I was fortunate enough to conduct academic research under the supervision of Stephen Gethins,  Professor of Practice in International Relations at the University of St Andrews and now a sitting MP. Stephen introduced me to a truly fascinating yet often overlooked area of International Relations: sub-state and regional actors and their place in global politics, with a focus on Scotland in particular. Through this, I have developed an interest in Scotland's place in the world as a nation without an independent foreign office, but as a nation with extensive international influence and a powerful global diaspora. This topic formed the basis of my Laidlaw project, my undergraduate and postgraduate dissertation, and my PhD. I take a keen interested in other academic fields such as politics, history, and philosophy. Although an International Relations and Sociology student first and foremost, I had the opportunity of studying Ancient History and Classics alongside my degree for two years. If I were to ever win the lottery, you would find me endlessly cycling University, spending my remaining days studying Ancient History and Philosophy, Politics, Anthropology, Theology, Theoretical Physics and Maths, or whatever subject I develop an interest in down the line. Since leaving the University of St Andrews and the Laidlaw Programme, I completed an MRes degree at the University of Glasgow in Sociology and Research Methods. I received a scholarship for a PhD in Sociology at the University of Glasgow which I am completing part-time in addition to my role as Research Officer at Carers Trust Scotland - a charity supporting unpaid carers which I had previously volunteered for. My PhD is a continuation of my Scottish diaspora studies, seeking to reconcile the notion of 'civic Scottishness' with the Scottish identity of the lived diaspora.  

I am a 4th year History student from the University of St Andrews. I spent the past year studying and working abroad in Oslo and in Prague. My research analysed the words and phrases of key documents of 1910s Ireland, and used these to evaluate the wider ideologies of Nationalism and Unionism, particularly concerning individual experiences of the ideologies. My research proved the value of speeches and literature to the historian in uncovering wider society. Determined to build upon this research, I am currently creating a website. This will function as an online archive for speeches and literature and offer my research as an interpretation to aid in understanding. I hope that this will be an accessible and beneficial tool for those interested in Irish history. When I'm not reading, researching and writing about History, I run my own small-business, enjoy traveling, and have a passion for learning languages.  Feel free to connect here!

I am a first year chemistry PhD student at the University of St Andrews, interested in many fields of chemistry, but particularly areas within inorganic and physical chemistry. My research project is supervised by Dr. Petr Kilian focusing on the synthesis and characterisation of peri-substituted aromatic systems. These previously un characterised compounds have many applications within green chemistry, particularly within catalysis.

Hello! I'm a Liberal Arts History major student, currently researching the medieval - and medievalism - in Leeds’ tangible and intangible urban landscape. I am investigating the landscape and buildings of medieval Leeds, Victorian Leeds, and present-day Leeds - and considering how all three intersect and inform both each other, and constructions of local identity and place. ​                                                                                      I am also interested in the broader utility of medievalism to nationalism, and the creation of national identities - and the impact of this on the contemporary political landscape of the UK and Ireland. I'm passionate about the utility of heritage studies and the importance of historical contextualization to political decision making - from urban planning to national policymaking.

I am a 3rd year Midwifery student at Trinity College Dublin. For my research project, I am investigating women's views on the need for birth reflection clinics/services for women who have experienced a traumatic event during childbirth within the Irish maternity services.

Anthropology and Sociology Undergraduate; from Bristol, UK. I am completing a research project on narrative transmission and reproduction, looking at how oral accounts of geological events are passed down accurately over generations. By understanding how narratives are constructed I am keen to explore interdisciplinary approaches, particularly between Anthropology, Linguistics, Computer-Human Interaction, and Cognition. Other interests include literature, art and photography, architecture, astronomy, and outdoor pursuits.

I am a passionate and enterprising individual about to start her Honours career in Art History at the University of St. Andrews. My main interests are art, literature and public affairs, which I am trying to pursue both at university and in my research "Artistic translations of Dante's Inferno". I am deeply committed to connect my own Italian educational background with the experiences I am making abroad, as it emerges also from my research topic: I advocate for a better understanding of my culture but also a wider integration in a globalised academic environment. I am always looking for opportunities in the art world, with focus on the art market and investment sector, and I am also open to any kind of entrepreneurial programme for young women, since I see my faculty of choice as just a starting point for my future career, rather than a closed sector.

I am a fourth year pursuing a Bachelor of Arts with International Honours in Economics through a joint degree programme integrating The College of William and Mary with The University of St. Andrews. I have studied both International Relations and Economics in depth from an American and British perspective, and have benefitted from each university's respective areas of expertise. My research within Laidlaw has been conducted in the Classics department, which gives testament to my appreciation for interdisciplinary research.

