Please open flap for Important Dates and Contact Details.

research Please open flap for Chapter Overview.

researchrca handbook 08·09

handbook
08·09

rc
Royal College of Art
Kensington Gore
London SW7 2EU
t +44 (0)20 7590 4126
f +44 (0)20 7590 4542
research@rca.ac.uk
www.rca.ac.uk/research
Chapter Overview Important Dates and Contact Details
tant Dates and Contact Details
Research at the Royal College of Art Term Dates
see pages 12–21 Autumn Term
29 September 2008 –12 December 2008
Research Degrees at the Royal College of Art Spring Term
see pages 22–29 12 January 2009 – 27 March 2009
Summer Term
20 April 2009 – 03 July 2009
Research student progression
see pages 30–39
Mandatory RMC Components
Abstract deadline
Final examination 5pm, Friday 28 November 2008
see pages 40–47 Research Proposal deadline
5pm, Friday 13 March 2009
Research Methods Course Research Presentation dates
see pages 48–55 14, 21, 28 January 2009

Research Supervisors’ Forum

Student support services
Autumn Term
see pages 56–61
1pm, Tuesday 28th October 2008
Spring Term
RCA research resources 1pm, Tuesday 17th February 2009
see pages 63–67 Summer Term
1pm, Tuesday 26th May 2009
Research student funding
see pages 68–77 Research Supervisors’ Training Day
10am, Tuesday 18th November 2008
Dissemination of research
Research Reception
see pages 78–85
6pm, 3rd November 2008

Guidelines on bibliographical references Contact Details

see pages 86–95 Professor Sandra Kemp,
Director of Research
Core bibliography t +44 (0) 20 7590 4126
see pages 96–105 email: sandra.kemp@rca.ac.uk
Research Office
Guide to libraries t +44 (0) 20 7590 4126
see pages 106–123 email: research@rca.ac.uk
Andrew Loveland,
Research Student Administrator
Good research practice t +44 (0) 20 7590 4135
see pages 124–143 email: andrew.loveland@rca.ac.uk

Information for research staff

see pages 144–151

Guide to forms
see pages 152–155
 rca
research
handbook
08·09
research
handbook
08·09

rc
Compiled by
Professor Sandra Kemp,
Director of Research
6 // contents // research rca handbook 08·09

contents 10

1
Welcome

Research at the Royal College of Art

15 The Research Office
16 Summary of Responsibilities
19 The College
19 College-Wide Timetable
20 The Students’ Union
20 Research Student Representatives
21 Wider Research Community

2 Research Degrees at the Royal College of Art

24 Registration Periods
24 Aegrotat Degrees
25 Research Degrees: Assessment Standards and Criteria
27 Definitions of Research

3 Research student progression

32 Admissions Procedure
32 Admissions Examination Board
32 Late Applications
33 Induction Meetings
33 Personal Development Plan
34 Interim Examination
35 Transfer from MPhil to PhD
36 Changes in student status
36 Leave of absence
37 Programme and Title of Work
37 Complaints Procedure
38 Student Appeal Procedure
38 Plagiarism

4 Final examination
43 Nomination of External Examiners
43 Notification of Submission of Thesis
43 Submission of Thesis
43 Appointment of External Examiners
44 Date of Final Examination – viva voce
45 Preparation for viva voce
45 Submission of pre-viva report by External Examiners
45 Final Examination – viva voce
46 Outcome of the Final Examination
46 Final Examination reports
47 Thesis binding and deposit
47 Convocation
8 // contents // research rca handbook 08·09

5 Research Methods Course 11 Core bibliography

50 General Course Information 98 Recommended Reading
50 Mandatory Components 100 Subject-specific texts
52 Core Course Components 104 Useful Websites for Researchers
53 Optional Components
54 Virtual Research Community 12 Guide to libraries
54 Vitae 108
55 UK Grad Programme
13 Good research practice
6 Student support services 126 Intellectual Property Rights
58 Information and Learning Services 127 Research Ethics
58 Computing Services 127 RCA Research Ethics Checklist
58 Library 128 RCA Code of Practice for Research Ethics
60 Learning Support 136 RCA Health and Safety Policy
61 Equal Opportunities
61 Alumni Services 14 Information for research staff
146 Research Committee
7 RCA research resources 148 Research Development Fund
64 Printing Services 148 Research Allocation
64 Training Studio 149 Research Ethics Committee
65 Photographic Services 149 Training Available for Research Staff
66 Drawing Studio 150 External Funding Opportunities
66 Helen Hamlyn Centre 151 Research Assessment Exercise
67 InnovationRCA
67 Professional Practice 15 Guide to forms
154 Forms relating to Students
8 Research student funding 155 Forms relating to Staff
70 RCA Bursary
71 Research Councils 156 Appendix 1
72 Funding for Travel Current Research Students 2008–09
73 International Students
74 Funding for Students with Disabilities 166 Appendix 2
74 Subject-Specific Scholarships & Funding Research Alumni 1995–2008
76 Additional Sources of Funding
178 Notes
9 Dissemination of research
80 Layout of the Thesis 192 Credits
82 Guidelines for Printing
83 Guidelines for Binding
84 Guidelines for Exhibiting at the RCA Summer Show
84 Guidance for Student Participation in Conferences
and Publication of Work

10 Guidelines on bibliographical references

88 Referencing Systems
88 The Harvard System
94 The Modern Language Association System
94 The Oxford System
95 The Chicago Manual of Style
10 // welcome // research rca handbook 08·09

welcome Professor Sandra Kemp,

Director of Research
There are currently more than a hundred MPhil and PhD students at the
Royal College of Art (out of a student body of 900) and to date the College
has played a key role – nationally and internationally – in the development
of the disciplines of art and design. Since 1995, 212 MPhil and PhD students
have graduated from the RCA, and their fields of research are listed at the
end of this Handbook.

In the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), carried out by the Higher
Education Funding Council of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, the
Royal College of Art received a ‘5’ for Art and Design. The RCA is one of ten
top research-rated Art and Design Higher Education Institutions in the UK.
The College’s interdisciplinary structure has facilitated its rapidly expanding
research profile, as has its commitment to individual research practice,
enquiry and output of international excellence.

Royal College of Art research students are part of a cohesive staff and
student body – sharing studios and workshops with MA students and
participating in work-in-progress seminars and other departmental activities
with both staff and students. The College has a large international and
part-time student body and seeks to accommodate and develop individual
needs and skills. MPhil and PhD students also benefit from their own
comprehensive central and group-based Research Methods Course (which
offers training in transferable research skills, techniques and management;
information and communication technology and professional skills).
Research students are allocated individual departmental supervision and
offered specialist research seminars in their own department.

Research-specific activities form part of a wider pattern of lectures and

seminars across the College. The College’s rich academic life is further
enhanced by the extensive relationships we have with other world-class
institutions: academic, museum and industrial. Our closest collaborators
include Imperial College London, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the
National Portrait Gallery, and the Science Museum. The College is unusual
both in its particular juxtapositioning of art in a design environment and
design in an art environment, and in its advancement of knowledge in
the principles of art and design in their specific relation to industrial and
commercial processes. All research student activities are coordinated and
monitored by the Research Office in liaison with the individual departments
and with the College’s Research Committee.

The belief that knowledge can be generated, and questions answered,

through analytic scholarship, iterative experiments and innovative examples
of artefacts and designs, underpins the College’s developing research
projects and disciplines. We aim to offer our research students the best
environment and resources to develop and promote their research within
the fields of art and design.

This Handbook is designed to introduce you to research procedures and

resources at the RCA. I extend a warm welcome. Please feel free to contact
me or Research staff for advice in all matters concerning research.
chapter

research at the 1

royal college of art

“For the past 30 years, the RCA has played a
key role – nationally and internationally –
in the development of research-based education

1
within the disciplines of art and design. The
College’s multidisciplinary structure has
facilitated its rapidly expanding research
profile, as has its commitment to individual
and group research practice, enquiry and
output of international standing.”
Professor Sandra Kemp, Director of Research
14 // research at the royal college of art // research rca handbook 08·09
Research underpins the academic life of the Royal College of Art. The
College was awarded the highest score for Art and Design in the Research
Assessment Exercise 2001. Since then it has achieved commendation
by the Quality Assurance Agency in 2007 for research leadership and
management, including high quality research training; incremental
success in winning major research grants from the UK Research Councils
and other funders; new digital facilities supported by the Science
Research Investment Fund; an increase in research student numbers,
and in the number of academic and technical staff engaging in doctoral
study themselves and training to supervise research.
Allied to this, there has been strategic development of key research
fields in collaboration with researchers, funders and partners, and
referenced in accordance with new thinking and new knowledge, based
upon changing technological, material and social possibilities. The
tradition of being in the vanguard of new research disciplines as well
as the research methodologies within them is characteristic of the Royal
College of Art. Research staff and students work as individuals and in
groups and develop extensive partnerships with world-class academic
and commercial institutions.
Current research at the College falls broadly into the following three
areas: developmental research (including projects that explore new
techniques and processes, and develop new and modified materials with a
range of applications; applied research (including design for manufacture,
inclusive and sustainable design and strategic design concepts and
prototypes that could provide significant value to business and industry);
and historical, critical, cultural and studio research (where this relates to,
and/or informs art, media, design, production and practice).
the research office Jessica Rana is Secretary of the Research
Committee, Research Ethics Committee and
1
The Research Office is located in the Rectorate Research Development Fund and is responsible
and is staffed by: for all staff-related research business. In addition,
she is responsible for managing external funding
Professor Sandra Kemp,
applications for both staff and students and is
Director of Research
the College’s Je-S account manager.
extension: 4126
email: sandra.kemp@rca.ac.uk
Andrew Loveland, the Research Student Adminis-
trator is responsible for coordinating the College’s
Jessica Rana,
processes for research degree programmes, in-
PA to the Director of Research
cluding registration, supervision, examination and
extension: 4126
submissions to the Academic Board for Concessions
email: jessica.rana@rca.ac.uk
and Discipline and for administering the Research
Methods Course.
Andrew Loveland
Research Student Administrator
The Research Office can be contacted for advice in
extension: 4135
all matters concerning research. Staff and students
email: research@rca.ac.uk
are reminded, however, that their department
Research Coordinators and Heads of Department
Professor Sandra Kemp is Director of Research are responsible for all organisational aspects of
and a member of the Senior Management Group at their work.
the Royal College of Art (RCA), providing leadership
to enhance the character and academic mission
and of the College with respect to staff and student
research, including fund-raising and financial
planning for research, and estates and recruitment
initiatives. She established the Research Office at
the RCA in 2001, and has since been responsible for
building research teams across public and private
sector institutions and cross-border collaboration.
She is currently leading the RCA in its international
research development with particular respect to
partnerships in Europe, the USA and South East
Asia and, in particular, brokering new partnerships
and collaborations with Imperial College London;
Parsons, New York; and Tsing Hua University, Beijing.
Her role includes contributing to the latest policy
and developments in the sector, through a wide
external network, and by election to membership of
key institutions, including the Arts and Humanities
Research Council (AHRC) and the Higher Education
Funding Council for England (Research Assessment
Exercise), thereby ensuring representation for the
RCA at the highest levels.
16 // research at the royal college of art // research rca handbook 08·09
summary of
responsibilities
Although the role division between the Head of
Department, Research Coordinator, Research
supervisors and students in each department does
vary, below is a general guide to the allocation
of responsibilities at the College:
The Role of the Research Coordinator
Each department has a designated departmental
Research Coordinator who is usually responsible
for the majority of research student-related
administration and is a member of the academic
team for all MPhil and PhD students.
Research Coordinator responsibilities include:
• acting as the first point of contact for prospective
research students who wish to discuss their
applications to the College
• answering research-related enquiries specific to
that department from staff and students within
the College
• ensuring that all research students attend a
comprehensive induction programme
• ensuring that all research students attend the
Research Methods Course on a regular basis
• ensuring that all research students are up to date
with their requisite number of supervisions and
that the role allocation between internal
and external supervisors is balanced
• ensuring that all research students have their
Interim, Transfer, Mock viva and Final exams
properly scheduled
• ensuring that all research students are complet-
ing the Personal Development Plans and Training
Needs Analysis forms as required
• providing pastoral care for their cohort of
research students.
In addition, each Research Coordinator is
responsible for actively promoting research across
their department and enhancing the research
environment for both staff and students wherever
possible. Such activities might include:
• the organisation of discipline-specific
training workshops
• presentations
• research seminars
• regular updating of their research pages on the
RCA website
• disseminating key changes in College policy
regarding research students and staff
• attendance at the termly Supervisors’ Fora.
Research Coordinators are an important conduit for
enhancing inter-disciplinary and inter-departmental
links. All RCA staff can be contacted by email on
their RCA email account (firstname.surname@
rca.ac.uk).
RCA Departments and Research Coordinators
School of Applied Art
Ceramics & Glass –Alison Britton
GSM&J – Hans Stofer
School of Architecture & Design
Architecture – Mark Garcia
Design Interactions – Anthony Dunne
Design Products – Hilary French
School of Design For Production
Industrial Design Engineering – Bronac Ferran
Vehicle Design – Andrew Nahum
School of Communications
Animation – Joan Ashworth
Communication Art & Design – Al Rees
School of Fashion & Textiles
Fashion – Claire Pajaczkowska
Textiles – Claire Pajaczkowska
School of Fine Art
Painting – Elizabeth Price
Photography – Yve Lomax
Printmaking – Jo Stockham
Sculpture – Elizabeth Price
School of Humanities
Conservation – William Lindsay
Critical and Historical Studies – Martina Margetts
Curating Contemporary Art – Mark Nash
History of Design – Jeremy Aynsley
The Role of the Supervisor
Each research student works closely with at least
one supervisor. An MPhil student will usually have
one supervisor, although a second supervisor
may join the team if the nature of the work is
interdisciplinary or more than one expert is required.
A PhD student has a team of two, or sometimes
three, supervisors. The main supervisor is always
located within the department where the student
is based. It is not unusual for a student to have a
second supervisor from another department or one
who is external to the College. No RCA supervisor
will have more than six students at any one time. As
well as the students’ primary point of contact within
the RCA and the main source of academic support,
the lead supervisor is normally responsible for the
students’ pastoral care. The Research Coordinator,
Head of Department and Head of School also have
responsibilities in this area.
The main elements of a lead supervisor’s role
include mentoring, motivating, maintaining
standards and monitoring progress. Throughout a
research student’s period of study at the College,
supervisors are expected to:
Mentor
• provide academic guidance
• advise on the aims, scope and presentation of
their students’ research
• provide effective pastoral support and/or refer the
student to other sources of support, including a
departmental personal tutor, the Students’ Union
[page 20] and Student Support Officer [page 60].
• help the student to interact with others working in
the field of research: for example, encouraging the
student to attend relevant conferences, supporting
him/her in seeking funding for such events; and
where appropriate to submit conference papers
and articles to refereed journals.
Motivate
• identify any training needs the student may have
1
and recommend opportunities for training and
development
• promote the use of external resources and
expertise, and encourage participation in research
activities such as attendance and presentation at
departmental, College and/or external exhibitions,
symposia, and conferences.
Maintain standards
• adhere to the College’s requirement of a minimum
of six formal tutorials or progress meetings per
year, or in the case of part-time students at least
three times a year (to include joint supervisors)
and maintain copies of jointly agreed reports of
each formal meeting
• ensure accessibility to the student when s/he
needs advice, by whatever means is most suitable
given the student’s location and mode of study
• Inform the student of the RCA Regulations and
legal issues relating to plagiarism, copyright,
data protection, Health and Safety, intellectual
property, careers guidance, equal opportunities
and research ethics
• ensure that the student is aware of the need to
exercise probity and conduct his/her research
according to ethical principles, and of the
implications of research misconduct
• ensure that the Research Office is notified of
any potential ethical issues arising from their
student’s research
• advise students of plans for extended absence
from the College (e.g. sabbatical leave) during
their candidature, arrange for the provision of
replacement supervision in advance for periods of
absence longer than one month, and ensure that
these arrangements are ratified by the Academic
Board for Concessions and Discipline, via the
Research Office
• maintain the necessary supervisory expertise,
including the appropriate skills, to perform all
of the role satisfactorily, supported by relevant
continuing professional development opportunities
• participate in all RCA Supervisor Training
programmes, including the Supervisors’ Training
Day and Supervisors’ Fora.
18 // research at the royal college of art // research rca handbook 08·09

