Fully funded PhD studentship on the relationship between young people’s participation in arts, culture and entertainment activities and their wellbeing (“Creating ways to #BeeWell”)

Deadline: Friday 10^th February 2023 

Interviews: Friday 10th March 2023

This fully funded ESRC CASE PhD studentship is at the centre of a collaboration between the #BeeWell programme (www.gmbeewell.org), Creative Manchester (www.creative.manchester.ac.uk), and Factory International (www.factoryinternational.org). The PhD will enhance understanding of the different ways in which young people participate in arts, culture and entertainment (PACE) activities; whether and how this influences their wellbeing; and, if participation in a school-based PACE programme can lead to improved wellbeing. Envisaged as an interdisciplinary, mixed-methods project, it will blend secondary analysis of a very large quantitative dataset (#BeeWell) and new qualitative and quantitative data generation, and comprise 3 empirical papers: (1) latent class/profile analysis of young people’s PACE (quantitative); (2) case studies of PACE and wellbeing (qualitative); and, (3) using school-based PACE to improve wellbeing (mixed-methods). 

In addition to expert academic supervision at the University of Manchester (Neil Humphrey and Ola Demkowicz, Manchester Institute of Education; John McAuliffe, Creative Manchester), the PhD student will sit within the Creative Learning team at Factory International, where they will gain experience and skills in one of the creative sector’s leading institutions, under the supervision of Sameed Rezayan. 

Person specification 

Essential criteria

·       Bachelor’s degree (2:1 or above in a relevant discipline)

·       ESRC-recognised research methods Masters degree (or equivalent; Merit or above, in a relevant discipline)

NB: priority will be given to candidates able to demonstrate expertise in both quantitative and qualitative methods

·       Demonstrable experience pertaining to creative practice

·       Demonstrable experience working with young people

 In addition to the above, candidates whose first language is not English require one of the following:

·       IELTS test minimum scores - 7 overall, 7 writing, 6 other sections

·       TOEFL (internet based) test minimum scores - 100 overall, 25 writing, 22 other sections

·       Pearson Test of English (PTE) minimum scores - 66 overall, 66 writing, 59 other sections

Application procedure 

The application deadline will be midnight (GMT) 10/02/23. All supporting documents must be received by the deadline and sent as a zip file to [Email Address Removed], using ‘Creating Ways to #BeeWell (PhD)’ as the email subject.

 The application must include: 

·       Full CV, including a breakdown of your grades to date.

·       Personal statement of maximum 400 words indicating why you would like to undertake this studentship and explaining how your focus, experience, and skills link to the research outlined above.

·       Example of a piece of academic writing produced by the applicant of up to 3,000 words. This may be an academic essay or chapter(s) from a dissertation, in which case, an abstract or introduction outlining the context/aims/research questions of the study must also be included

·       Names and contact details of two academic referees who can comment on the applicant’s suitability for PhD study and to undertake the advertised project.