Amy Stanning, Economic and Social History, Lancaster University (2021 Cohort)

I am now three years into my History PhD at Lancaster and as I am part-time I am hopefully about half-way through. I had quite a long gap between my first degree and my postgraduate work, so how did I get here?

I took my BA at King’s College in London. I was brought up in the North West and University gave an opportunity to move to the bright lights and all that the metropolis had to offer! I enjoyed my time in London although perhaps a bit too much for my academic performance!

By the time I finished at King’s I had plenty of debt and having been in very demanding educational environments through my teens and early twenties, I needed a change.

I was fortunate enough to get a ‘grad’ job and did reasonably well at work and somehow managed to combine work and having a family. My interest in History re-emerged and my children’s expectations of weekend activity revolved around castles, national trust properties, museums and battlefields!

I managed to escape a ‘bullet’ at work several times but my number eventually came up and it was time to pack up my box of stuff and leave the organisation. After a break it was a question of what next? The children were all independent and it was time for something for me.

I made enquiries about an MA at Lancaster, and I joined the first cohort of the Miliary and International History Programme. Despite covid interruptions I loved it and found a fascinating and under-explored question that became my research area.

In my second MA year my Supervisor encouraged me to explore a PhD and to seek funding from the NWSSDTP. She supported me in developing an application which took at least a couple of months to finesse and which went through many different versions, it was a relief on deadline day to finally get it off my desk!

I was delighted and amazed when I found I had been accepted as a sponsored student by the NWSSDTP.  I owe a huge amount to my Supervisor Professor Naomi Tadmor as without her I  am sure I would not have been successful.

I started my PhD in October 2021 and took advantage of the NWSSDTP training events and those offered by Lancaster. During my work I found an important archive source in Michigan, USA and applied for an Overseas Travel Grant, and with Professor’s Tadmor’s support. I was successful again and spent a wonderful month in Ann Arbor in late summer 2023. The archive material was invaluable and has supported a chapter in my thesis and a conference paper which has been very well received.

Returning to Academia took some getting used to, so much had changed since my undergrad. The paper library catalogue and card index for research articles had all gone on line and digital archives provide a treasure trove of material I could never have imagined as an undergrad. My colleagues have all been welcoming and remarkably tolerant of me, and the academic staff incredibly encouraging.

I am looking forward to continuing to develop my thesis and working with the incredible and inspiring PGR team across the NWSSDTP and here at Lancaster. Here’s to the next three years!