Monitor progress
• ensure that their students keep on schedule
within their registration period and meet all
requisite deadlines
• ensure that their students keep their Personal
Development Plan (PDP) up to date [page 33]
• assist in developing an appropriate plan for
successive stages of the research project,
Further details on the role of the supervisor can be
found in The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher
Education ‘Code of Practice for the assurance of
academic quality and standards in higher education’
Section 1: Postgraduate research programmes
– September 2004 available on the RCA website at
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/research/qaa_
special_review_of_3327.html
• respond with constructive criticism to the
annual student feedback questionnaire
• become familiar with institutional regulations
and policies, including the RCA Regulations
for the degrees of MPhil or PhD, Health
and safety, intellectual property and ethical
research guidelines
• take responsibility for research funding.
a decision will be made on whether the use 1
requested can be accommodated.
Students must not make direct approaches to
technical staff about the use of specialist facilities.
Academic staff should deal with all such requests.

including writing up the thesis
• require written drafts from their students on a
consistent and mutually agreed schedule; read
and provide written comments within a mutually
agreed and reasonable period from the time
of submission (and no more than one month)
• provide timely, constructive and effective feedback
on the student’s work, including his/her overall
progress within the programme
• inform their students in writing of inadequacies
in their progress or standard of work
• assist in arranging essential administrative
steps, such as preparation for departmental
presentations, Interim and Transfer Examinations
• prepare their students for Final Examination
• notify their students of any recommendations
from examiners and help them prepare for
any resubmission.
Any experienced research supervisor (i.e. a member
of staff who has completed supervision of more
than two research students to successful completion
of their research degree) is eligible to sit on the
following examination boards:
• MPhil/PhD admission
• Interim examination with transfer to PhD
• Final Examination.
External supervisors are not responsible for
the administration of internal research procedures
e.g., with respect to Interim, Transfer and Final
Examination. However, it is their responsibility to
work directly with the lead supervisor to ensure
an integrated program of work, and to fulfil all other
aspects of the supervisory role as listed above.
It is imperative that they complete supervision
tutorial reports and are present at Interim
Examination. External supervisors are strongly
encouraged to participate in all RCA Supervisor
Training programmes, including the Supervisors’
Training Day and Supervisors’ Fora.
Limited copies of the Code of Practice are available
from the Research Office.
The Role of the Student
Throughout their period of study at the RCA,
research students are expected to:
• register with the College on an annual basis, at
the start of the new academic year (if a student
fails to register with the College by the end of
the autumn term each year, he or she will be
deemed to have withdrawn)
• take responsibility for their own personal and
professional development
• maintain regular contact with their supervisors
and attend supervisory meetings on time, well-
prepared and with a clear agenda
• work conscientiously and independently and
prepare adequately for supervision tutorials
• maintain progress in accordance with the
timetable agreed with their supervisors at the
outset and generally maintain satisfactory
progress with the programme of research
• present the results of practical work and
written material in sufficient time for comment
and discussion
• engage with other researchers in their field,
attend relevant conferences and disseminate
results where appropriate
• take the initiative in making supervisors aware
of any specific needs or circumstances and raising
problems or difficulties
• participate fully in the Research Methods
Course and any additional subject-specific re-
search training provision that has been identified
when agreeing their developmental needs with
their supervisors
• keep their Personal Development Plan (PDP) and
Training Needs Analysis (TNA) up-to-date
• recognise that supervisors have many competing
demands on their time
the college
The Role of the Department
Each research student in the College is located At the initial stages, students will rely mainly on
in a department, the principle being that they their supervisors for subject expertise. Later, they
should be integrated into the academic life of the may find that other academic staff will be able
subject area and share the mutual benefits of to help in offering guidance on their work. This is
interaction with other students and teaching staff. particularly the case when students are working in a
Each department makes its own arrangements to relatively new or interdisciplinary area and will need
ensure that this integration can function effectively, advice from researchers outside their immediate
enabling research students to maintain contact with department. If a student discovers a member of
the MA programme through participation in ‘crits’, staff outside their School or department who can
seminars, short courses and other events. The Head advise them on their work, they should inform their
of Department has management responsibility for supervisors and, where relevant, a meeting will
the programme, and ensures that the appropriate be arranged.
procedures are followed.
Each department has a responsibility to provide at
least equivalent materials/resource funding to MPhil
and PhD students as to MA students. The exact
college-wide
amount will vary from department to department,
depending upon the level of material/resources
timetable
A full timetable of all College events and activities
required. Students are reminded that the College
is available on the RCA Intranet http://intranet.
can only reimburse expenses retrospectively upon
rca.ac.uk/. If you are arranging an event and
production of receipts.
want people to know, give the details to the ILS
Administrator on extension 4222.
A list of facilities considered to be College-wide,
open to all students, is included in Course
Handbooks issued in the autumn term. Handbooks
should also contain details of other more specialised
facilities, available to students by arrangement
with academic staff.
If a student wishes to use more specialist facilities
not found in the department in which he/she is
enrolled, they should, in the first instance, discuss
the issue with their supervisor. Their supervisor
is likely to refer them on to the academic staff in
the department where the facility they wish to use
is located. As a result of these discussions and
a consideration of the academic issues arising,
20 // research at the royal college of art // research rca handbook 08·09
the students’ union
The research degree student community has an
important role to play in College affairs. Within
each School, regular meetings are held at which
general business relating to the School and
its departments is discussed. The Senate has
agreed that research degree students should be
represented formally at these meetings, and there
is provision for one research degree student to
attend. If a student would like a particular matter
raised at a School meeting, they are advised to
contact their representative, who will ensure
that the issue is discussed at the next available
opportunity. Equally, if a student wishes to know
what issues are currently being considered by the
School meeting, the representative will keep them
informed. Research students are represented on
the Student Representative Council. The Students’
Union will also represent research student interests
at the Academic Standards Committee (ASC) and
at Research Committee (RC), and at a more general
level, and can be contacted on extension 4211.
The Students’ Union is on the second floor of
the Common Room building (above the Canteen
and Library).
Sabbatical Union officers:
President: Marcus Lanyon
extension: 4211 or 020 7590 4211
email: marcus.lanyon@rca.ac.uk
Vice-President: Tom Winstanley
extension: 4212 or 020 7590 4212
email: thomas.winstanley@rca.ac.uk
Events Manager: James Green
extension: 4213 or 020 7590 4213
email: james.green@rca.ac.uk
The Students’ Union is there to offer all students
help and guidance whilst at the Royal College of Art.
The Students’ Union represents the students at all
College meetings, and will deal with any personal,
course or College problems they may encounter.
The Students’ Union runs two bars:
• The ArtBar is open from 5.30pm to 10.50pm
Monday to Friday
• The RCAfé is open from 10:30am to 10:00pm,
serving drinks and food until 5:45pm
• The RCAfé also features an outdoor terrace.
Students’ Union Benefits: In the Students’ Union
students can obtain a National Union of Students’
card (for cheaper entry into theatres, galleries,
cinemas, restaurants, libraries) and apply for a
London Transport 30% discount Travelcard.
For more information: http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/
pages/studentsunion/index.php
research student
representatives
The research student community is represented
by two members each year who are responsible
for engaging with all the research students to
listen to their concerns and provide a mechanism
for disseminating the generic needs of research
students across the College through the Student
Representative Council, and student fora.
Election: The research students are asked to
nominate two students to act as representatives
for each academic year. It is advised that one
representative should be a first year research
student and one is a continuing research student.
The elections are conducted through an online
voting system.
Role: The elected representatives will meet with
the Research Office three times a term – one of
these meetings will also include the Students’
Union President – to discuss any research-related
issues that may have been brought to their attention
and will be invited to attend select Research
Committee meetings. They are also expected to
meet with the Students’ Union regularly and to
attend the monthly Student Representative Council.
In addition, the Research Student Representatives
should also attend the termly Research Methods
Course Reviews.
The representatives will ensure that the require-
ments of part-time and international students are
The College also has links with a number of
industrial sponsors, companies and other Higher
1
addressed. However, Research Student Representa- Education Institutions which may be of benefit, in
tives are not able to advise research students on terms of provision of both resources and expertise.
the supervisory relationship.
The College is a member of the UK Council for
Graduate Education, a national body concerned with
wider research
a range of issues related to postgraduate education
at taught Master and research degree levels.
community
The best source of support and information avail-
able to research students is the wider community of
researchers working at both a national and interna-
tional level. Students can benefit from their experi-
ence and should have the opportunity to discuss
their work with them. Supervisors will endeavour to
provide their students with information about indi-
viduals working in the same field.
As a student’s work progresses, they may find that
their work would benefit from the formal support of
a particular researcher outside the College. In this
case, the student should suggest to their supervisor
that this person is made an advisor to complement
the work of the supervisory team, or even that they
become a full supervisor.
Other support may be found in the strong links that
the College has with the various institutions in the
South Kensington area. The College runs both a
History of Design and a Conservation course with
the Victoria and Albert Museum, and this is just one
example of the mutual activities which the staff of
the College undertake with the staff of the Museum.
Some staff in the Museum have studied or are
studying at the College, or teach on courses run
by the College, and students and staff working in
the College have access to the resources in the
Museum. The Curating Contemporary Art Course
has links with the Tate.
Researchers in the College also have links with
staff in the Natural History Museum and the Science
Museum, as well as Imperial College London
(with which the College runs the Industrial Design
Engineering MA course).
chapter

