Posted 16 June, 2026
Research Assistant
University of Galway
Galway, Galway, Ireland
Full Time
Reference: 1116978237
Research Assistant - STEMMA, 0.25 FTE, School of English, Media, and Creative Arts, 011822
Applications are invited from suitably qualified candidates for a part-time (0.25 FTE), fixed-term position as a Research Assistant with the STEMMA project at the University of Galway, Ireland.
This position is funded by the European Research Council and is available from 1 August 2026 to contract end date of 31 July 2028.
Information on project/centre
This project, led by Professor Erin A. McCarthy., develops and applies a data-driven approach in order to provide the first macro-level view of the circulation of early modern English poetry in manuscript. It focuses on English verse manuscripts written and used between the introduction of printing in England in 1475 and 1700, by which time the rapid changes in both literary taste and publishing norms ushered in by the Restoration had fully transformed literary culture. The project includes manuscripts circulating in England and anywhere else English was spoken and read, including Ireland, the North American colonies, and continental exile communities. It develops innovative computational models and quantitative methods for studying the social and material forces that informed literary culture.
Whereas the current state of the art has seen the scholarly community address manuscripts primarily as case studies, STEMMA seeks to open new frontiers in manuscript research by facilitating the identification of patterns and trends at scale. To that end, the project begins by synthesizing six of the most comprehensive datasets about early modern English manuscripts in preparation for advanced literary, material, and quantitative analyses. This first work package sets the stage for four further, interlocking work packages, to which the doctoral and postdoctoral positions are allocated: networking early modern manuscript poems; early modern literary communities in the English-speaking world; rolling archetypes, computational text analysis, and scholarly editing; and textual circulation between manuscript and print. The research team will comprise the PI, three postdoctoral researchers, and one PhD student with expertise in literary history, textual studies, computational text analysis, and social network analysis. They will be based in the Hardiman Research Building.
Salary: Research Assistant salary scale €33,791 - €43,872 per annum, (subject to the project's funding limitations), and pro rata for shorter and/or part-time contracts.
Employment permit restrictions apply for this category of post.
Closing date for receipt of applications is 17:00 (Irish Time) on 26 June 2026. It will not be possible to consider applications received after the closing date.
Applications are invited from suitably qualified candidates for a part-time (0.25 FTE), fixed-term position as a Research Assistant with the STEMMA project at the University of Galway, Ireland.
This position is funded by the European Research Council and is available from 1 August 2026 to contract end date of 31 July 2028.
Information on project/centre
This project, led by Professor Erin A. McCarthy., develops and applies a data-driven approach in order to provide the first macro-level view of the circulation of early modern English poetry in manuscript. It focuses on English verse manuscripts written and used between the introduction of printing in England in 1475 and 1700, by which time the rapid changes in both literary taste and publishing norms ushered in by the Restoration had fully transformed literary culture. The project includes manuscripts circulating in England and anywhere else English was spoken and read, including Ireland, the North American colonies, and continental exile communities. It develops innovative computational models and quantitative methods for studying the social and material forces that informed literary culture.
Whereas the current state of the art has seen the scholarly community address manuscripts primarily as case studies, STEMMA seeks to open new frontiers in manuscript research by facilitating the identification of patterns and trends at scale. To that end, the project begins by synthesizing six of the most comprehensive datasets about early modern English manuscripts in preparation for advanced literary, material, and quantitative analyses. This first work package sets the stage for four further, interlocking work packages, to which the doctoral and postdoctoral positions are allocated: networking early modern manuscript poems; early modern literary communities in the English-speaking world; rolling archetypes, computational text analysis, and scholarly editing; and textual circulation between manuscript and print. The research team will comprise the PI, three postdoctoral researchers, and one PhD student with expertise in literary history, textual studies, computational text analysis, and social network analysis. They will be based in the Hardiman Research Building.
Salary: Research Assistant salary scale €33,791 - €43,872 per annum, (subject to the project's funding limitations), and pro rata for shorter and/or part-time contracts.
Employment permit restrictions apply for this category of post.
Closing date for receipt of applications is 17:00 (Irish Time) on 26 June 2026. It will not be possible to consider applications received after the closing date.
