrently with an award by another organisation. Although this fellowship is designed to be taken full time, we are happy to discuss the possibility of taking it on a part time basis.
Individuals applying for a fellowship cannot apply for any other award in the same round of funding.
Applications are now closed, the next round will be Spring 2026.
To apply for this fellowship applicants must use our online system at grants.paul-mellon-centre.ac.uk. Once registered you will be able to fill out the online application form (an example of which can be downloaded below), you will also need to provide the details of two referees. Once the application has been submitted, and the references have been received, we will check it to ensure eligibility. All accepted applications will then be read and assessed by our Advisory Council made up of twelve external academics and professionals with relevant expertise (you can find a list of the current members here). Three senior members of Paul Mellon Centre staff also sit on our Advisory Council.
The number of good applications is likely to exceed the funding available, so the Advisory Council are advised to use some or all of the following criteria to help them in making decisions on how best to allocate funding:
- academic rigour
- originality and distinctness in the context of current scholarship
- contribution to scholarship in the longer term
- timeliness, where a project is connected with a particular moment or opportunity
- where a grant would support work in a geographical or cultural context which has not hitherto been supported by PMC
- need, where the research would be unlikely to go ahead without this support
- impact and inclusion, where the research would include voices or reach a broader range of people than have hitherto been represented in the field of British art studies
We also advise applicants to read our FAQ & Guidance webpage before starting their application, our Grant Making Policy and Due Diligence Policy can also be found there.
Please note that this award is part of our New Narratives set of funding opportunities and is designed to increase the diversity of perspectives among scholars within this field as well as encourage new perspectives on British art and visual culture of all periods so do keep this purpose in mind when completing the application.
Decisions made by the Advisory Council will be communicated to all applicants within two months of the application submission date. Given the volume of applications, we cannot guarantee individual feedback if you are unsuccessful. However, we do try to accommodate specific requests. Please email our Grants and Fellowships Manager to request this.
If you have any access requirements or experience any issues using our online grants system (or accessing and filling out the application forms) then please do contact the Grants and Fellowships Manager who will be able to assist you.
As part of the application form, you will need to provide the name and email address of two referees who are willing to submit a short reference (500 words) for you. The referees should have first-hand knowledge of the applicant’s academic career and/or the subject area for which funding is being sought. The Advisory Council would like to be informed of the originality of the subject matter and the applicant’s suitability to pursue such research. These references are an essential part of our due diligence process, and your application cannot proceed to assessment without them.
Once your application is submitted, an automatic email notification will be sent to your referees with a link that allows them to view your application and submit their reference. They will also have the option to decline the request.
The deadline for submitting references will depend on the funding round, but it is generally between 7-10 days after the application closing date. The deadline date will be clearly communicated to you and your referees during the application process. You will receive an email notification when each referee has submitted their reference. Once both references are received, your application will proceed to the assessment round.
For more guidance on the content of the references, please refer to our FAQ & Guidance page.
Please ensure you speak to your referees before including their details in the application form so they are aware of the reference requirement and the deadline. We also recommend submitting your application in advance of the closing date to allow your referees as much time as possible to complete their reference.
Each round, we encounter reference requests that are not received by the intended recipients due to misspelled email addresses. To avoid delays, please double-check that all contact details are entered correctly when submitting your application.
The fellow must complete a 1000-word report on their research activity at the end of their first year, and a final 2500-word report once the fellowship is completed.
The full terms and conditions of grant awards can be read here.