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Learning in Focus

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Goblin scullery maids, ghostly miners and cannibal sailors: my experience of studying for a PhD at the University of Portsmouth

By on February 24, 2020 in Learning in Focus, Research in Focus

Dr Eilís Phillips followed three years of undergraduate study at the University of Portsmouth with a three-year PhD on Victorian monsters, supervised by Dr Karl Bell, Reader in History at the University.  Her work is an inspiration to many, not least to my own students studying ideas of the monstrous in the 17th century Civil War context.  Impressively, while studying with and teaching at the University, Eilís has combined her academic studies with regular performances as a musician at many locations in Portsmouth and the surrounding areas – ed.   My PhD was a three-year, CEISR-funded interdisciplinary project which used an approach based in History – grounded in historiography – […]

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Self-identity under slavery: Frederick Douglass narrates his story

By on February 14, 2020 in Learning in Focus, Research in Focus

Joshua Bown, a first year History student at the University of Portsmouth, has written the following blog entry on the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave, for the Fragments module, which looks at the possibilities and challenges of using primary sources for historical study. The module is co-ordinated by Dr Katy Gibbons, Senior Lecturer in History at Portsmouth. The use of egodocuments as a primary source for historians has provided both significant and controversial contributions to the field. As Laura Sangha puts it, the potential advantages of studying these personal documents seem obvious, in that they may ‘reveal what an individual actually thought and felt about […]

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Life after Graduation

By on February 12, 2020 in Learning in Focus, Public History

One of our recent graduates tells us how the skills he gained studying at Portsmouth, and the volunteer experience he gained while studying, helped him secure an exciting job in the heritage sector.  For security reasons, he has not been named. Having graduated in the summer of 2019 and with a firm understanding that it was now time to get back into the world of work, the task was on to find a job, one that both stimulated me and used the great many skills learned through the three years at Portsmouth. Upon entering university I knew that my one objective was to better myself in both educational values and […]

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How I learned to stop worrying and chose my dissertation topic

By on January 30, 2020 in Learning in Focus, Research in Focus

Third year student Sophie McKee gives some frank and timely advice about the process of choosing a dissertation topic.  I’m not bitter that she rejected my topic, really – ed. When Rob James asked me to write a blog post about writing about dissertations we both enjoyed a wee chuckle. For I, after going back and forth between centuries and subjects, had only just, very recently at the time, settled on a topic. Now wait a minute. Dissertations? You’ve just come into second year.  You haven’t had a chance to process Star Wars, or Christmas, or the general election yet! How dare someone ask you to think about a dissertation! But here […]

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‘There are ways to make your last year your best year’: How to succeed in your final year as a History student

By on September 19, 2019 in Learning in Focus

Ever wondered how to succeed in your final year and still stay sane? In this blog Nia Picton-Phillips reflects back on her final year of studying History and offers tips on how to get the most out of it. Nia graduated in July 2019 with a first class degree and is just about to start a MRes in Humanities & Social Sciences with us. Photo by courtesy of Nia Picton-Phillips It is often assumed that your third and final year of university will be the toughest. Don’t get me wrong, it was by no means easy but there are ways to make your last year your best year – academically […]

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‘Take the time to explore new opportunities’: How to get the most out of your Second Year at Uni

By on September 18, 2019 in Learning in Focus

If you are about to start your second year studying History, then Amelia Boddice can give you some great advice on how to get the most out of the year. Amelia is in her final year; for her BA Dissertation she will be working on a fascinating project on Elizabethan England. I found the Second Year tough but ultimately rewarding. In particular I enjoyed the chance to select optional modules on topics which I like to study. There is plenty of choice so I could explore new topics and see whether I liked them or not. This also allowed me to work with people I had not previously worked with. […]

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