2
research degrees 2

at the royal
college of art

Research at the College falls broadly into the

following three areas within the fields of
Applied Arts, Design, Communication Arts and
Fine Arts: developmental research (including
projects that explore new techniques and
processes, and develop new and modified
materials with a range of applications); applied
research (including design for manufacture,
inclusive and sustainable design and strategic
design concepts and prototypes that could
provide significant value to business and
industry) and historical, critical, cultural and
studio research (where this relates to, and/
or informs art, media, design, production
and practice).
24 // research degrees at the royal college of art // research rca handbook 08·09

The research degrees offered

by the Royal College of Art are:
aegrotat degrees research degrees: • write in appropriate style and to construct
coherent arguments and articulate ideas
• MPhil by Project
• MPhil by Thesis
A student may be considered for the award of an
Aegrotat degree if he or she is absent for medical
assessment stan- (oral, written and visual)
• defend and expand/elaborate research outcomes 2
• PhD by Project
• PhD by Thesis
reasons from any part of the Final Examination.
A student may be eligible for an Aegrotat degree
dards and criteria at seminars and viva voce examinations
• contextualise the research at national and
provided that: The RCA Regulations define the assessment international levels, and to keep up to date

registration periods
• all College fees have been paid criteria and standards of the MPhil and PhD degrees with recent advances within the particular
• an application for consideration for the award of as follows: research field.
an Aegrotat degree has been made to the Head of
The maximum registration periods for the degrees MPhil
Department accompanied by a medical certificate Professional skills relating to evidence of
of MPhil, for MPhil followed by subsequent transfer or other statement of the grounds on which the “The standard of the degree of Master of Philosophy the ability to:
to PhD, and for PhD are: application is made (MPhil (RCA)) is that expected of a good Honours • manage time and resources
• consideration by the Examination Board of the graduate who has investigated and evaluated or • understand the transferable nature of research
MPhil body of work which has been completed, together critically studied an approved topic or existing field skills to other environments;
Full-time: 2 academic years with records of the student’s performance and of knowledge over not less than the equivalent of • understand the process of academic, cultural or
Part-time: 4 academic years progress during the programme of study, in order two years of full-time study and has demonstrated commercial dissemination of research results.”
to determine whether the evidence demonstrated an ability to make a critical assessment of knowl-
MPhil/PhD that the student would clearly have reached a edge or understanding in the field of research and The Regulations also define:
Full-time: 4 academic years standard qualifying him/her for the award of the has presented and defended creative work and/or
Part-time: 6 academic years MPhil by thesis
appropriate degree under normal circumstances. a thesis by oral examination to the satisfaction of
the examiners. “The submission for the degree MPhil by Thesis
PhD If the Aegrotat degree is conferred upon a student, (MPhil (RCA)) shall consist of a written thesis in
Full-time: 3 academic years he/she will not be eligible thereafter to re-enter for In order to achieve this standard, the candidate English presenting the results of research in the
Part-time: 6 academic years examination for the degree. will have demonstrated: field of history, theory or practice of art, design or
communication, supported, where appropriate, by
Students should submit their work within the
Key attributes relating to evidence of: practical work related to the research. The required
registration period.
• ability to make a critical assessment of knowledge length of the thesis shall be between 30,000 and
or understanding in the field of research 40,000 words (inclusive of footnotes but excluding
Where a student is prevented because of ill-health
• ability to articulate research aims and objectives appendices and bibliography), illustrated as
or other circumstances from making progress with
and the field of research necessary and accompanied by a summary and
their programme of research, their registration
• contribution of the MPhil to the advancement of bibliography. Any thesis which is over 40,000
may be suspended by the Academic Board for
knowledge and understanding words in length will be referred.”
Concessions and Discipline (ABCD) but not for more
• standards of appropriate independent research
than one year at a time for full-time students or five
practice (including the ethics of experimental MPhil by project
terms for part-time students.
techniques used in the research and relevant
“The submission for the degree of MPhil by
Health and Safety issues)
Project (MPhil (RCA)) shall consist of a work or
• (where appropriate) a clear structural and
a group of works of art, design or communication,
intellectual link between textual and practical
presented in the form of original(s), prototype(s),
components of the project.
scale model(s), drawings, CD Rom, photographs,
film(s), or sound and vision recording(s), together
Research skills, techniques and management
with a piece of written work in English, defining
relating to evidence of the ability to:
the purpose of the work, the factors taken into
• identify and access appropriate bibliographical
account in its conception and development,
resources, archives and other sources of
and explaining the results. The work submitted
relevant information;
must demonstrate progression in knowledge
• analyse, contextualise, evaluate and develop
or understanding in the candidate’s discipline, or
theoretical concepts and/or methodologies or
in related disciplinary areas.
technical skills for the research field;
26 // research degrees at the royal college of art // research rca handbook 08·09
The length of the report and other written work shall
be 5,000 to 20,000 words (inclusive of footnotes
but excluding appendices and bibliography). The
textual and practical elements of the project should
be conceived as a whole, with both aspects reaching
the required standard of MPhil as outlined above.
Any report which is over 20,000 words in length will
be referred.”
PhD
“The standard of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
(PhD (RCA)) is that expected of a Master’s graduate
who has investigated and evaluated, or critically
studied, an approved topic over not less than the
equivalent of three years of full-time study resulting
in an independent and original contribution to
knowledge, and who has demonstrated an under-
standing of research methods, and/or techniques
and approaches in the research field or in related
disciplinary areas, and has presented and defended
creative work and/or a thesis, by oral examination,
to the satisfaction of the examiners applying
accepted contemporary international standards.
The resulting body of work must be worthy of peer-
reviewed publication or presentation.
In order to achieve this standard, the candidate
will have demonstrated:
Key attributes relating to evidence of:
• originality
• ability to articulate research aims and objectives
and the field of research
• contribution of the PhD to the advancement
of knowledge and understanding
• standards of appropriate independent research
practice (including the ethics of experimental
techniques used in the research and relevant
Health and Safety issues)
• (where appropriate) a clear structural and
intellectual link between textual and practical
components of the project.
Research skills, techniques and management
relating to evidence of the ability to:
• identify and access appropriate bibliographical
resources, archives and other sources of
relevant information
• analyse, contextualise, evaluate and develop
theoretical concepts and/or methodologies or
technical skills for the research field
• write in appropriate style and to construct
coherent arguments and articulate ideas
(oral, written and visual)
• defend and expand/elaborate research outcomes
at seminars and viva voce examinations
• contextualise the research at national and
international levels, and to keep up to date
with recent advances within the particular
research field.
Professional skills relating to evidence of
the ability to:
• manage time and resources;
• understand the transferable nature of research
skills to other environments;
• understand the process of academic, cultural or
commercial dissemination of research results.”
PhD by thesis
“The submission for the degree of PhD by Thesis in
a theoretical discipline (PhD (RCA)) shall comprise
a written thesis in English presenting an account
and the results of a programme of research in the
field of history, theory and practice of art, design or
communication, supported, where appropriate, by
practical work related to the research. The thesis
shall be between 60,000 and 80,000 words in length
(inclusive of footnotes but excluding appendices
and bibliography). It shall be illustrated as necessary
and accompanied by a summary and bibliography.
Any thesis which is over 80,000 words in length will
be referred.”
PhD by project
“The submission for the degree of PhD by Project
in a studio discipline (PhD (RCA)) shall comprise a
work or works of art, design or communication, or
a group of interrelated works of art, design or com-
munication, presented as appropriate in the form of
original(s), prototype(s), scale model(s), drawings,
CD Rom, photographs, film(s), or sound and vision
recording(s), together with a piece of written work in
English, defining the purpose of the work, the factors
taken into account in its conception and develop-
ment, and explaining the results.
The work submitted must demonstrate progression
in knowledge or understanding in the candidate’s
discipline, or in related disciplinary areas. The
written component shall be not less than 25,000
words and not more than 40,000 words in length
(inclusive of footnotes but excluding appendices and
bibliography). The textual and practical elements of
the project should be conceived as a whole, with
both aspects reaching the required standard of PhD
as outlined above. Any written component which is
over 40,000 words in length will be referred.”
definitions
of research
The following three definitions (from the joint
Research Councils, the AHRC and the RAE) outline
the skills that doctoral research students are
expected to develop during their research training
and the components of research. All students and
supervisors should be familiar with these mandatory
national requirements.
Joint statement of the Research Councils’
Skills Training Requirements for Research
Students, September 2004
Research Skills and Techniques –
to be able to demonstrate:
• the ability to recognise and validate problems
• original, independent and critical thinking, and
the ability to develop theoretical concepts
• a knowledge of recent advances within one’s
field and in related areas
• an understanding of relevant research
methodologies and techniques and their
appropriate application within one’s research field
• the ability to critically analyse and evaluate one’s
findings and those of others
• an ability to summarise, document, report and
reflect on progress.
Research Environment – to be able to:
• show a broad understanding of the context, at
the national and international level, in which
research takes place 2
• demonstrate awareness of issues relating to
the rights of other researchers, of research
subjects, and of others who may be affected by
the research, (e.g. confidentiality, ethical issues,
attribution, copyright, malpractice, ownership
of data and the requirements of the Data
Protection Act)
• demonstrate appreciation of standards of
good research practice in their institution and/
or discipline
• understand relevant Health and Safety issues
and demonstrate responsible working practices
• understand the processes for funding and
evaluation of research
• justify the principles and experimental techniques
used in one’s own research
• understand the process of academic or
commercial exploitation of research results.
Research Management – to be able to:
• apply effective project management through the
setting of research goals, intermediate milestones
and prioritisation of activities
• design and execute systems for the acquisition
and collation of information through the effective
use of appropriate resources and equipment
• identify and access appropriate bibliographical
resources, archives, and other sources of
relevant information
• use information technology appropriately
for database management, recording and
presenting information.
Personal Effectiveness – to be able to:
• demonstrate a willingness and ability to learn
and acquire knowledge
• be creative, innovative and original in one’s
approach to research
• demonstrate flexibility and open-mindedness
• demonstrate self-awareness and the ability
to identify own training needs
• demonstrate self-discipline, motivation,
and thoroughness
• recognise boundaries and draw upon/use
sources of support as appropriate
28 // research degrees at the royal college of art // research rca handbook 08·09
• show initiative, work independently and
be self-reliant.
Communication Skills – to be able to:
• write clearly and in a style appropriate to
purpose (e.g. progress reports, published
documents, thesis)
• construct coherent arguments and articulate
ideas clearly to a range of audiences, formally
and informally through a variety of techniques
• constructively defend research outcomes at
seminars and viva examination
• contribute to promoting the public under-
standing of one’s research field
• effectively support the learning of others
when involved in teaching, mentoring or
demonstrating activities.
Networking and Teamworking – to be able to:
• develop and maintain co-operative networks and
working relationships with supervisors, colleagues
and peers, within the institution and the wider
research community
• understand one’s behaviour and impact on others
when working in and contributing to the success
of formal and informal teams
• listen, give and receive feedback and respond
perceptively to others.
Career Management – to be able to:
• appreciate the need for and show commitment
to continued professional development
• take ownership for and manage one’s career
progression, set realistic and achievable
career goals, and identify and develop ways
to improve employability
• demonstrate an insight into the transferable
nature of research skills to other work
environments and the range of career
opportunities within and outside academia
• present one’s skills, personal attributes and
experiences through effective CVs, applications
and interviews.
Arts and Humanities Research Council
The Council’s definition of research focuses on
a definition of research processes, rather than
outcomes. This definition is built around three
key features:
• it must define a series of research questions
or problems that will be addressed in the course
of the research. It must also define its objectives
in terms of seeking to enhance knowledge
and understanding relating to the questions or
problems to be addressed
• it must specify a research context for the
questions or problems to be addressed. You must
specify why it is important that these particular
questions or problems should be addressed; what
other research is being or has been conducted
in this area; and what particular contribution this
project will make to the advancement of creativity,
insights, knowledge and understanding in this area
• it must specify the research methods for
addressing and answering the research questions
or problems. You must state how, in the course
of the research project, you will seek to answer
the questions, or advance available knowledge
and understanding of the problems. You should
also explain the rationale for your chosen research
methods and why you think they provide the
most appropriate means by which to answer the
research questions.
The AHRC definition of research provides a
distinction between research and practice per
se. Creative output can be produced, or practice
undertaken, as an integral part of a research
process as defined above. The Council would expect,
however, this practice to be accompanied by some
form of documentation of the research process, as
well as some form of textual analysis or explanation
to support its position and to demonstrate critical
reflection. Equally, creativity or practice may involve
no such process at all, in which case they would be
ineligible for funding from the Council.
The AHRC’s primary concern is to ensure that the * Scholarship for the RAE is defined as the creation,
research it funds will address clearly-articulated development and maintenance of the intellectual
research questions or problems, set in a clear infrastructure of subjects and disciplines, in forms
research context, and using appropriate research such as dictionaries, scholarly editions, catalogues 2
methods. The precise nature of the outputs of and contributions to major research databases.
the research may vary considerably, and may
include, for example, monographs, editions or
articles; electronic data, including sound or images;
performances, films or broadcasts; or exhibitions.
Research Assessment Exercise (RAE2008)
Definition of Research and eligible outputs
is the sixth in a series of exercises conducted
nationally to assess the quality of UK research and
to inform the selective distribution of public funds
for research by the four UK higher education funding
bodies. RAE2008 will provide quality profiles for
research across all disciplines. Submissions from
institutions are currently being assessed by experts
in some 70 units of assessment. The main body
of the assessment took place in 2007–08, with
outcomes to be published by the funding bodies in
December 2008.
The definition of research as set out in the Guidance
on Submissions is as follows:
“‘Research’ for the purpose of the RAE is to be
understood as original investigation undertaken
in order to gain knowledge and understanding. It
includes work of direct relevance to the needs of
commerce, industry, and to the public and voluntary
sectors; scholarship*; the invention and generation
of ideas, images, performances, artefacts including
design, where these lead to new or substantially
improved insights; and the use of existing knowledge
in experimental development to produce new or
substantially improved materials, devices, products
and processes, including design and construction.
It excludes routine testing and routine analysis of
materials, components and processes such as for
the maintenance of national standards, as distinct
from the development of new analytical techniques.“
(RAE 3/2005)
http://www.rae.ac.uk/pubs/2005/03/rae0305.pdf
chapter

