Archive Training, Moscow, April 2011

[Polly Jones]

Russian Archives Training Scheme
Research in Moscow’s Historical Archives
Study Trip for Research Students
5th – 13th April, 2011

The Russian Archives Training Scheme is funded by the Centre for
Russian, Central and East European Studies (CRCEES), the Centre for
East European Language Based Area Studies (CEELBAS), BASEES (the
British Association for Slavonic and East European Studies), and the
Study Group on the Russian Revolution.

Following several successful UK workshops and trips to Russia, the
scheme is organising a one-week trip to Moscow for research students
based in the UK and overseas, in order to introduce them to working in
the principal historical, literary and cultural archives used by
scholars of the Soviet Union and the Russian Empire. The visit will
include visits to the two biggest archives, the State Archive of the
Russian Federation (GARF) and the Russian State Archive of Social and
Political History (RGASPI), where students will be given an
introductory talk and will have the opportunity to speak with
archivists and to investigate the extent of archival holdings on their
own topic. Trips to other more specialised archives and libraries in
Moscow will be included according to the needs of individual students,
including the Russian State Archive of Literature and Art (RGALI), the
Russian State Archive of Contemporary History (RGANI) and others.
There will also be some free time for exploring the city and becoming
acquainted with its culture. The trip is led by experienced staff from
the UK and is organised with the full cooperation of the archives.
Students will stay in a hotel, mostly in shared twin rooms.

The programme is intended for students who have not yet carried out
research in the Moscow archives, but are planning an extended archival
research trip to Moscow in the future. It is therefore aimed primarily
at students in their first year of doctoral study (or second year
part-time), but applications from students at different stages of
study will be considered where appropriate. Priority will be given to
students registered for a PhD or equivalent at a UK institution (or
students registered for an MPhil in their first year who are expected
to have registration upgraded to PhD). It is also a condition of the
scheme’s funding that priority will be given to students at
institutions which are part of the CEELBAS or CRCEES networks.

Only students who are resident in the UK and registered for a research
degree at a UK institute of Higher Education may have their personal
costs, i.e. flights and accommodation, subsidised. Priority and higher
subsidies will be granted to students at CEELBAS institutions, and
CRCEES institutions. There are also places available for students at
UK universities outside these two consortia, and for overseas
students.
For CEELBAS/CRCEES Students and subsidised non-consortia students: The
subsidised fee for each student is £400 to cover all costs associated
with the trip, excluding personal spending and travel to a UK airport.
It is normally expected that these costs will be covered by the
student’s funding council or own department. Students not awarded a
subsidised place may still be able to participate provided they cover
in full their personal costs, currently estimated at £750
For students studying at non-UK institutions: you must arrange your
own flights to Russia and Russian visas, at your own cost. The fee for
the scheme (for accommodation, archive visits and other costs) will be
US$1000.

Application Process
Applications should consist of two documents:
1)  A letter of application, no more than two sides of A4, outlining
the benefits of the trip to their own work, and including at least the
following information:
•	Nationality and length of UK residence
•	Institution and department where registered for a research degree
•	Year and month in which first registered for a research degree
•	Type of research degree currently registered for
•	Source of funding for research degree
•	Name of supervisor
•	200 words on topic of research and brief description
•	The archives in Moscow already identified as most likely to be of
benefit to the research
•	The extent to which the thesis will be dependent on sources from the
Russian archives
•	Level of knowledge of spoken and reading Russian
•	Approximate dates for any planned extended archival research trip
•	Details of any previous trips to Moscow or elsewhere in Russia
•	Your preferred airport for departure from the UK
2) A supporting statement from the student’s supervisor or course
leader. This statement should confirm the information in the student’s
application and outline the relevance of the trip to the student’s
work, and should comment on the student’s work to date. For students
registered for an MPhil or equivalent, this should also state the
likelihood of the student’s degree being upgraded to PhD or
equivalent. This statement should be emailed by the supervisor. All
applications and supervisors’ supporting statements should be sent by
email, with subject line RATS 2011, to arrive no later than 10
December 2010 to: p.jones at ucl.ac.uk



-- 
Dr Polly Jones
Lecturer in Russian
School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES-UCL)
University College London
Gower St
London WC1E 6BT
United Kingdom
0207 679-8723
http://www.ssees.ucl.ac.uk/prospect/jones.htm

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