I am a fifth-year studying Theoretical Physics at the University of St Andrews. My research is about quantum thermodynamics, more specifically on how a two-level quantum dot behaves in a dissipative environment with memory. I am also the President of the Physics Society, where we aim to foster a strong community and host academic and careers focused events that help the students learn and network. I can usually be found knitting a scarf or two whilst enjoying a good cup of tea.

I am an incoming MPhil candidate in Medieval History at the University of Oxford. Alongside my research specialism of late medieval religious and social history, other interests of mine include social and labour history in the nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, the history of medieval devotional objects, and nineteenth-century art. My research project was supervised by Drs Amy Blakeway and Jacqueline Rose. Titled 'History, religion and community in North East Fife', my project investigated the history of the village of Kingsbarns using archival material and interviews. My essay was a social history of the area, with a section on historical methodology. This was later supplemented with an oral account of the church in its current form by one of its contemporary administrators. In my second summer, I created and hosted a local history workshop in collaboration with the Boomerang Community Centre in Stobswell, Dundee. This combined archival research with an empowering leadership project, which encouraged participants to continue to investigate historical topics they are passionate about. The workshop was greatly successful, and feedback from the participants was wholly positive.

I'm an Ancient History and Archaeology graduate from St Andrews University, and Oxford University. My laidlaw research was in Medieval Heresy and Inquisition, combining practical GIS and mapping skills commonly used in archaeology, textual analysis, and data analysis, to experiment with alternative ways of presenting historical research. However, my current interests lie in studying craft networks and technological exchange in the Ancient Aegean, as well as the influence of marginalised people in the historical record on them.

I am the founder of buddhistphilosophy.co.uk where I currently host podcasts with expert guests in Buddhist philosophical practice and theory. With this project, I am to contribute toward correcting the entrenched Eurocentric bias in philosophy by creating an inclusive space for learning about Buddhist philosophy. As a Laidlaw Scholar, I have researched on researched philosophy of time, Buddhist philosophy, and philosophy of language. My research output includes a paper entitled Meaning in Gibberish (forthcoming in Aporia). I have presented this paper and discussed related issues in talks and workshops at the University of St Andrews and the University of Edinburgh. Language learning holds a high in priority in my studies and research. I have studied some Pali (OCBS levels 1 and 2) and I read French fluently. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me if you have any interest in the following: Buddhism, Buddhist philosophy, Ambedkar studies, women and Buddhist philosophy, cross-cultural philosophy, critical theory, French philosophy, Laruelle’s non-philosophy, non-Buddhism, philosophy of nonsense, philosophy of death.

Hello! I'm Reuben, an Art History and Film student researching 'The Sonic Body: Technology, Embodiment, Gender' with the University of St Andrews and Trinity College Dublin. I am also a student filmmaker and illustrator, and host 'The Theory of Everything Podcast' for StAR Radio.

Geraint Morgan is originally from Pencoed outside Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr (Bridgend) in South Wales and is a MPhil candidate in Mediaeval History at Jesus College, Oxford. Prior to that, they completed their undergraduate degree in Mediaeval History at the University of St Andrews, having arrived to read Geography. Their principal interest is in understanding how medieval people perceived their environments. Whilst thier work to date has mostly focused on pre-conquest Welsh cultural and social histories, they are keen to work transnationally and collaboratively. Whilst an undergraduate at St Andrews, Geraint completed a Laidlaw Research project focusing on the role of women in High Medieval Welsh society.

I'm a graduate of Columbia University ('23!), where I studied Film. I used to work at Google as a growth strategist, and at YouTube as a content strategist. My current work centers on multimedia and multidisciplinary art, blending media experiments, writing, and ongoing film projects. During the Laidlaw Fellowship, I examined Napoleon's influence on the political attitudes present in Le rouge et le noir by Stendhal and War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. The following year, I worked in business development for Tortoise Media, a news publication based out of London. Feel free to reach out and connect!

Currently a Laidlaw Scholar at the University of St Andrews conducting research into populism in Hungary. My research project is titled "Heroes and villains; Orban, Soros and the performance of populism in contemporary Hungary". Conceptualising populism as a political style, I am utilising dramaturgical methodology to examine how the Hungarian billionaire financier George Soros is constructed as a societal "villain" as part of Hungarian PM Viktor Orban's populist political performance. I am currently working towards completion of a research paper with the view of academic publication.

I'm a BSc Mathematics graduate from the University of St Andrews. My research looks at twelve tone music from an abstract algebra perspective, with the hopes of gaining insight into the thoughts and compositional methods of various composers.

Research and Academic Administration

Scholar from the 2018 St Andrews Laidlaw Cohort. My project was under the supervision of Prof. Sabine Hyland in the Department of Social Anthropology, and is entitled "Revolutionary Women in the indigenous revolt of 1783, Peru". I am currently looking into the publication of my research findings, and presented them as a panellist at a conference in York in February 2020. Currently doing an MA in Museum Studies at UCL.