research student 3

progression

3
“The audit team identified the following
areas as being good practice ... the content
of the Research Methods Course and its
leadership, management and currency,
which equips students with excellent skills
and research methodology.”
Royal College of Art Institutional Audit
The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher
Education, 2007
32 // research student progression // research rca handbook 08·09
A list of all research-related forms appears at
the back of this Handbook. All forms can be
downloaded from the RCA Intranet or collected
from the Research Office.
admissions
procedure
The RCA encourages the liaison of prospective
research students with departments during
the process of preparing their research degree
applications. The Research Office will advise on
general issues (such as admission requirements,
funding and so on), but applicants are referred
to relevant departments for preparation of their
application. In the case of multidisciplinary or
interdisciplinary research, applicants will always
be based in a host department, who will advise
them on their application.
Prospective research students should first contact
the departmental Research Coordinator [page 16].
If the proposed subject of research is eligible
and the prospective student fulfils RCA entrance
requirements, a formal application should be
submitted to the Registry before 19 January 2009.
The application will be logged by the Registry and
forwarded to the Research Office. The Research
Office will check all applications before sending
them to departments and will monitor their progress
through the application procedure to ensure a
prompt response.
Heads of Departments and Research Coordinators,
in consultation with colleagues, will decide which
applicants should be invited for interview.
admissions
examination board
Interviews take place in the departments.
Each department sets up its own Admissions Board,
which must be composed of:
1. Head of Department (Chair)
2. Two tutors from the department, one of
whom should have experience of supervising
research students
3. One research degree student chosen
by the Head of Department
Following the interviews, all application forms should
be returned to the Research Office accompanied,
if successful, by the appropriate Admission Criteria
Checklist for Admissions Board (MPhil or PhD)
forms. If the candidate is not successful, the
application must be returned to the Research Office
accompanied by the MPhil/PhD – Unsuccessful
Application form. These forms can be downloaded
from the Research Office pages on the RCA Intranet.
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk
late applications
The same admissions process will be followed
for late applications. It is recommended that all
research students start their programme of study
at the beginning of the autumn term. The last
Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline
meeting of the 2008–09 academic year, and
therefore the last opportunity for late applications
to be confirmed, is on 15 July 2009. Only in very
exceptional circumstances would late starts be
considered by the Academic Board for Concessions
and Discipline.
induction meetings pdp: personal
development plan
Departmental: After registration, students will
meet their nominated supervisor(s) for an induction
meeting. The main objective of this meeting,
which must take place during the first week of term,
is to familiarise students with the department in
which they will be working. The meeting should
cover the following:
• the location of the students’ desk and/or studio
space (if applicable)
• the location of the resources they might require
for their research (e.g. the photocopier, fax,
telephone and ICT, if applicable)
• introductions to relevant staff (academic,
administrative and technical) in the
Department/School
• Health and Safety procedure [page 136]
• specific departmental mechanisms for
research degree student assessment, including
presentations, training course attendance,
submission of mandatory components of the
RMC and Interim Examination requirements.
Research Methods Course: On Wednesday 01
October 2008, students are invited to attend an
induction meeting for the Research Methods Course.
At this meeting students will meet the Director of
Research and the Research Office staff and receive
the Research Methods Course timetable.
Since 2005 it has been a national requirement for
all research degree students studying in the UK
to complete a Personal Development Plan (PDP).
3
PDP is defined by the Higher Education Quality
Assurance Agency (QAA) as “a structured and
supported process undertaken by an individual
to reflect upon their own learning, performance
and/or achievement and to plan for their personal,
educational and career development” with the
objectives of developing reflective, independent,
self-directed learners. The emphasis is upon self-
evaluation and decision-making, and the ability
to review, plan and take responsibility for one’s
own work.
• The RCA Supervision Tutorial Log (PDP 1) provides
a template for the assessment of achievements
since the last supervision tutorial and for the
agreement of objectives relating to academic
progress and skills development to be completed
prior to the next review.
• It is mandatory that a PDP 1 form is completed
in full and signed by all participants within a week
after each supervisory session. The original form
is retained by the department and a copy of the
form is retained by the student.
• In order for the Academic Board for Concessions
and Discipline to ratify each student’s pass at
Interim Examination, and subsequent transfer
into their next academic year, the Research Office
must have received from the department signed
copies of at least six PDP Supervision Logs per
year for full-time students and three per year for
part-time students.
In addition to the Supervision Tutorial Log, students
are also required to complete an annual Training
Needs Analysis (TNA) at their first supervision of
each academic year. This information is recorded on
the Supervision Tutorial Log (PDP 2) and reviewed
annually at the Interim Examination.
34 // research student progression // research rca handbook 08·09
interim
examination
All research students are required to pass an Interim
Examination before passing into their next year
of study. The purpose of the Interim is to assess
progress, and this Examination may be seen as
a point of consolidation following the student’s
preceding year’s work. The criteria applied, broadly
speaking, are that the stage of progress and
standard of work presented are consistent with
reasonable expectations relative to the amount of
time expended. The role of the Examination Board is
to determine whether or not the student should be
permitted to move on to the next phase of study.
Preparation for Interim Examination
• As part of the departmental induction process,
students should discuss the precise departmental
requirement for work to be submitted for Interim
Examination with their supervisors. In general,
all students are required to submit an interim
report which constitutes a critical assessment
of his or her project to date (i.e. it should neither
be merely a diary of activities nor a catalogue
of complaints), and is accompanied by evidence
of the written component of the research in the
form of a draft chapter or chapters and a timetable
for completion. In most departments the Interim
Report is expected to be about 5,000 words;
in the department of Conservation and in the
School of Fine Art it is about 10,000 words.
For research ‘by project’ the student will be asked
to explain the relationship between the written
and studio components.
• Supervisory tutorial logs (PDP 1) and skills audits
(PDP 2) must be submitted to the Interim Board
in advance.
• For first-year students, the Research Methods
Course must have been completed; all students
are expected to demonstrate the development
and understanding of an appropriate research
methodology.
• Before the Interim Examination, students should
confirm with their supervisors and Head of
Department the date, location and timetable of
the examination.
During the Interim Examination
• The exact format for Interim Examination varies
across departments in order to accommodate
the diverse range of mediums under assessment.
However, each Interim Board will consider the
student progress to date and determine what
future action might be required. This future action
will be agreed between the student and the
Examination Board.
• The Interim Board will review the progress of
research training requirements and any specific
resource requirements.
• At their last Interim Examination before the Final
Examination, the student should agree with their
supervisor(s), a timetable for completion. This
should include the student’s projected submission
and the Final Examination dates. A copy of this
timetable should be sent to the Research Office.
After the Interim Examination
• The Examination Board must decide whether
the student should:
• proceed to the next year of their MPhil/PhD
• not be permitted to proceed to the next year
of their MPhil/PhD and should therefore have
their registration terminated
• be set a specific programme of work to be
submitted not later than 26th June 2009
(an alternative date can be set, with approval
by ABCD)
• The Examination Board must complete an Interim
Examination Form (PG 5) and submit this to the
Research Office for ratification by the Academic
Board for Concessions and Discipline.
Schedule for Interim Examination
The precise timing of the examination varies but
will usually be planned for the beginning of the
summer term. Interim Examination results should
be submitted to the Research Office on the Interim
Examination Form (PG 5), in time for confirmation
at the Academic Board for Concessions and
Discipline meeting on 3 June 2009. In exceptional
cases e.g., where there are difficulties in bringing
together part-time or travelling students and external
supervisors, the examination may be delayed. In
any case, the student will not be permitted to
register for the subsequent year of study until the
examination result has been confirmed by the
Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline.
The last meeting of the Academic Board for
Concessions and Discipline in the 2008–09
academic year is on 15 July 2009.
All Interim Examination reports must be sent to the
Research Office for ratification by the Academic
Board for Concessions and Discipline.
Composition of the Interim Examination Board
• Head of Department or Deputy Head of
Department of the examining department (Chair)
• One Tutor/Senior Tutor from the department
• The student’s supervisor(s)
Please note that where the Head of Department is,
or has been, the supervisor of the student being
examined, the Examination Board should be chaired
by another Head of Department or a Senior Tutor
(from another department) who is an experienced
research supervisor. It is the responsibility of the
Chair of the Examination Board to ensure that
correct procedure and standards are adhered to,
both during and after the examination, and that
the Research Office is informed of the result of
the examination.
Within one week of the examination, the primary
supervisor should provide the student with written
feedback from the examination.
transfer from
mphil to phd
Some students may have planned to transfer from
MPhil to PhD at the outset of their research degree
at the College, others may have found, during the
3
process of researching for their MPhil that the work
they have been doing leads to a PhD.
Preparation for Transfer Examination
• In order to be eligible to transfer to PhD, a
student should be able to demonstrate a high
level of competence in the development and
implementation of their research methodology;
• Present a case that the research has progressed
to a greater focus and depth and have formulated
an hypothesis for further research which would, in
the opinion of staff and external experts, be likely
to produce an original contribution to knowledge.
• Students must also have completed a substantial
body of written and (in the case of research by
project) studio work.
• Prior to the Transfer Examination, students are
required to complete Part One of the Transfer
of Status from MPhil to PhD Form (PG 6). It is
recommended that students use their research
proposal as the basis for completing the transfer
form, along with any other preparation requested
by the department.
During the Transfer Examination
• The Examination Board will consider whether
the student’s work has the potential to meet the
Assessment Standards and Criteria for RCA
PhD’s in the College Regulations and on page 26
of this Handbook.
• It may be that transferring to a PhD means that
the student will be researching in areas not origi-
nally planned and the transfer to PhD will provide
an opportunity to review the composition of the
supervisory team and consider the possibility of
adding supervisors with appropriate expertise.
• Part Two of the Transfer of Status from MPhil to
PhD Form (PG 6) is a checklist with criteria for
transfer that has been drawn up to help the
Examination Board to assess whether or not a
student is ready for the transfer.
36 // research student progression // research rca handbook 08·09

After the Transfer Examination

• The Examination Board must decide whether
the student should:
•transfer to PhD
•continue as MPhil (with an extension to
registration, if required)
•not proceed with his/her studies
• The fully completed Transfer of Status from MPhil
to PhD Form (PG 6) should be submitted to the
Research Office for submission to the Academic
Board for Concessions and Discipline
for ratification.
Schedule for Transfer Examination
Transfer from MPhil to PhD takes place between
March and May as part of the Interim Examination
changes in
student status
During the course of research, circumstances may
change (the student’s or their supervisor’s) and
these will have implications for the progress and
status of the student’s registration. As such, these
must be registered with the Research Office and
approved by the Academic Board for Concessions
and Discipline. Details of how to do this are available
from the Research Office. If the student wishes to
change mode of study from full-time to part-time
(or vice versa), they must submit a request
(supported by their Head of Department) to the
Research Office who will submit it to the Academic
The Head of Department will decide upon the merits
of the application and make a recommendation to
the Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline.
Leave of Absence is restricted to a maximum of
one year for a full-time student or five terms for a
part-time student. Please note: if leave of absence
is granted, the student will be required to be re-
examined before their re-registration at the College
(PG4b). If the reason for leave of absence was the
ill-health of the student, return is subject to the
agreement of the Occupational Health Department.
A student on leave of absence does not have the
status of a student at the College.
complaints
procedure
While the College makes every effort to ensure
that all students are provided with the support and
advice required, a student may feel that they are not
3
receiving the guidance they need, or that the College
has failed them in some way. It is anticipated that
such matters can be resolved through discussion
with the student’s supervisor or personal tutor.
If however, no resolution is reached, the student
should then contact their Head of Department. If
still not satisfied they should contact their Head of
School, who will make every effort to investigate
the complaint and either remedy the situation or

programme and
convened by the department. Therefore, Transfer Board for Concessions and Discipline. The same provide a full explanation of the case.
Examinations follow the same deadlines as for process is to be followed if the student is to

