Foregrounding the seventeenth century.
Nathan MacLennan is a 3rd year doctoral researcher in the Department of History.
Pat Mason is a 3rd year doctoral researcher in the Department of Scottish Literature.
At the beginning of our SGSAH-funded journey, we found ourselves drawn to each other due to the simple fact that we were working on seventeenth-century topics. With one other University of Glasgow researcher in our SGSAH yeargroup, we were at first interested in the fact that, within our separate subject areas, Scotland’s seventeenth century is a growing field of research, after many decades of neglect by academia. We saw at once that we help and support each other, not just through our PhD journey, but by sharing research and discoveries. After a few conversations, the idea of a network of seventeenth-century researchers in all HE institutions was born, so we used SGSAH connections, among other things, to put out feelers. The immediate response came from Universities of Aberdeen and Dundee. The Seventeenth Century Network was born.
As well as sharing our research journey, we are a mutual aid group. The fabled isolation of the PGR is countered by sharing experiences in the group. This lessens the anxieties and feelings of solitude which can bedevil the PhD experience.
SGSAH’s model of bringing researchers together served as our example, but unlike SGSAH we were keen to group around subject area rather than year of study. We want to share experiences with others who are passionate about the subject areas that drive our working lives. We try to meet monthly during the academic year, usually online due to geography.
We quickly realised that we shared an ambition to stage an event centred on research into Scotland’s seventeenth-century experience. We wanted the orientation to be towards broader Scottish Studies, rather than have one discipline within the field dominate the others. We were also determined that it should serve as a way of bringing academics at all stages of their careers together, giving PGRs and ECRs the chance to network with more experienced colleagues, while at the same time, keeping it accessible to enthusiastic members of the general public. Both of these ambitions were achieved as was reflected in the composition of the attendees of the event. In addition to having guests at all stages of the academic lifecycle from first year undergraduates to emeritus professors, it included professionals form the heritage sector and laypeople who shared our interests in this fascinating period.
We were fortunate enough to secure sufficient funding from the Department of History, after a competitive selection process, which in itself was a formative and beneficial experience for those involved in the bid, teaching us about the benefits of collaboration, as well as valuable lessons about how to secure funding in the first place. We deliberately avoided the usual format of papers delivered and discussed, in favour of more open and innovative formats which prioritised the sharing of expertise and information.
The result was ‘A Kingdom in Perplexity’, a one-day symposium held here in the University of Glasgow. Glasgow University Union provided the perfect backdrop with its old-world aesthetic and its excellent catering.
Our palaeography workshop was expertly delivered by Professor Reid of Scottish History and was welcomed by PGRs and ECRs alike all of whom have encountered difficulties with seventeenth-century handwriting. Its popularity was attested at the afterparty. We then invited people to pitch ideas for academic events or papers to a panel of established researchers and teachers, for feedback. This proved to be a rewarding experience for all involved. The culminating part of the day was a round table discussion of a variety of seventeenth-century themes, which were eruditely discussed by a further panel of current academics. Once again, the feedback was overwhelmingly positive.
The response to the first symposium has encouraged us to begin to discuss a follow-up event in the summer of 2027.
We would recommend the experience of creating a Network and the concomitant experience of working within such a network to PGRs regardless of discipline. We feel it has been one of the most salient learning experiences in our postgraduate research journey so far. The PGR lifestyle is often described as isolating and individualised, and oftentimes research fields are fragmented across departmental and disciplinary boundaries and communications across these boundaries can be limited. In such circumstances we as PGRs, must forge our professional communities ourselves, something which is made easier by basing these efforts around shared research endeavours. You may find that you are a natural fit with people you might never have met otherwise and the personal and professional opportunities which can arise can be equal parts surprising and delighting.
