An ethnographic study of a sport and wellbeing project targeting ex-service personnel in Greater Manchester- Funded PhD Scholarship
Salary: Includes a bursary of £14,777 per annum and tuition fees of £4260 per annum
Location: Manchester
Summary
The PhD project is to undertake a qualitative evaluation study of the Military Veterans sport, physical activity and wellbeing project that will be delivered across Greater Manchester between 2018-2020. You will work alongside a Development Officer( Armed Forces) to undertake the evaluation component of the project through ethnographic methods establish on-going understanding and insight around the project, key stakeholders , volunteers, coaches and project participants from an ex-military background.
Aims and objectives
The focus of the PhD will be to undertake an evaluative ethnographic study of the developing Sport England funded programme put in place to support ex-service personnel who have recently transitioned from serving to civilian life in Greater Manchester. The project has already worked in partnership developing this project with many organisations who also deal directly with ex-service personnel in the Greater Manchester area. They include:
- Veterans Breakfast Clubs (throughout Greater Manchester)
- Local Authorities.
- Regimental Associations
- Military Charities
- Public Health and specifically Drug and Alcohol services
- Ministry of Defence
- Organisations providing physical activities
- Wider third sector organisations.
The target audience for the programme are ex-service personnel with one or more of the following life challenges:
- Those with mental health problems or those at risk of developing them;
- Those at risk of/affected by drug and/or alcohol abuse or dependency;
- Those at risk of isolation or already isolated.
The purpose of the PhD research is to embed themselves within the project to focus on undertaking an ethnographic study to evaluate, learn and share good practice as the project evolves. The candidate will build relationships with the Breakfast Club members, TASC Membership and wider community. They will provide research support by undertaking interviews with stakeholders such local authorities, other MoD linked staff and charitable providers involved in the project. Year 1 work is research-led with a focus on improving practice and delivery. Data shaped from Year 1 will then be used to inform wider understanding and used to enhance Year 2 and 3 project development and your PhD.
The central focus of the PhD is to test existing understanding around isolation, mental health and drug and alcohol dependency developing during transition from military service into civilian life. There are very few studies that have examined the role of sport and physical activity as a lever for supporting ex-service personnel. The project has the possibility of testing an existing model or developing new theory and models based on current situations, contexts and grounded in the existing policy and practice context.
The project will use an ethnographic research approach for the evaluation based around the employment of a fieldwork PhD student within the project working alongside the physical activity officer. learning will therefore commence from project diaries through initial project development and into deployment and implementation. This model therefore allows research ‘loops’ to be built into the learning as the project develops, not, as a before/during/after model as is sometimes seem in traditional research and evaluation. The rationale for this is due to the highly complex multiple needs of the participants.
The project will also provide a rigorous evidence for what works, what doesn’t and lesson learning feedback to Sport England’s internal Insight team where other projects may be developing in this area of activity/implementation. In particular, populations with often intersecting mental health, unemployment, isolation and drug and alcohol issues that cross over with ex-service communities.
Specific requirements of the project
Applicants should have a good honours degree (2:1 or 1st) with ideally a Masters qualification in social research methods, sociology, community development, alcohol and drug misuse/social policy or mental health policy and practice. An understanding of community sport and physical activity policy, practice and management context is also desirable. Candidates will be expected to undertake interviews, participant observation and ethnographic fieldwork so strong skills and experience in this area is also demanded. Whilst knowledge of military communities, customs and practices are desirable, it is not essential to this PhD part of the project. You will also be working alongside the core project delivery team as part of this PhD, thus experience of partnership working and relationship building is also critical. This is a three year fully-funded scholarship that includes a bursary of £14,777 per annum and tuition fees of £4260 per annum. The project will involve travel around Manchester and some occasional national travel for conferences and meetings.
Student eligibility
This opportunity is open to UK and EU applicants
Contacts
Informal enquiries can be made to:
Dr Chris Mackintosh (Project Investigator- PI) c.mackintosh@mmu.ac.uk
How to apply
The quickest and most efficient way to apply for this course is to apply online. This way, you can also track your application at each stage of the process.
Please quote the reference: FoBL-CM-2018-2.
Please complete the additional Postgraduate Research Degree Supplementary Information document and upload it to the Student documents section of your online application. This collects important information about your research application and there may be delays if you do not submit this document.
Before you apply, we recommend that you:
- Contact the relevant Research Degrees Co-ordinatorwithin your chosen area of interest to discuss the project or your ideas.
- Ensure that you have gathered the necessary supporting documents required and submit them along with your application where possible: references, passport copy, qualification transcripts and certificates, English language proficiency evidence where relevant.
Next Stages of Your Application
We will contact you to let you know the initial outcome of your application, and invite you to attend an interview where appropriate.
Once the university is satisfied with the following, we will send you an offer letter informing you that you have been offered a place of study:
- Your research proposal
- The entry requirements have been met
- You have satisfactory references
- We have the expertise and resources to be able to supervise you
- And you have had a successful interview
Some offers may be conditional upon achieving certain grades in your examinations, or successfully completing a particular programme. You must satisfy these conditions before we can confirm your unconditional place.
Closing date for applications 11 June 2018
Interviews will take place on 28 June 2018