Interim Examinations (see above).
Composition of the Transfer Examination Board
• Head of Department or Deputy Head of
Department of the examining department (Chair)
• One Tutor/Senior Tutor from the department
• The student’s supervisor(s)
• An additional member of the academic staff
with experience of research supervision from
another department
Please note that where the Head of Department is,
or has been, the supervisor of the student being
examined, the Examination Board should be chaired
by another Head of Department or a Senior Tutor
(from another department) who is an experienced
research supervisor. In this instance the additional
member of academic staff is not required. It is
the responsibility of the Chair of the Examination
Board to ensure that correct procedure and
standards are adhered to, both during and after
the examination, and that the Research Office is
informed of the result of the examination.
change from ‘by project’ to ‘by thesis’ or vice versa.
However, it is important to note that it is not
possible to conduct a research degree by project
in the School of Humanities.
leave of absence
It is also possible to have leave of absence for
an extended period, or seek an extension to the
registration period. Although the College is keen
to encourage all research degree students to com-
plete their research degrees within the appropriate
time, the Academic Board of Concessions and
Discipline, in response to requests submitted via
the Research Office, will consider applications for
extension of registration which are based on the
following grounds:
• ill-health
• maternity leave
• child care responsibilities
• serious ill-health of a partner or a close relative
• the exceptional opportunity to undertake
an external project related to the student’s
academic work
• financial hardship
• specific extenuating circumstances as agreed
with the student’s department
title of work
If a student still does not feel satisfied that their
complaint has been dealt with appropriately,
they should contact the Director of Research and
While the Academic Board for Concessions
make a formal complaint, following the complaints
and Discipline approved each student’s initial procedure as set out in the College Regulations:
programme of work when they were given a place
to undertake a research degree at the College, it
“...formal complaints should be put in writing to
may be that this original plan will change. As the the Director of Research who will acknowledge
student’s work progresses, they may find that the the receipt of the complaint, advise any member
focus changes and the subject of study can shift of staff involved that a complaint has been lodged
quite substantially. Should this occur, students must and consider the complaint based on the evidence
inform the Research Office in order that any changes provided and discussions deemed appropriate. After
to their supervision can be considered. This is only that, the Director of Research will decide whether
necessary for major alterations to the student’s or not there is justification for the complaint or if
project, it is not required for changes of title as it is the complaint does not fall within the complaints
understood that, until the nomination of examiners procedure and requires to be dealt with in another
for the student’s Final Examination, the title of way. If there is justification for the complaint, the
the project is a working title. When supervisors Director of Research shall arrange for its redress.
nominate examiners, the title that appears on the Any decision will be communicated to the student
form should be final. Students are therefore advised in writing within 21 days.”
to give some thought to the title at this stage: it
should not be too long and it is preferable to avoid
phrases such as ‘an investigation into’ or ‘a study
of’. As a research degree, the work is by definition
‘an investigation’ or ‘a study’ and it is not necessary
to reiterate this fact in the title of the work. Students
are advised that the title of their thesis will be
used by other researchers in the field to source their
work and overly metaphorical titles are unhelpful.
38 // research student progression // research rca handbook 08·09
student appeal
procedure
A student may, on specified grounds, appeal against
a decision of an Interim or Final Examination Board.
According to the College Regulations, the only
grounds on which an appeal will be considered are:
• That his or her performance in the Examination
was affected by illness or other factors which he
or she was unable, or for valid reasons unwilling,
to divulge before the Examination Board reached
its decision. The student’s appeal must be
supported by medical certificates or other
documentary evidence.
• That there was an internal administrative error,
or that the Examination Board was not conducted
in accordance with the regulations, or that
some other material irregularity relevant to the
examination occurred.
Please note that disagreement with the academic
judgement of a Board in assessing the merits
of an individual piece of work or in reaching
any assessment decision relating to a student’s
performance does not constitute grounds for
an appeal.
Students considering whether to appeal
should consult the Assistant Registrar and the
Students’ Union for advice. A student will not be
disadvantaged because he or she made an appeal.
An appeal must be made in writing to the Registrar
within 28 days of the notification of the results.
The Registrar will review the grounds of appeal
and inform the appellant, within 28 days of his
decision. If the appeal is accepted as falling within
the specified grounds for appeal, a meeting of the
Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline
will be held within 28 days to hear the appeal. The
student will be given at least seven days notice
of the date of the hearing.
The Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline
will decide whether or not the appeal is well founded
and, as a result, will
• require the Examination Board to reconsider
a decision
• exceptionally annul a decision of the
Examination Board
3
• reject the appeal.
The decision will normally be made at the conclusion
of the hearing and will be communicated in writing
to the student within three days. The decision of
the Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline
is final.
plagiarism
Plagiarism is defined as stealing another person’s
words and ideas and using them as though they
were your own. It is plagiarism if you do not
acknowledge the cooperation of another person
who works with you or who gives you permission
to use their work. Failure to acknowledge the
use of another person’s ideas may be considered
to be a breach of the Academic Regulations.
Plagiarism which appears to be unintentional
and/or is readily admitted will be dealt with
within the department. Where a student denies
plagiarism or repeats the offence, the matter will
be referred to an Inquiry Panel whose members
will be the Head of Department in which the
alleged offence has occurred and the Registrar.
Following an investigation the Inquiry Panel
will make a recommendation to the Academic
Board for Concessions and Discipline.
chapter

4
final examination 4

The College’s interdisciplinary structure has

facilitated its rapidly expanding research
profile, as has its commitment to individual
research practice, enquiry and output of
international excellence. In the 2001 Research
Assessment Exercise (RAE) carried out by
the Higher Education Funding Council for
England, the Royal College of Art received a
‘5’ for Art and Design.
42 // final examination // research rca handbook 08·09
As they prepare for Final Examination each
student should agree a timetable for completion
with their supervisory team. In preparing the
schedule for the final year the student and
supervisory team should bear in mind the time
needed to check the body of work for accuracy,
consistency and coherence (paying particular
attention to the relationship between the
written and studio element, where relevant).
It is important that, in the time leading up
to the viva voce, students are aware both of
the criteria for the award of the degree for
which they are studying and of the College’s
general regulations for the conduct of research
degree examinations. When considering the
preparations for their examinations, therefore,
students may find it helpful to consult the
relevant section of the College’s Regulations.
The RCA strongly advises its students to follow
the guidelines for the presentation of the thesis
as outlined in the chapter ‘Dissemination of
research.’ The schedule for completion should
be agreed at the Interim Examination, prior
to registration in the final year and the Interim
Form should state clearly the proposed date
for submission.
The Twelve-Step Programme Step one Step three
nomination of submission
for Final Examination:
external examiners of thesis
Step one
The external examiners are nominated
Form PG8
Step two It is the responsibility of the Research Coordinator For MPhil candidates three soft-bound copies
Approval is granted for the submission of the thesis to complete the ‘Application for approval of the of the thesis must be submitted for examination
Form PG7 External Examiners: Research students’ (PG8) forms to the Research Office.
Step three and submit them to the Research Office at least
The thesis is submitted for examination three months prior to the intended examination For PhD candidates four soft-bound copies of 4
Step four date. The Research Office submits the form to the the thesis must be submitted for examination to
The external examiners are appointed Academic Standards Committee (ASC) and Senate the Research Office.
By letter for approval. Once approval has been granted, the
Step five Research Office will write to the nominees formally Soft-bound copies can be either ‘perfect bound’
The date of the viva voce is scheduled inviting them to act as external examiners. The or bound with a comb binder.
Step six Research Office will contact the departmental
Preparation for the viva voce Research Coordinator when each examiner has
Step seven confirmed (or refused) their appointment. Step four
The external examiners submit their pre-viva reports
Pre-viva report NB: Please note that the title of the thesis as it appointment of
external examiners
Step eight appears on form PG8 is the one which the student
The viva voce will be examined on.
Step nine On completion of the programme of research
The result the student’s submission will be examined by a
Form PG9/10 Step two
Final Examination Board. It is essential that the
Step ten
The follow-up notification of composition of the Final Examination Board accords
with the College Regulations. Final approval for the
Examiner’s Final Report
Step eleven submission of thesis Board must be signed off by Heads of Departments
and the Director of Research. It is the responsibility
Thesis deposit and binding No Final Examination is to be taken without the of the Chair of the Examination Board to ensure that
Step twelve student first presenting to the Examination Board a correct procedure and standards are adhered to,
Convocation form, signed by the Assistant Registrar, the Library both during and after the examination, and that the
Manager and the student’s Head of Department, Research Office is informed of the result of
indicating that all outstanding debts to the College the examination.
have been paid and that all learning resources and
items of equipment have been returned. Please note
that for PhD candidates, an examination fee of £200
is due. This ‘Notification of submission of thesis’
form (PG7) must be submitted to the Research
Office for approval by the Director of Research,
before the submission of the studio and/or written
work will be accepted for examination.
44 // final examination // research rca handbook 08·09
Composition of the Final Examination Board
MPhil
• the Chair, who should be a Head of Department
or an experienced Research Coordinator or
Supervisor, who is not from the student’s
department (and who has been approved by the
Director of Research)
• the External Examiner
• the student’s supervisor shall attend only as an
observer*. The Head of Department may attend in
place of the supervisor, if the student so wishes.
PhD by thesis
• the Chair, who should be a Head of Department
or an experienced Research Coordinator or
Supervisor, who is not from the student’s
department (and who has been approved by the
Director of Research).
• two External Examiners
• the student’s internal supervisor shall attend only
as an observer*
• the external supervisor may also attend as an
observer at the request of the student. The
Head of Department may attend in place of the
supervisor, if the student so wishes.
PhD by project
The composition of a Final Examination Board
for a submission for PhD by project is the same
for a submission for PhD by thesis, except that,
of the two External Examiners appointed by the
Senate, one shall be a recognised authority in
the studio discipline and the other shall be a
recognised authority in the theoretical implications
of the programme.
*The purpose of the supervisor’s presence as a
silent observer is to hear the discussion related
to the research degree and to ensure that the
student understands any requirements for additional
work. The supervisor does not participate in the
Final Examination.
Upon receipt of the prerequisite number of copies
of the thesis, the Research Office will send each
examiner the thesis, accompanied by the College’s
procedures for external examiners and guidelines
on the reporting process. This correspondence will
also indicate that the Research Coordinator will
contact the External Examiners directly to arrange
the date for the viva voce. Each examiner will also
be sent payment forms and instructions to return
these to the Research Office for recompense,
following the submission of the Final Examination
reports, after the viva voce.
Step five
date of the final
examination –
viva voce
Once the Research Coordinator has received
approval from the Research Office that the external
examiners have each been sent the thesis, they can
schedule the date of the viva voce. It is important
to remember that the external examiners must have
at least six weeks to read the thesis. In the case of
Final Examination of research degrees by project,
Research Coordinators must ensure that External
Examiners have sufficient opportunity to consider
the studio work in full in advance of their receiving
the written component. If the External Examiners
are visiting the student’s work off-site, the student
must not be present. One other member of the
Examination Board should be present, but they
must not engage in any discussion about the work
with the External Examiner. As the student cannot
be present, they must think about how they wish to
present their studio work. For example, the student
might wish to arrange their studio as a route map
for stages of their research, providing an intellectual
organisation of pieces to complement the thesis. In
this context he or she should include half-finished
canvases on tables, maquettes etc.
Step six
preparation for
viva voce
‘Mock’ vivas are offered to all RCA research stu-
dents, but are not mandatory. This departmental
‘mock’ examination should take place sometime
between the submission of the work for examina-
tion and the Final Examination itself. As in the Final
Examination itself, the ‘mock’ Examination Board
should comprise a Chair and two other examiners.
If possible the Chair would be the Head of Depart-
ment (or a Senior Tutor in the Department) and
the examiners should be the student’s supervisors.
During the ‘mock’ examination, the student will be
asked to give a presentation on his/her work fol-
lowed by questions from the ‘mock’ examiners.
However, it is important to note that the ‘mock’
viva has no status with respect to the outcome of
the Final Examination.
As part of the preparations for the MPhil/PhD
Final Examination, the Research Methods Course
on Wednesday 22 April 2009 offers a module on
presentation skills for viva examinations which
all research students are encouraged to attend.
Step seven
submission of
pre-viva report by
external examiners
Following receipt of the thesis, but prior to the
examination, the External Examiners should submit
written comments to the Director of Research who
will forward them to the Chair of the Examination
Board, outlining in brief their initial response to
the work and suggesting areas to be discussed
at the Examination. These notes do not constitute
a formal report and they are strictly confidential to
the Examination Board.
Step eight
final examination –
viva voce
The viva voce is the opportunity for the examiners
to question the student on their work and for
the student to defend their position. The student’s
knowledge and performance may be tested on
any aspect of the research that the Examiners 4
think relevant.
Prior to the viva voce:
• External Examiners view the studio work (for a
degree by project) and read the thesis at least
six weeks in advance
• External Examiners submit their pre-viva reports
to the Director of Research
On the day of the viva voce:
• External Examiners and Chair discuss their initial
reports and views of the work and establish some
issues for discussion at the viva.
The conduct of the viva voce is as follows:
• The student meets with the Examination Board
and the viva begins. The student may choose
to make a presentation of their work lasting
approximately 15 minutes.
• For ‘by project’ students the External Examiners
may wish to have another opportunity to see
the studio work during the viva (this should be
established in advance).
• All members of the Examination Board will
question the candidate and the viva should not
last longer than two hours.
• The Chair concludes the viva when all the issues
have been covered and the student (and any
supervisors) is asked to leave the room.
46 // final examination // research rca handbook 08·09

