Research
History at Leicester makes a strong contribution to wider society through its flourishing culture of research excellence. We take pride in our support for, and the success of, our postgraduate and early career researchers through whom the future vitality and dynamism of our discipline will be maintained. We continue to develop and deploy our research and to support and encourage diversity within the discipline. Our commitment to addressing contemporary challenges at a local as well as national and international scale through historical research mirrors the University's commitment to the city of Leicester and its region and is aligned with both the University's prior research strategy and current future-focused strategy for 'Citizens of Change'.
In REF2021, History at the University of Leicester ranked second overall in the UK, with 94% of our research was designated 4* and 3* ('world leading' and 'internationally excellent').
History hosts three longstanding, high-profile research centres:
- Centre for Regional and Local History
- Centre for Urban History (home to the East Midlands Oral History Archive)
- Stanley Burton Centre for Holocaust and Genocide Studies
- Leicester Medieval Research Centre
History at Leicester is also involved in two multidisciplinary research centres:
Historians at Leicester also engage contribute to University-wide cross-disciplinary research networks and clusters, including:
- Global, Colonial and Postcolonial Research Cluster
- Migration, Mobility, Citizenship Network
- Early Modern Research Network
- Modern Britain
- Medical Humanities Network
Since 2008, we have secured over £8.2 million in research grants, and have an excellent track record for winning competitive funding for post-doctoral and early career fellowships and collaborative doctoral studentships with high-profile external partners.
We have gathered some research stories so that you can learn more about some of the world-leading research being conducted by Historians at Leicester.