Meet our researchers who have undertaken SGSAH Internships and Artist Residencies and explore their work in more detail.
You can find out more about our internship opportunities by following this link: SGSAH Internships.
Siân Mitchell MacGregor
I undertook an internship with a touring dance-theatre company, joining the team as they prepared for and delivered performances across London, Hasselt, and Frankfurt. During the internship, I observed the creative and practical aspects of touring, supported the company with a range of logistical and production tasks, and contributed insights from my own research as part of a collaborative exchange of knowledge and experience.
Zoe Strong
I wanted to make the most of the opportunity provided by SGSAH and experience working with an organisation outside of academia. BFBS were of interest to me as they have produced dyslexia friendly Scripture products so their work is relevant to my research on dyslexia and engaging with the Bible.
Ceit Langhorne
I undertook an internship at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh. I took these three months off from my PhD, to be at the Library. There, I did my own research, and participated in conversations about the development and intergration of Gaelic at the library, and using Gaelic collections in new and creative ways to tell new, fresh stories. The internship was informal, open and creative, with a very friendly staff indeed!
Rebecca Madlener
I carried out a SGSAH-funded internship with Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba (AÀA) from January to June 2025. During this time, I worked part-time (2 days a week) for AÀA, contributing to their research efforts, as well as their social media output and engagement.
Claire Elder
I was appointed as the researcher for an exhibition planned for Summer 2024 by the Moffat Museum Volunteer Trust. The exhibition ran for several months and focused on ten sixteenth-century fortified tower houses. Today, many of the towers still stand as ruins in and around Moffat.
Emily Hay
I worked with Scottish Book Trust from October 2023 to May 2024 on a research project into ‘Scots in the Classroom’. The aim was to work with school teachers to gather information on the benefits of allowing kids to engage with the Scots language through both reading and creative writing in the classroom.
Rachel Millar
My internship was with Jane Austen’s House, who were preparing their celebrations for the 75th anniversary of the house being run as a museum. I had first contacted the Director of the house Lizzie Dunford to ask if there was any room for me as an intern, and together we came up with a great idea.
Victoria Evans
My residency was with MARE-Madeira, a Portuguese marine research centre located in Funchal the capital of Madeira, a subtropical island in the Eastern Atlantic. I was very interested in exploring how the scientists collect acoustic data, and about how hearing and vocal communication function in underwater environments.
Alborz Dianat
During a placement at the Twentieth Century Society, I helped deliver on the charity’s leisure centres campaign, protecting one of the most socially significant building types. The Society seeks to preserve Britain’s post-1914 built heritage, with leisure centres among the most at risk and least architecturally appreciated.
Désirée Coral Guerra
My internship at the Glasgow Seed Library was a series of events of exchanges of knowledge with academic and non-academic experts on the topics of food sovereignty, soil, seed exchanges and relationship with the other non-humans, history and decoloniality. We called this research project Colonial Seeds.
Dobrochna Futro
I was fortunate to be allowed to undertake the internship in the final period of my PhD after I had written the first full draft of my doctoral dissertation. At this stage, I was looking for ways of gaining additional experience to support my development as a researcher beyond the PhD.
Juliette Desportes
Undertaking an internship gave me the chance to do both in an organization of my choosing. I have been interested in community ownership for years and felt excited at the prospect of witnessing how a dynamic community-run body such as the Galson Trust operates on a daily basis.
Lindsay Middleton
I thought an internship would be a great way to make sure I got the most out of my PhD experience. I wanted my experience to be as well-rounded as possible, so having the time to engage in another project in a different field was wonderful. I am considering pursuing a career in heritage, so the internship provided me with vital experience that will help if I do go down that path.
Maike Dinger
My internship was with the Parliament’s Oral History Project at The Scottish Parliament. This project captures untold memories from those working within and for the Parliament giving a more personal insight into what working for the Parliament means, how the institution has changed over time, and how the Parliament has influenced people’s lives and political practices in Scotland.
Sonali Misra
In my artist residency at The University of Edinburgh Museums, I created and facilitated six-week writing-for-wellbeing workshops that engaged with the Museums’ collections for people with low-level mental health concerns. These workshops were a part of the Museums’ Prescribe Culture Programme 6, and I collaborated with the curators of four Museums/Collections.
Thomas Hanson
My role was primarily focused on investigating and addressing the cultural legacy of early photographs in the Te Papa collection. For example, examining possible links between slavery and some of the collection’s early photographers (Edward P. Sealy, Nelson K. Cherrill, and the Burton Brothers), producing three comprehensive research reports. I also worked on maintaining and upgrading the existing photographic collections by transcribing negatives, registering new material and digitisation preparation.
Yafei Wang
My internship was part of “A Museum for Castlemilk”, a community-based heritage project. My role focused on heritage documentation, digitisation, and community-based knowledge production.
Peter Mayeso Jiyajiya
I undertook an internship as a way of acquiring practical experience that can otherwise not gained in the academic classroom. The internship was undertaken with the Scotland Malawi Partnership, and the Botanic Gardens University of Dundee from January to April, 2024.