Following the viva voce:
• The Examination Board discusses the work and
agrees an outcome. This is recorded on the
relevant ‘Final Examination Result’ form (PG9 for
MPhil; PG10 for PhD). The Chair of the Examination
Board is responsible for submitting this form
to the Research Office for formal confirmation
by the next meeting of the Academic Board for
Concessions and Discipline.
• The student will be asked to return to the room,
and will be informed of the decision.
If the Examination Board feels that amendments
should be made, the following options are available:
• Minor Revisions* (e.g. revisions to the text,
typos, spelling, some points of clarification) to be
undertaken within one month.
• Major Revisions: (e.g. more substantial revisions
to the content of the text or structure of the work)
which may take longer (six months to a year) and
which may involve full resubmission of the work for
re-examination by the same Examination Board.
student has to sit another viva, the date of the viva
is arranged by the Research Coordinator, six weeks
after the examiners have received the revised thesis.
Both External Examiners are required to submit a
formal report recommending the final examination
result. Please note that a student cannot be referred
for Major Revisions a second time.
With both Minor and Major Revisions, the Chair will
extract for the candidate the section of the Final
Examination report that relates specifically to their
When you submit your final unbound thesis to the
Research Office, you must complete a British Library
access agreement form. Also required are personal
details, a brief abstract, keywords and subject
categories derived from the thesis. Representations
in the form of 5 x 5 cm slides, electronic media or
sound and vision recordings, as appropriate, of all
other work submitted must also be presented.
Step twelve 4

Step nine
outcome of the
final examination
Following the viva voce, the Examination Board
will make one of the following recommendations:
1. the student passes the Final Examination
2. the student passes the Final Examination,
subject to minor revisions being made to the
satisfaction of the Chair of the Examination Board.
Such amendments should be completed within
one month
Please note: any revisions must be approved by the
last Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline
on 24 June 2009, in order for the student to
Convocate on 3 July 2009.
Step ten
final examination
reports
After the viva, the External Examiners are required
to write a formal report on the performance of the
student and the conduct of the examination. This
report is strictly confidential and should be sent
directly to the Rector within one week of the date
work, in order to provide the student with full and
clear instructions as to the revisions necessary for
resubmission. The report itself is strictly confidential
and must not be circulated.
Each year, the Research Office prepares a review
of all External Examiners’ reports for discussion at
the Research Committee and Academic Standards
Committee in the interests of maintaining
comparative academic standards. Issues for cross-
College discussion are reported to the Senate.
Step eleven
thesis binding
convocation
Students are eligible to Convocate when the
Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline has
approved written confirmation from the Chair of
the Examination Board that all revisions have been
completed satisfactorily and an unbound copy of
their final thesis has been received by the Research
Office. The Research Office will inform the Assistant
Registrar of the names of those students who have
submitted and are therefore eligible to Convocate.
This must be done prior to the last meeting of the
Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline on
24 June 2009, if the student would like to graduate
on 03 July 2009.

3. the student is referred for resubmission

within twelve months and be re-examined as follows:
3.1 the project/thesis must be revised
substantially and if deemed satisfactory by the
Examination Board, the candidate will be exempt
from further oral examination
3.2 the project/thesis must be revised
substantially and the candidate must undergo a
further oral examination
4. the student fails the Final Examination and
is not permitted to be re-examined.
5. (For PhD Examinations only) the student
fails the Final Examination for PhD but is awarded
the degree of MPhil subject to the presentation
of the thesis amended to the satisfaction of the
Examination Board.
of the Examination and will be structured according
to the standards and assessment criteria set out
in the RCA Regulations and on pages 25 and 26 of
this Handbook.
In the case of Minor Revisions the Chair of the
Examination Board will write to the student outlining
the nature of the work to be completed and a final
resubmission date. The student should submit
their revised thesis to the Research Office who will
forward it to the Chair. The student must complete
these revisions to the satisfaction of the Chair of the
Examination Board, who will confirm this in writing
to the Director of Research for formal approval by
the Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline.
In the case of Major Revisions, the Chair of the
Examination Board will write to the student outlining
the nature of the work to be completed and a
resubmission date. The student resubmits their
thesis to the Research Office who sends it out
to the same External Examiners as before. If the
and deposit All forms listed above are available from the
Research Office and downloadable from the
It is mandatory that all graduating students should RCA website.
present an unbound but fully revised copy of the
written work, along with any illustrations, slides or
additional work, to the Research Office for lodging
in the College Library. The Research Office will
deposit the thesis with the ILS Secretary who will
organise binding.
Students can request additional bound copies for
their own requirement when they hand in their
unbound copy. However, payment for these extra
copies must be made in advance to the Research
Office who will send the payments to the ILS
Secretary. The cost for a standard thesis is £25
per copy. It is the student’s responsibility to collect
these extra copies after the Summer vacation.
5
chapter
“The combination of research training and
external course training has been extremely
effective in improving my initial research skills.”
Leon Williams, PhD student, Goldsmithing,
Silversmithing, Metalwork & Jewellery

