The Stirling Centre for International Publishing and Communication offers the possibility to undertake research leading towards a PhD, on a variety of contemporary and historical topics related to publishing and print culture.

More information about the Centre’s research activities is available here. The Centre is part of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Literature & Languages, and by registering for a PhD in the Centre you will join a community of research students and staff. It may also be possible to arrange co-supervision with other Schools in the University. As well as the traditional PhD by thesis, it is also possible to study for a PhD by Publication.

If you are interested in studying for a PhD, please contact the Director of the Centre, Claire Squires.

You can also study for an MRes in Publishing Studies. This programme offers the opportunity to prepare for a PhD through concentrated research.

For details on finance and funding, go to the University of Stirling Postgraduate Finance pages.

See the University’s pages on studying for a research degree here.

Current PhD researchers are:

• Morven Gow: 21st Century book publishing authenticity The experience of digital media audiences – cultural events and attractions (SGSAH/AHRC DTP studentship)
• Nicola Torch: Field Migration and the Publishing Ecosystem in the Digital Age (SGSAH/AHRC DTP studentship)
• Silja Koivuniemi: Misogyny in Publishing: The Persistence of Problematic Depictions of Women in Revised Editions of Classic Literature
• Laura Jones-Rivera: ‘The Cathedral and the Stock Market’: Combining Cultural and Institutional Theories Towards SME Publisher Sustainability (SGSAH/AHRC DTP studentship)

Completed PhDs undertaken in the Centre include:

• Helena Markou (2024) The Shelf-Life of Books: An Exploration of the Lifecycle and Longevity of Books in the UK in the 21st Century (SGSAH/AHRC DTP studentship) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Sonali Misra (2024): Whose Words Are We Reading?: The Cartelisation of Anglophone Trade Book Publishing and Its Postcolonial Impact: The Case of India (University of Stirling Faculty of Arts & Humanities studentship) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Alice Piotrowska (2023): Publishing in Scotland 1968–2018: From Cultural Heritage to Digital Engagement (University of Stirling match-funded studentship, in partnership with Publishing Scotland and HarperCollins) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Chiara Bullen (2023): Problematic Publishing and Progressive Symbolic Capital in the 21st Century (University of Stirling Faculty of Arts & Humanities studentship) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Christina Neuwirth (2022): Women of Words: Gender equality in 21st century Scottish Book Publishing (a SGSAH Creative Economies Studentship; co-supervised with University of Glasgow and Scottish Book Trust) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Sarah Boyd (2021): The Archive of Our Own and the Stakes of Publishing Fanfiction (Carnegie Trust scholarship) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Ellen Wiles (2019) Live Literature and Cultural Value: Explorations in Experiential Literary Ethnography (AHRC studentship) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Louisa Preston (2018): Post-digital audience engagement activity in and across visual arts and publishing (co-supervised with the University of St Andrews; co-funded by the University of Stirling, St Andrews and the Nesta/Creative Scotland/AHRC Digital R&D Fund) (Thesis abstract available via St Andrews)
• Paul Docherty (2018): Developing Literary Glasgow (an AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Award with Glasgow Life) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Lucy Ry-Kottoh (2018): Digital Publishing in Ghana, with a focus on Children’s/Educational Publishing (Commonwealth Scholarship) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Stevie Marsden (2016): The Saltire Society Literary Awards, 1936-2015: A Cultural History (an AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Award with The Saltire Society) (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Rachel Noorda (2016): Transnational Scottish Book Marketing to a Diasporic Audience 1995-2015 (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Kwasi Otu Darko-Ampem (2004): Scholarly Publishing in Africa: A Case Study of the Policies and Practices of African University Presses (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Firdaus Ahmad Azzam (1995): Scholarly Publishing in Malysia : A Study of Marketing Environment and Influences on Readership Behaviour (Thesis available in STORRE)
• Passawalee Nitikasetsoontorn: A Study of Book  Marketing in Publishing Houses in Peninsular Malaysia: Contexts, Practices, Problems