HEI: University of Glasgow, Scottish Literature
Host organisation: Scottish Book Trust
Duration of the internship: 6 months part-time
My PhD research is titled ‘The ‘Quenis awne hand’: Self-presentation in the Poetry and Correspondence of Mary Queen of Scots, 1567-1587’. In it, I explore the way that Scotland’s first Queen regnant wrote about herself, and how this contrasts with how others wrote about her in the same period. From October 2023-May 2024 I undertook an internship with the Scottish Book Trust which looked at ‘Scots in the Classroom’.
Why did you decide to undertake an internship?
Often the PhD experience can feel like a bit of an echo chamber, and particularly over the past few years it’s been difficult to ignore the looming threat of a declining academic job market. To keep myself sane in the midst of all this I was really interested in learning more about how research can translate and make a difference outside of the academy. Having heard about SGSAH’s internship scheme I felt excited about the opportunity to get involved with an organisation I’ve always been interested in but would likely never have otherwise gotten to see from the inside, and to learn about the practical public applications of a research degree.
What was your internship and what did you do?
We hear a lot about placements done in museums and art galleries but I was interested in learning about how literary researchers in particular can make a difference in the public sector. When I approached the Scottish Book Trust, the UK’s only national literary charity, they were excited about the opportunity for me to work with them plug a gap in their research provision due to lack of funding. Together, based on their needs and my expertise in Scottish Literature, we formulated plans for a research project looking at the use of the Scots language in the classroom, which I worked on from October 2023 to May 2024.
The aim of the project 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. As a literary charity, SBT were conscious that they tried to advocate for Scots education, but didn’t have more concrete evidence to help persuade those who weren’t already engaging in the practice. I conducted an initial literature review based on my own degree background in Scottish Literature, and had the opportunity to speak with Scots language campaigners, policy makers, and educators to help provide insight into the machinations of the sector. From there I designed a survey which we sent out to primary and secondary school teachers, the results of which I turned into a report for internal use at SBT. I also implemented these findings into a range of public-facing articles for the SBT website, a training event for school teachers, as well as using them to update SBT’s Scots language classroom resources.
What aspects of the internship did you find most rewarding?
I loved that my internship gave me the opportunity to get more involved with Scots language campaigners and policy makers, as it felt like I was able to put some of the more theoretical aspects of my previous degrees in Scottish Literature to real-world use in the contemporary public status of the language. I met some fantastic people across the board, and it’s really opened my eyes to the practical cultural applications of more purely ‘academic’ subjects and degrees.
But by far the most rewarding part for me was getting to be a part of the wider culture at a third sector organisation like SBT which I’ve admired for a long time. On a couple of occasions, I had the opportunity to help judge their monthly 50-word fiction competition which was a lovely way to connect with people in other departments as well as the wider community SBT serves. Additionally it was really rewarding to hear people both within and outwith SBT discuss the value my work held for them. Teachers and Scots language specialists from the SQA were very complimentary about what I’d done, and my report was even used to help with the consultation on the incoming Scots Languages Bill at the Scottish Parliament. There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing the tangible impact your research can have!
Has the internship influenced your future plans at all?
For me, the internship helped to solidify why we do what we do. In a world where rhetoric has become increasingly hostile to the arts and humanities, having the opportunity to work for a public-sector organisation who are entirely devoted to literacy and promoting a love of reading helped me to regain some hope that our work can have an impact beyond the gilded cage of the University.
On a more practical level, the internship made me aware of several academic and public projects in the Scottish literary sphere that I wasn’t already aware of, and it awakened in me an interest to develop new avenues of communication and collaboration between higher education, schools and the third sector. Whilst I’m not entirely sure where I want my career to take me, I’m definitely more open to the idea of working somewhere less traditionally academic; and I’m now passionate about the ability to share research with wider audiences.
What are some of the skills you have picked up or improved through the internship?
As the project lead I got to wear a lot of different hats during my work, some of which I was more familiar with from my PhD – like conducting a literature review – and others which were less known to me – such as quantitative and qualitative survey design and writing a formal report with the findings. I found it really useful to get to use the research skills I had already honed during my PhD from a different angle, as it really demonstrated to me the transferable nature of a lot of what we do in academia. Amidst all of this I had excellent support from SBT, both from the Research and Evaluation team I was based in, and in the wider staff cohort who helped support me with contacts (in schools as well as with writers and Scots policy makers), and in pushing my work on social media – with excellent graphics created by the team!
In terms of opportunities, I was thrilled to get the chance to get more involved in the Scots language scene amidst authors, activists and educators, which also led to me learning more about the work my university department were doing to help secondary school teachers with incorporating more Scottish texts into their curriculum. I was also honoured to be asked back to SBT over the summer to sit on the judging panel of their annual Young Scots Writer o the Year Award for 2024 – there are some very talented future writers coming our way!
Do you have any tips for researchers looking to do an internship?
Do it! It’s no secret that academic research is difficult, and sometimes the concept of life beyond it feels completely intangible, but internships are a great way to help you get out of your head and think about the social and practical applications of academia and your own research as a whole.
Where can people find out more?
You can find a selection of Articles I produced for Scottish Book Trust here: https://www.scottishbooktrust.com/articles/authors/emily-hay
And if you want to know where to start with modern Scots poetry, check out this list I compiled for SBT: https://www.scottishbooktrust.com/book-lists/scots-poetry-collections-for-the-21st-century
CONNECT WITH EMILY (she/her)
Email: Emily Hay
Twitter: @EmilyHay2
BlueSky: @emilyhay.bsky.social