research methods
course
5
50 // research methods course // research rca handbook 08·09
general course
information
The Research Methods Course (RMC), convened by
Professor Sandra Kemp and coordinated by Martina
Margetts, was developed specifically to prepare
MPhil and PhD students for research at a higher
level, and to address central concerns of research in
art and design. The course is taught by staff college-
wide and by visiting speakers and lecturers. Recently
cited as a national example of good practice by the
Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), the RMC aims to
enhance and develop the transferable and career
skills of postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers
at the RCA. As the RCA is a small, specialist
institution, the RMC has been structured through the
creation of innovative networks with neighbouring
HEI’s, business and industry, museums and galleries
and the London Hub of UKGRAD (now part of
Vitae). Discipline development and subject-specific
research skills training in practice-based research
has been extended through successful collaborative
training funding from the AHRC.
The RMC timetable for the 2008–09 academic year
comprises 24 weeks of core components running
on Wednesdays throughout the academic year,
covering transferable research skills, techniques
and management, information and communication
technology, and careers and professional skills. It is
structured around individual and group skills training
sessions, research presentations, writing workshops,
and a specialist panel debate. There is also an
RMC party at the end of each term, which provides
students with the ideal opportunity to get to know
their peers and network.
The course is organised into three terms:
• the autumn term is made up of core research
skills training sessions
• the spring term is made up of a series of
subject-specific seminars and research
student presentations
• the summer term is made up of a session on exam
preparation and a series of writing workshops.
mandatory
components
Course Attendance Commitments and
Other Requirements:
1. The core research skills training sessions in
the autumn term, the research student presentations
in the spring term, and the exam preparation session
in the summer term are mandatory, and all first year
MPhil/PhD students must attend at least 80% of
these sessions, whether enrolled as a full-time or
part-time student. A course register of attendance
is taken each week.
2. The subject-specific seminars in the spring
term, and the writing workshops in the summer
term, are optional. All first year MPhil/PhD students
must attend at least one of the sessions in both the
spring and the summer terms.
3. As part of the mandatory component of
the RMC, all first year MPhil/PhD students are
expected to:
• submit an Abstract to the Research Office by
5pm on Friday 28 November 2008
• submit a Research Proposal to the Research
Office by 5pm on Friday 13 March 2009
• make a Research Presentation within their dis-
ciplines during one of the three presentation days
on 14, 21 and 28 January 2009 in the spring term.
Research Abstracts • outline possible methodologies which might
be used in the research
All new research students are required to email
an abstract to the Research Office at research@rca.
• describe the resources which will be required
(e.g. computing software, materials, travel,
ac.uk by 5pm on Friday 28 November 2008. This will
conferences, access to archives etc.) with an
be published on the RCA website along with a brief
estimate of costs
CV and (if you choose) an image of your research.
• include a programme and timetable of work
The abstract should be between 300 and 500 words
for the whole period of study, including the
and should comprise a clearly articulated research
milestones to be reached.
question/issue/problem, with an outline of the
research context and methodologies in, and by
Each individual department determines the word
which, this will be addressed. Examples of current
length of the research proposal; students are
RCA abstracts are published on the RCA website
therefore advised to consult their supervisors
under each departmental research section. An
about the nature of the submission required in 5
archive of exemplar research student abstracts is
their department.
available on the VRC.
Research Presentation
For continuing research students, abstracts
should be updated annually for the Interim The third mandatory component of the Research
Examination to reflect the development of the Methods Course is the student research
student’s research, and should be submitted to the presentation. This presentation must take place
Research Office at research@rca.ac.uk by 5pm on during one of the three presentation days on 14,
Friday 01 May 2009. 21 and 28 January 2009, and is organised at a
departmental level in conjunction with the Research
Research Proposal Office. Each presentation is expected to be around
30 minutes long, followed by 20 minutes of
All new research students are also required to
discussion in which the following questions should
email a research proposal to the Research Office
be addressed:
at research@rca.ac.uk by 5pm on Friday 13 March
• what is the nature of the research?
2009. This should represent a development of the
• how does the research contribute to its
student’s proposed research project and schedule
field or area?
as outlined on their application form.
• has the content of the research project
been successfully communicated?
The Research Proposal should:
• has the presentation used the most
• provide a self-explanatory title
appropriate means?
• contextualise the research through references
to relevant literature and other references to
Please note: all first-year students, whether full-time
existing studio and project work in the field of
or part-time, must fulfil all the commitments and
study and provide a bibliography as an appendix
requirements set out above in order to pass their
to the proposal. It is essential that each student
Interim Examination and transfer to the second year.
demonstrates that they have determined either
that the work being undertaken has not been
done before or that prior work has omissions,
deficiencies etc.
• value and timeliness of work: briefly explain the
research contribution to the body of knowledge:
what makes it worth doing? Why at the RCA?
Why now?
• define the question/s to be answered and/or
the goal/s of the research
52 // research methods course // research rca handbook 08·09
core course
components
Transferable research skills, techniques
and managment:
Key national and international speakers are
invited to present seminars in subject-specific
research methodologies throughout the year,
with particular emphasis on the development of
practice-based research and the need to understand
the transferable nature of research skills to other
environments and the range of career opportunities
within and outside academia. These speakers are
selected to address the individual needs of each
year’s cohort of research students at the College.
The small size of the College, almost uniquely
enables us to deliver a needs-based approach to
the provision of research training with an emphasis
on student-led learning.
See the fold-out RMC 2008–09 Programme or
visit the VRC for a full course outline.
Information and communication technology:
The RMC has created networks through its business
and industry affiliations and through the London
Development Agency, SRIF and Research Council
funding to provide the research students with
hands-on access to the latest Information and
Communication Technology (ICT). The College’s
Director of Research is Associate Director of
the AHRC ICT Methods Network developing
transferable research methodologies using state of
the art technology. Students may select the most
appropriate placement within the cultural sector
(Victoria & Albert Museum; National Portrait Gallery;
Science Museum, London) or in partnership with
industry. Ensuring that RCA students keep pace with
the exponential speed of technological development
is a key component of the Research Methods
Course. Specialist library resources at the College
(including a world-class colour library) are enhanced
by full access to neighbouring specialist libraries
at the V&A and Imperial College London, and
through participation in the M25 Consortium of
Academic Libraries http://www.m25lib.ac.uk.
Careers and professional skills:
The diverse needs of our research students are
addressed through:
• FuelRCA which provides both current students and
graduates (through AlumniRCA) with individually
tailored expert professional advice, guidance and
support, with open access to the Careers Service
and Library at Imperial College
• InnovationRCA which offers modules on the
commercial exploitation of research results,
with access to our Alumni networks and subject
course-affiliated programmes with business and
industry; an annual lecture is provided by the UK
Patents Office.
• Online QCA certified CIEH Foundation Certification
in Health & Safety in the workplace, set up to
promote good research practice and aligned with
Research Ethics training.
• Imperial College Graduate School three-day
residential career skills course.
optional
components
There are several additional optional components
running throughout the RMC calendar which
research students will have the opportunity to
sign up to early in the autumn term. These include
a number of bespoke one-day courses providing
training on the use of online electronic resources,
databases and blogs, and an introduction to the
extensive range of research resources and specialist
assistance available to research students though
the RCA Library. Research students will also have
the opportunity to sign up for the Drawing Research
Territory, and all Fine Art research students are
invited to attend the Fine Art Research Programme,
which meets every Thursday afternoon.
The drawing research territory
The Drawing Studio is in the process of developing a
Research Group. Open to students and staff, its aim
is to bring researchers from across departments to
present and explore individual practice. A number
of projects are currently planned with an aim
to investigate specific strands of research, with
emphasis on modes of production and dissemination
and on the construction of temporary autonomous
zones. A particular area and the first of the strands
we are currently exploring is the space of fiction:
the relationship between visual production and
literature, the creation of narrative structures. This
investigation runs concurrently with the Fine Art
research into fiction. For further information contact
Margarita Gluzberg (margarita.gluzberg@rca.ac.uk)
or Anne Howeson (anne.howeson@rca.ac.uk).
Research skills development course 2008–09
This is a three day/three night residential course.
The primary purpose of the course is to enhance
both the personal and research effectiveness of
participants. The focus is very much on experiential
learning achieved by a series of challenging group
exercises. It is also a chance to get away from your
normal working environment and meet people from
other disciplines.
Participants will join small teams of eight or fewer
people for the duration of the course. The exercises
will be carried out either indoors or outdoors
(weather permitting). The course represents an
excellent opportunity for development of awareness
and skills directly applicable to life as a PhD student.
Topics include planning, project management,
creativity in research, communication skills, group
dynamics, networking, developing self-awareness
and stress management. As much as possible,
links are made to the research environment and
participants are encouraged to apply their new
insights to their work. 5
Attendance on the course is strongly recommended
and is free for RCA students. Travel and accommo-
dation expenses for the course will be met by the
RCA Research Office, upon submission of receipts.
All meals are also provided free of charge at the
venue. The venue for courses in 2008–09 will be
Easthampstead Park. This is a Victorian country
mansion located within 60 acres of beautiful park-
land, but conveniently located not far from Bracknell
or Woking station.
Dates of the 2008–09 courses:
• 25–28 November 2008
• 10–13 February 2009
• 21–24 April 2009
Ideal for: First year MPhil/PhD students, although
continuing students are welcome.
Special instructions: Although it is possible to
attend this course on a non-residential basis,
participants are strongly encouraged to attend on
a residential basis as there will be important
activities as well as social events in the evenings.
If interested in attending one of these courses,
please request an application form from the
Research Office by email at research@rca.ac.uk,
or by phone on 020 7590 4135.
54 // research methods course // research rca handbook 08·09
virtual research
community (vrc)
The RCA Research Office is pioneering online
initiatives that provide platforms for researchers
to access course information, supervision
support, personal research development tools
and collaboration opportunities throughout
their research degree. Our VRC is an online
web-based resource for the Research Methods
Course and continuing research and collaboration.
It can be accessed at any time from a computer
connected to the Internet. An introduction to
the VRC and blogging is given as part of the
Research Methods Course.
Each researcher is provided with a unique login
and password and personal space for their
research profile, abstract, gallery of images and
supervisory contact. Research students and their
supervisors are able to login and upload text
and images and edit the information in their per-
sonal space. The VRC contains the RMC 2008–09
timetable and updates on additional training
sessions, student and supervisor news, upcoming
events, and opportunities for local and interna-
tional collaboration in practice and theory based
research in art and design. The Research Office is
establishing research connections with research
community partners at Monash University and the
College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales
in Australia and universities in the USA and Asia.
Personal websites and blogs can be accessed
by links directly from and to the VRC supporting
additional online research opportunities. Please note
that the Royal College of Art takes no responsibility
whatsoever for the content of opinions stated in
personal websites and blogs.
Ongoing tutorial and technical support is provided
through the Research Office. For further details
please contact the RMC VRC coordinator, Richard
Doust at richard.doust@rca.ac.uk or go to:
http://vrc.rca.ac.uk.
vitae
Vitae is a new initiative launched in June 2008 to
champion the professional and career development
of researchers. Funded by Research Councils
UK (RCUK) and managed by CRAC: The Career
Development Organisation, Vitae builds on previous
work by the UK GRAD Programme and UKHERD
to build capacity in the HE sector to support
researchers. Further details are available at:
http://www.vitae.ac.uk/
uk grad programme
On behalf of research students and staff, the
Director of Research is a member of the London
Hub of the UKGRAD Programme. This programme
aims for all postgraduate students to be fully
equipped and encouraged to complete their MPhil or
PhD successfully, and then to make a successful
transition from their studies to their future careers.
The aim of the London Hub of the UK GRAD
Programme is to build local networks to support
universities and supervisors in the delivery of
needs-based quality skills training for young
researchers, acting as a centre for the dissemination
of good practice, advice, resources and materials.
The London Hub co-ordinates activities in and
around London by:
• supporting PhD students, supervisors and
institutions in the London area
• promoting, encouraging and sharing good
practice in postgraduate skills training
• raising the profile of postgraduate skills
training within institutions and with relevant
regional bodies
• supporting the activities of the UK GRAD Pro-
gramme’s Centre of Excellence and encouraging
uptake of GRAD schools or equivalent courses.
The UK GRAD Programme exists to support the
UK academic sector to provide excellent personal
and professional skills development as an integral
part of research degrees. UK GRAD works with
policy makers, Institutions, graduate schools,
trainers, careers advisors and more, as well as with
researchers themselves.
The UK GRAD website has a wealth of information
collected specifically for doctoral researchers, from
background information to practical tips. Go to
http://www.grad.ac.uk and click on ‘Researchers’
to see what’s on offer. You might want to start with:
• http://www.grad.ac.uk/jfp – extensive section
containing advice and articles about managing
your research, personal development and
managing your career
•http://www.grad.ac.uk/links – lists of useful
resources from books to websites and from
research policy information to job sites and
support networks
• http://www.grad.ac.uk/wdpd – Analysis of first
destinations for UK PhDs
• Want to meet peers from around the UK? Need
to develop further skills? Want to find out about
more about particular careers? We offer courses
and events designed for doctoral candidates.
Visit http://www.grad.ac.uk/courses or
http://www.grad.ac.uk/cif
• Like to be kept in touch? Sign up at http://www.
grad.ac.uk/pgrtips for the monthly tips bulletin
• Got a specific question? Use our online fora
(http://www.grad.ac.uk/bulletinboard) or ask an
expert (http://www.grad.ac.uk/asktheexperts)
5
National GRADschools are open to all doctoral
students, irrespective of funding. AHRC and EPSRC
funded students receive a free place on a national
GRADschool and are actively encouraged to attend.
GRADschools currently scheduled
for 2008–09 include:
• 28 October–1 November 2008
Bournemouth 2 National GRADschool –
The Carrington House Hotel, Bournemouth
• 18–22 November 2008
Windermere 3 National GRADschool –
Brathay Hall
For further information about GRADschools or
other UKGRAD activities go to: http://www.grad.
ac.uk/ or contact the Research Office by email at
research@rca.ac.uk, or by phone on 020 7590 4135.
UK GRAD also runs a ‘Careers in Focus’ programme,
which consists of one-day events that focus
on careers for postgraduates, usually followed
by an online chat. These events are free to all
postgraduate researchers:
• Careers in Focus: Academia –
6th October 2008, Manchester
chapter
The College has a large international and part-
time student body and seeks to accommodate
and develop individual needs and skills.
Royal College of Art research students are part
of a cohesive staff and student body – sharing
studios and workshops with MA students
and participating in work-in progress seminars
and other departmental activities with both
staff and students.

6
student support 6

services
58 // student support services // research rca handbook 08·09

ils: information and RCA Network Account

learning services
The Information and Learning Services Department
is responsible for providing the College’s central
Computing, Audio Visual, Library, Learning Support
and Alumni services. Together they provide a range
of facilities and services to support students while
Personal accounts are issued at registration. They
provide students with secure access to email, VLE,
file storage and various extranet resources. Details
can be obtained at any time from the Computing
Services Office and on the College Intranet at:
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/computing
• Video/DVD Collection – including recordings
from television and of College-wide lectures and
a collection of feature films on video and DVD.
Viewing facilities are available in the Library.
• Dissertations and theses – Critical and Historical
Studies MA distinction dissertations, History
of Design MA dissertations and all MPhil and
PhD theses.
• Interlibrary loan service – for items not available
• Rare books – the Library’s collection of rare
books includes botanical and antiquarian works
on all aspects of art and design.
• Artists’ books – the Library has a collection
of several hundred artists’ books, from classics
of the form to work produced by current and
recent graduates.
User Education

