The British Sociological Association and the British Library are launching a new Postdoctoral Fellowship for Sociology, to begin in early summer 2017 and last a year.

This exciting opportunity will reveal the wealth that the British Library's archives hold for sociological research and forms part of an ongoing collaboration between the BSA and the BL.

The researcher will explore the Library's collections, digital resources and datasets to reveal the scope of the material available to sociologists for their research.

The researcher will then promote their findings to sociologists, other social scientists and the public in blogs and on social media, and produce a 20,000-word report on their work.

The Fellowship, which is funded jointly by the BSA and the BL, lasts for 12 months in the first instance.

Applicants should have a doctorate in sociology or similar subject from a UK university which was submitted after 7 March 2014, and they must not have held a full-time academic post in a UK university or comparable UK institution. The deadline for applications is 22 March 2017.  APPLY HERE.

Judith Mudd, Chief Executive of the BSA, said: "The Fellowship is a marvellous opportunity for a sociologist at the very start of their career. I am delighted that the BSA and British Library are backing this project at a time when support for early careers in sociology is a high strategic priority for the BSA.

"The Fellow will be part of the active research community at the British Library and will make a significant impact on the sociological community by exploring and identifying the enormous potential that its collections hold for sociologists.

"The Fellowship is the first of its kind to work across our two organisations to reveal some of the untapped potential of these collections."

Dr Sarah Evans, Research Engagement Manager for Humanities and Social Sciences at the British Library, said: "This Fellowship presents a wonderful opportunity for a postdoctoral researcher to understand the value of the British Library for sociologists and to build their experience of working with contemporary archival material."

“We are really delighted to be working with the BSA on this Fellowship and to extend our partnership with them to bring value to the sociological research community.”

The Fellowship forms part of the BSA’s new public engagement strategy, which also includes recruiting a Public Engagement Development Officer to organise events and communicate sociology’s findings to the government and public.