PhD Studentship: Signing Sound: Deaf Gain within Inclusive Co-created Audio Descriptions of Museum Experiences

The University of Westminster’s School of Social Sciences, in collaboration with the Science Museum Group and the Scottish Sensory Centre, University of Edinburgh, welcomes applications for an interdisciplinary AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Award. This PhD studentship is funded by Technē under its Collaborative Doctoral Training Partnership Scheme, to begin in September 2025. The project is titled:

Signing Sound: Deaf Gain within Inclusive Co-created Audio Descriptions of Museum Experiences

In addition to financial support, Techne offers a developmental framework for doctoral researchers across the collaborating institutions. This framework includes research training, supportive community networks, professional and public engagement opportunities, and a space for both independent and collaborative scholarship.

A summary in BSL is available from here (from 4^th December): https://www.ssc.education.ed.ac.uk/

Please note: Applicants will be shortlisted via the Westminster online application and interviewed. The selected candidate will then be subject to a final approval by Techne. As such, the successful candidate will be required to refine their proposal (with support from the supervisory team) after the interview. It will then be submitted by Westminster to Techne for approval.

About the studentship

3.5 or 4 years full-time (7 or 8 years part-time) 

£20,622 per annum stipend full-time (£10,311 per annum part-time)*

Museum experiences have traditionally been designed with a bias that prioritises vision as the dominant sense. For deaf audiences, it has also been assumed that vision is sufficient in museums. No attempt is made to communicate the experiences of sound. This is both an ableist overestimation of vision and a disablist bias that dismisses the experiences of sound and sonic properties in the deaf community. Museum interpretation is additionally challenged where BSL signs have not yet been developed to effectively translate museum experiences (content or sensory) (https://blog.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/new-bsl-signs-inspired-by-the-science-museum-group-collection/).

The project draws on the Deaf Gain and Disability Gain theories, which recognise that the expertise and experiences of deaf and disabled people can enhance an experience for everyone. The research will adapt the Workshop for Inclusive Co-created Audio Description (W-ICAD) model for use with deaf and hearing co-creators. The AHRC-funded W-ICAD model enables museums to produce audio descriptions co-created by blind, partially blind and sighted people for use by all audiences. For blind and partially blind museum audiences, audio description (AD) is used to describe museum experiences in words. Working with the Science Museum Group, this interdisciplinary project will address the overestimation of vision and the disablist dismissal of the experiences of sound in the deaf community. The project will examine the co-creation of inclusive descriptive interpretation of sound/sonic experiences of science content with deaf and non-deaf audiences. This will include the creation of new BSL signs where necessary. Methods will include survey and collaborative action research, which will be supported by mixed quantitative and qualitative evaluation methodologies. Accessible audio/signed/captioned descriptive interpretation will be produced from this, which will be trialled on all audiences.

Supervisor team: Dr Alison Eardley (School of Social Sciences: Psychology); Dr Rachel Hutchinson (School of Social Sciences: Psychology); Dr Audrey Cameron (School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh); Fiona Slater (Science Museum Group); Professor John Ravenscroft (Scottish Sensory Centre, University of Edinburgh) – external advisor.

*24/25 UKRI stipend rates

What does it include?

The studentships include maintenance and fees for 3.5/4 years for a full-time student or 7/8 years for a part-time student at 50% of the full-time studentship level each year (pro rata if you have already started your PhD).

International students are eligible to apply for studentships but will be expected to pay the difference between the home and international fee rates themselves (as the studentship will only cover fees at the home rate, plus the stipend).

The 24/25 home fee rate is £5,800, and the international fee rate is £15,450. Therefore, international students will be expected to pay the difference between these fee rates themselves.

The student will have access to University of Westminster facilities, including designated postgraduate computer labs, extensive library, research training, language courses, doctoral research, and competitive conference funds. Candidates are part of the Graduate School and are expected to take part in the University’s doctoral training programme, including regular workshops and seminars with bi-yearly student research symposia. The successful candidate may be able to undertake some teaching. In addition, the successful candidate will also have access to Techne training and events (see: http://www.techne.ac.uk/). The successful candidate will also have access to additional funding opportunities (https://www.techne.ac.uk/our-students/additional-funding-and-support/).

Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA) may be available to fund various support needs, including communication support, specialist equipment, and software. A needs assessment will be conducted before the PhD program begins to determine appropriate accommodations (for more information see link here). 

The student will be required to attend the UoW MSc Psychology quantitative and qualitative research methods courses (designed for non-psychologists) unless they have equivalent prior training. This will provide a solid foundation for interdisciplinary empirical design and data analysis. They will also be able to sit in on psychology and museum studies, as appropriate, to ensure solid theoretical grounding.

The Science Museum Group will provide desk space at their London offices, access to the collection, supervisory expertise, and support to plan and execute the research, including workshop space. This will be supported by a bespoke on-the-job training programme in current access and inclusion provision. The Scottish Sensory Centre (SSC) will provide a regular monthly online meeting. They will also provide training with the SSC BSL sign development team to understand the rigorous process of creating new signs that match scientific concepts, including those related to sound.

Entry requirements

The MPhil/PhD applicant would be expected to have the requisite University of Westminster entry requirements: a minimum classification of 2.1 in their first degree or equivalent; ideally, a master’s level qualification in Museum Studies, Critical Disability Studies, Education or Psychology, and/or relevant professional experience, and an interest in access and inclusion. 

They will be passionate about museums and the museum sector, ideally with professional experience within the museum or heritage sector and/or science communication. They will have either experience or an interest in interdisciplinary research.

We are actively recruiting applicants with lived experience of deafness and/or deaf culture and BSL or International Sign. Applicants whose secondary level education has not been conducted in the medium of English should also demonstrate evidence of appropriate English language proficiency, normally defined as: 7.0 (overall score with no less than 6.5 in any of the individual elements).

Students must comply with the AHRC eligibility criteria and other terms and conditions available on the AHRC’s webpage.

How to apply

Applicants will need to write a research proposal about this project. You can find some guidance on how to write this proposal here. Prospective candidates are strongly encouraged to get in touch with Dr Alison Eardley (a.eardley@westminster.ac.uk) before you apply. She will be able to send you a bit more detail on the project, and some research articles that will be a useful starting point for preparing the research proposal. If you would like, you would also be able to have an informal chat about the project

You will need to submit the research proposal and all necessary additional documents (see the links below for more details). 

If you would like to be considered this Techne studentship at the University of Westminster, you will need to first apply to the university using one of the links below:

MODE OF STUDY

Full–time

APPLY NOW GO TO THE APPLY PAGE FOR A FULL-TIME PHD VIA MPHIL

Part–time

APPLY NOW GO TO THE APPLY PAGE FOR A PART-TIME PHD VIA MPHIL

Please choose one of the following programme areas when making your application:

• MPhil/PhD Psychology

Please note:

• Please make sure you indicate on your application form that you are applying for this Techne CDA studentship.
• If you are invited to interview and require sign language interpretation, the University can provide a sign language interpreter in BSL, ASL, Irish Sign Language, or International Sign. If you are UK-based and would prefer to work with an interpreter, you are already familiar with, this may be possible. Please get in touch.
• If you are invited to interview, we will provide indicative questions to all candidates 24 hours in advance of the interviews.

Deadline

The deadline for applications is 11.59pm (GMT) on Monday 6^th January 2025.

Online interviews will be held on 21^st January 2025.

If the University decides to nominate your application to Techne, it will be put forward by the university to the Techne review panel (deadline for submission by the University, 13^th February 2025). The final decision on the allocation of studentships rests with the Techne review panel. Applicants must hold an offer with the University of Westminster before their application can be nominated to Techne.

In addition to financial support, Techne offers a developmental framework for doctoral researchers across the collaborating institutions. This framework includes research training, supportive community networks, professional and public engagement opportunities, and a space for both independent and collaborative scholarship.

A summary in BSL is available from here (from 4^th December): https://www.ssc.education.ed.ac.uk/