Scottish Graduate School for Arts & Humanities

The world’s first national graduate school for the arts and humanities launched in Scotland

• £16.8 million funding for collaborative venture to train the next generation of research leaders 
• First cohort of students begin 
• Bespoke research projects sought in partnership with business and industry 
• Competition for 50+ AHRC-funded studentships now open

Doctoral researchers in Scotland are set to benefit from a unique £16.8 million initiative that was launched on 1 October to help train the next generation of professionals working in the arts and humanities.

The Scottish Graduate School for Arts & Humanities (SGSAH), of which St Andrews is pleased to be part, is the world’s first national arts and humanities graduate school, servicing 1,500 arts and humanities PhD students in universities across Scotland. It includes 16 higher education institutions plus a wide range of supporters and partners in the creative, cultural, arts and heritage sectors.

SGSAH has launched a competition to offer 50+ PhD studentships, funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC), at one of eight Scottish Universities, including St Andrews. The AHRC are committed to providing up to 200 studentships over the next 4 years. It is also seeking bids from universities to work with public, private or third sector organisations to design bespoke doctoral research projects. The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) is providing matched funding for these projects.

Professor Dee Heddon, the Dean of the Graduate School and Professor of Theatre Studies at the University of Glasgow, which is hosting the new development, said: “We are delighted to welcome our first cohort of students to the Scottish Graduate School for Arts & Humanities. We bring together distinctively diverse provisions, internationally renowned expertise and unique and extensive resources to support the very best doctoral training for our students. Through this they will develop and use their skills, knowledge and experience across a wide range of specialisms to benefit culture, society and the economy in Scotland and beyond.”

Laurence Howells, Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council, said: “The establishment of a Graduate School for Arts & Humanities in Scotland is a welcome and highly significant development, not least because it is supported by over 30 organisations from across the country.

“SFC’s investment of £1.8 million will help to give aspiring research leaders opportunities that simply were not there before including the new Applied Research Collaborative Studentships. Crucially, it will help to direct all their talents and potential to the growth of the creative industries within the Scottish economy. I’m delighted to see the first students being welcomed to the Graduate School and I wish them every possible success.”

Professor Rick Rylance, CEO of ARHC, said: “The creation of the Scottish Graduate School for the Arts and Humanities is a fine achievement and creates an exciting and imaginative environment for postgraduate research in Scotland. Through our Doctoral Training Partnership scheme we invited universities to work more closely together, drawing in partner organisations and sharing resources to offer students enhanced doctoral training.

“We are delighted that the AHRC’s funding in Scotland supports this vision. We will follow the progress of this new national Graduate School for the arts and humanities with eager interest.”

Oil and Gas Innovation Centre funding announced

A new centre of excellence to transform industry and academic collaboration was announced Monday, 24 February. The Oil and Gas Innovation Centre (OGIC) has been awarded £10.6 million from the Scottish Funding Council and is supported by Scottish Enterprise. The OGIC partnership, which will comprise Heriot-Watt University, University of Aberdeen, University of Strathclyde, University of Abertay, University of Dundee, University of Edinburgh, University of Glasgow, University of the Highlands and Islands, Robert Gordon University, University of St Andrews, Glasgow Caledonian University, University of the West of Scotland, Scottish Enterprise, Energy Technology Partnership, Oil and Gas UK and industry representatives, will bring together more than 2,300 oil and gas operators and service companies with Scottish universities to play an unique role between industry and universities, linking more than 450 academic staff and researchers working primarily on oil and gas specific technologies. OGIC will support industry aims to increase production and reduce costs in the UK Continental Shelf by enabling the delivery of ground-breaking technical solutions, using the skills and expertise of Scottish universities, innovators and industry.
The OGIC priorities are:
• Enhanced Oil Recovery
• Subsea – including Subsea Tie Backs, Separation, Injection and Metering
• Seismic and Reservoir Characterization – including subsurface imaging
• Shale gas exploitation
• Asset integrity and life extension
• Decommissioning
• Production Optimisation
• Well Construction, Drilling and Completions including High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT)
• Health, Safety, Environment and Project Management
 [Scottish Government press release]
OGIC will be represented at the ITF Technology Showcase Exhibition and Conference on March 5th in Aberdeen.

University plans £25 million green energy centre at Guardbridge paper mill site

Backed by a £10 million grant from the Scottish Funding Council, which is supporting carbon reduction schemes across Scottish Higher Education, the University proposes to generate power through clean biomass at Guardbridge and pump hot water 4 miles underground to St Andrews to heat and cool its labs and residences. The University also hopes to establish a Knowledge Exchange Hub to provide “missing link” facilities which would allow research and discoveries made in University labs to be translated to working prototypes. It will also offer affordable accommodation to local companies, with the aim of attracting businesses and skills linked to the renewables sector. Work on the site, which is to be named the Sustainable Power and Research Campus (SPARC), will start in 2014 with the Renewable Energy Centre complete and operational by December 2015. [press release]

Collaborative study of life expectancy in Scotland

Scottish life expectancy is amongst the lowest in Europe. Understanding the issues contributing to this statistic is essential if prevention of such early deaths is to be prevented. As a result, the University of St Andrews, along with the universities of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow, supported by a two-year £445,000 grant from the Scottish Funding Council, are to establish the Scottish School of Public Health Research, which will work in collaboration with frontline healthcare providers to pool their expertise in order to improve the way public health issues are researched and addressed. The five pooled universities will serve as a centre of excellence for this work.