at the College and when they leave. An introduction
to these services is held at 11am on Wednesday
01 October 2008, as part of the induction schedule.
A more detailed introduction to various services
can be arranged at any point while at the College.
As part of the Research Methods Course, the
Virtual Research Community (VRC) contains detailed
information on bibliographies and referencing tools
for research. http://vrc.rca.ac.uk
computing services
Location: Ground Floor, Stevens Building
Computing Services provide all central network IT
services for staff and students across the College,
including: Internet access, e-Learning services,
wireless connectivity, printer maintenance, IT
procurement, IT security, file backup, email, soft-
ware licenses, bulk file transfer, and Website and
database hosting services.
Computing Services manage desktop support for
all staff and researchers, and for students in Applied
Arts and Humanities, with technical support for
open access computer clusters.
Computing Services also provide online tutorials and
portals for the full range of graphics applications,
allowing students to explore and develop their IT
skills from inside and outside the College in order to
meet postgraduate and professional requirements.
library
in the Library. Please ask at the Issue Desk. As part of its user education programme the
• Computer Cluster – 6 workstations, providing Library runs a series of Information Skills workshops
access to the Internet, file services, online during the academic year. These introduce new
Location: First Floor, Common Room Block
resources, productivity software, online training, students to the RCA Library collections, services
print and scanning. and online resources as well as providing advice
Opening hours:
• RCADE – The Library has information and about accessing other libraries in London. For more
Term time: Monday to Friday 9.00am to 9.00pm
resources on the College’s online e-Learning information see the Library Intranet pages or contact
Saturdays: 12.00am to 5.00pm
environment. For more information login at: Cathy Johns (Assistant Librarian) on extension 4111.
Vacation periods: Monday to Friday 6
http://rcade.rca.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=224
10:00am to 5.00pm
• Exhibition area – themed exhibition and displays Access to Other Libraries
Enquiries/Issues desk: extension 4224
of rare, special and interesting items taken from In close proximity to the College are a number
both the main library and Special Collections. of other libraries you may wish to make use of.
On the first and mezzanine floors the Library has
The following are some of the options open to you:
collections of approximately 70,000 books on
Image Resources
the practical, theoretical and historical aspects
• Slide Collection – over 120,000 slides on all Join and borrow:
of art and design. Material on subject areas such
aspects of art and design, together with examples • Imperial College Library
as philosophy, sociology, literature and cinema
of contextual material such as social history, • Kensington and Chelsea Public Library
is also held.
popular culture and technology. The collection also
includes a visual record of degree show work by Reference access:
Resources
College students from the 1950s onwards. • British Film Institute
• Books – The Library has collections of
• Since 2003 The Show has been comprehensively • Royal Geographical Society
approximately 70,000 books on the practical,
photographed in digital format and the images are • National Art Library (Victoria and Albert Museum)
theoretical and historical aspects of art and
available to view on the College intranet’s Show
design. Material on subject areas such as
Gallery: http://www.rca.ac.uk/showgallery SCONUL Access:
philosophy, sociology, literature and cinema is
• 35mm photographic and digital imaging services • All students and staff can obtain a SCONUL
also held.
are available in the Slide Collection and staff can Access card, which enables students and staff to
• Periodicals – 120 current periodicals and four
also advise on digitisation and copyright issues. use and borrow materials from other participating
years of back copies are held in the Periodicals
academic libraries throughout the UK (ask for
Room (previous years are available on request
Special Collections details at the Library desk).
from storage).
• Colour Reference Library – one of the world’s
• Online access to bibliographic databases
largest collections of books, swatches and other For more information contact Darlene Maxwell, the
(including journals indexes) is available through
resources entirely devoted to the subject of Library Manager, on extension 4225, or see the
the Athens website, http://www.athens.ac.uk.
colour, covering all aspects from colour theorists Library Intranet pages: http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/
Students can request their own Athens account,
to colour healing. pages/support/welcome_to_the_Library_1541.html
which enables access to these resources outside
• College Archive – a collection of documentary
of the College.
information produced by, or about, the College, Audio Visual Services
• Photocopying facilities – colour and black and
including annual reports, prospectuses, RCA Audio Visual Services provides support for the
white copiers.
exhibition and degree show catalogues, student teaching and lecture programme within the two
• Microfilm reader.
magazines, and a complete set of the publications lecture theatres. It also provides a range of support
of the College’s Lion and Unicorn Press. for activities taking place in the Main Galleries
60 // student support services // research rca handbook 08·09
and centrally managed spaces of the College. The
Audio Visual Services team can provide you with
help and advice in the use of central facilities and
equipment, as well as in presentation techniques.
A stock of equipment for loan is available for use
within Schools and for student shows.
For more information email av@rca.ac.uk or contact
Simon Taylor on extension 4218, or see the AVS
Intranet pages: http://intranet/pages/support/
audiovisual_services_826.html
learning support
English for Academic Purposes
The English for Academic Purposes Coordinator,
Harriet Edwards, together with tutor Simon King, run
a programme of workshops and tutorials throughout
the year. These are mainly for international students
but also for research students and those interested
in writing development. For more information see
the EAP section on RCADE, look on the Intranet at:
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/support/english_
for_academic_ purposes_820.html or contact
Harriet Edwards/Simon King on extension 4543.
Evening courses at Imperial College
At the start of each year Imperial College offers a
range of evening courses open to RCA students.
These include languages, music technology, creative
writing and film appreciation. The language classes
are pitched at various levels of competence. Details
of classes available will be distributed during the
first week of term. The College makes a substantial
contribution towards the course fees but there
is a charge to students, to be paid at the time of
enrolment. RCA students also have access to the
Imperial College language laboratory, without formal
tuition. Access should be arranged through Imperial
College. tel: 020 7594 8756.
Student Support Office
Location: Second Floor, Common Room Block,
between the RCAfé and Students’ Union
Staff: Student Support Officer and Administrator,
extension: 4140
email: student-support@rca.ac.uk
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 10.00am–5.00pm
Accommodation
As well as giving extensive information and
guidance on finding accommodation in London
including online accommodation offered and
wanted notice-boards, the Student Support Office
offers help in dealing with difficult landlords or
agencies and contractual problems, and can act
as a mediator between tenants or tenants and
landlords on request.
Disabilities
The Student Support Office acts as a central liaison
point for all students with disabilities. Should
you have difficulties or develop difficulties whilst
here please contact the office and staff will try to
ensure that the right services are put in place and
maintained for you.
Dyslexia
The College recognises that many students in Art
and Design are dyslexic and/or dyspraxic. The
Dyslexia Coordinator organises programmes of both
individually tailored and group workshops. These
include screening and assessments, study skills
workshops and tutorials. For more information login
to RCADE at: http://rcade.rca.ac.uk/course/view.
php?id=216 see the Dyslexia Intranet pages at:
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/support/dyslexia_
homepage_1229.html or contact Qona Rankin,
Dyslexia Coordinator, on extension 4544 or the
Student Support Officer on extension 4140.
Funding for Disabilities and Dyslexia/Dyspraxia
Postgraduate students from the UK (and possibly
from the EU depending on previous residency in the
UK) are eligible to apply for the Government-funded
Disabled Student Allowance (DSA). Application
forms are available from the Student Support Office
and staff can help you to fill them out. They can
also advise on eligibility in the case of EU students.
International students may apply to the RCA’s
own ‘International Student Disability Fund’ via the
Student Support Officer. All students with temporary
or permanent disabilities who cannot access funding
for various reasons may apply for the general
‘Disability Fund’ which is also administered by the
Student Support Officer.
Immigration, Visas and International Students
If you need to extend your student visa or have any
other queries about immigration, you should contact
the Student Support Office. They can assist with
visa extension applications and send them to the
Home Office via the Student Batch scheme, and also
advise on post study immigration options. They can
also help with other aspects of life in the UK as an
international student, such as accessing healthcare.
Money Matters
The Student Support Office offers debt and money
management advice, welfare benefit advice,
information on different sources of funding and help
with other money issues.
Other Issues
Information about childcare, benefits available
for UK students, referral for counselling and other
general information is available on request.
equal opportunities
The College confirms its commitment to a
comprehensive policy of equal opportunities in
employment and for students in which individuals
are selected and treated on the basis of their
relevant merits and abilities and are given equal
opportunities within the College. The aim of the
policy is to ensure that no employee or prospective
employee, student or prospective student receives
less favourable treatment on the grounds of race,
colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins, gender,
marital or parental status, sexual orientation,
disability, religion, political belief, socio-economic
background, age (subject to normal retirement
conventions) or trades union membership.
Please let us know, either through your Student Rep-
resentative, in the Student Feedback Questionnaire
or your Departmental meetings, if you feel that we
are not following these commitments or if you wish
to make any other comments about these issues.
The Race Equality Policy, and the College’s Disability
Equality Scheme, can be found on the College
Intranet under Personnel. In addition, a summary
can be found in the College Regulations.
alumni services
When you graduate from the College you will be
able to maintain a relationship with the College by
joining AlumniRCA (membership is free).
As a member of AlumniRCA you will have access
to a range of services:
• AlumniRCA email account
• RCA Library without appointment (reference only)
– now includes WiFi access
• File Transfer Service (AlumniFTS)
• FuelRCA professional development events and
web advice
• RapidformRCA (rapid prototyping service)
at a 40% discounted rate
• InnovationRCA’s Selected Works Programme
6
• Imperial College Evening classes at special rates
• AlumniRCA Email Directory (Personal websites
and biographical information also listed)
• AlumniRCA Personal Profile (for updating your
contact details)
• AlumniRCA Mailing List to post and receive
news of exhibitions, job opportunities and more
• Termly e-newsletter ‘AlumniRCA News’ and
annual magazine
• RCA Senior Common Room membership
(at a discounted rate)
• School-specific alumni activities updates
• AlumniRCA Events
• AlumniRCA Classes and Training
• RCA exhibitions, events and lectures Calendar
Additional services will be added while you
are at the College. These will be listed at:
http://www.rca.ac.uk/alumni and on the intranet
at http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/alumnirca
For more information please contact:
alumni@rca.ac.uk
7
chapter

rca research
resources
“Research students are able to participate in
lectures, seminars and reading groups in any
department, and to generate their own debating
forums...Research can be and often is an
isolating experience, (but) these interactions
and the discussions and ideas they have
provoked have been immensely stimulating
and...I am aware of just how valuable my time
at the College is.”
7

Jocelyn Cammack, PhD student,

Communication, Art and Design
64 // rca research resources // research rca handbook 08·09
printing services
Location: Second Floor, Stevens Building,
Communication Art and Design Department
Digital Colour Printing
Colour output facilities available to Communication
Art and Design (CA&D) students are situated in
the department’s Computer cluster. To enquire
about use and availability of these facilities to other
parts of the College, please call Barry McGowan
(Senior Technical Instructor) on extension 4309, or
the Department Administrator on extension 4304.
Digital Media Studio
Location: Room 205, Second Floor, Stevens Building,
Communication Art and Design Department
Intranet website: http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/
departments/digital_media_studio_2111.html
Within the CA&D Department there is a purpose
built Digital Media Studio. This studio consists
of dual-screen editing workstations using Final
Cut Pro/Adobe Premier Pro/AfterEffects from
DV (DVCAM and MiniDV) and DVD production
facilities. Also available: video transfer to DV PAL
from analogue formats. A range of time-based
software is supported. The DMS is available to all
RCA students and is open from Monday to Friday
during College opening hours. Technical support is
available Monday to Wednesday 10am to 5.30pm
and Thursday and Friday in conjunction with CA&D
(please check with the Department Administrator
on extension 4304).
Scanning facilities
The studio also contains a high quality A3 Microtek
Scanmaker 9800XL flat-bed scanner with built-in
transparency hood as well as a Nikon 35mm slide/
strip scanner, both of which are available to all RCA
students (except when required for use during a
training course).
training studio
Location: Room 207, Second Floor, Stevens Building,
Communication Art and Design Department
Intranet website: http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/
departments/dms_training_room_2554.html
Training Room with seven Macintosh computers
hosting a wide range of software applications.
Short courses can be booked, subject to availability,
by telephone extension 4232 (Monday to Friday
9am–5pm) or in person via Michelle Richards,
Computing Services Office, Ground floor, Stevens
Building. A short-course timetable is displayed
outside the Computing Services Office during the
autumn, spring and summer terms. Some purpose
designed workshops and specialised tutorial
support are offered to all students during the
summer term period. The Training Room is also
available for booking by departments for course-
specific software training.
Laser Colour Photocopier facility
Location: First Floor lift area, Stevens Building,
Communication Art and Design Department
As well as standard A4 and A3 size copies there
is also a facility for printing from 35mm slides; all
instructions are posted on the wall. It should be
noted that this machine is maintained by the leasing
company, and not the department, and therefore no
technical assistance is available for its use.
Charges
These machines are card operated only; photocopy
charge-cards can be purchased from the Library
for use with this photocopier, these cards can also
be used with the Library’s colour photocopier.
Letterpress Workshop photographic
Location: First Floor, Stevens Building,
Communication Art and Design Department services
Location: Basement, Fourth and Fifth Floors,
Intranet website: http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/
Stevens Building , Photography Department
departments/letterpress_workshop_3409.html
Short Courses
Letterpress workshops are run during the first term
A range of photography short courses is offered
of each academic year in order to introduce students
each term to individual departments. Topics
to the methods and technology used in letterpress
include photographing 2D and 3D artwork, lighting
printing. The courses are open to students from any
skills and printing techniques. There is a fee of
department within the College and are run by CA&D.
£15 per short course to help cover the cost of
The workshop is primarily an area for students
materials and processing. Details are available
to explore techniques relevant to their course
from Departmental Administrators soon after the
work; it is not a production facility. The letterpress
beginning of each term. Contact tutor Mary Robert,
facility can only be used by those students who
via the Department Administrator on extension
have completed a workshop induction course. For
4414, if you have further enquiries.
workshop availability and to book a place, please
call Ian Gabb (Letterpress Technician) on 4308, or
Use of Facilities
the Department Administrator on extension 4304. 7
Although priority will be given to Photography
students, all students have the opportunity to use
Printmaking some photographic darkroom and studio facilities
with appropriate assistance from the Photography
Location: Sixth Floor, Darwin Building
technicians. Access is normally restricted to one
day per week.
The Printmaking Department offers advice and
help to carry out work in print processes including:
Access to the following facilities is available:
lithography (four-colour separation, duo tone, stone
black and white film processing; colour negative
and plate printing) etching; photo etching; relief
and transparency processing; black and white
printing; screen printing and monoprinting. There
printing; duplicate slides; and DVD- and CD-
is a well-equipped digital inkjet printing studio.
writing. For further information including details of
charges, contact George Duck, Senior Technician
Students can make use of the Printmaking
(extension 4419) or the Department Administrator
facilities at any time during the College year, by
(extension 4414).
arrangement with the relevant Technical Instructors.
Materials costs will be charged to the student or
to their department.
In addition, the Printmaking Department runs
a series of evening introductory workshops in
lithography, intaglio and screen printing each term.
Attendance at these workshops is not a pre-
requisite to working in the department. For further
information email printmaking@rca.ac.uk
66 // rca research resources // research rca handbook 08·09

drawing studio
Location: Seventh Floor, Darwin Building
Research Tutor: Margarita Gluzberg
Tutor: Len Massey
Department Administrator:
Lieve Vanmeert (extension 4562)
The College does not offer an MA or an MPhil/
PhD in Drawing, but the importance of drawing is
recognised within every discipline and department
of the College. We aim to support students who
want to experiment with new approaches to drawing
as part of their personal development as artists and
designers and those who simply want to improve
their drawing skills in a more traditional manner.
During the second half of the summer term, as the
pressure of exams and the College Show builds
up, organised activity in the Drawing Studio tails
off. However, the staff are always willing to provide
individual help and tutorials and also run some
classes and workshops for relaxation and pleasure.
Drawing is not a mandatory activity, but the Drawing
Studio is there to meet your needs, stimulate your
interest and promote drawing as a medium in its
own right.
Individual and groups of students are able to book
the Drawing Studio and there are also Open Studio
sessions when students are able to use the space.
See page 53 for details of the Drawing
Research Territory.
At post-MA level, every year the Centre selects
around 10 new design graduates of the Royal
College of Art to join the Helen Hamlyn Research
Associates Programme. This innovative scheme
teams young designers with external research
partners in industry and the voluntary sector to
develop innovation projects rooted in user research.
The Helen Hamlyn Centre is more than just
about generating inclusive new ideas in design.
It works closely with InnovationRCA, the College’s
innovation network for business, to develop and
commercialise new concepts in order to effect
change in the real world. The Centre is endowed
by the Helen Hamlyn Trust.
professional
practice
Departments provide professional practice
support to match the career paths and culture
of every discipline taught at the College. This is
complemented by FuelRCA, a College-wide resource
co-ordinated by InnovationRCA. FuelRCA offers
online information and articles by RCA alumni,
business mentoring, free access to the Imperial
College careers service plus College-wide seminars
and workshops for current students and recent
graduates. Topics range from taxation to confidence
and international working.
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/fuelrca.

innovation rca
The Drawing Studio provides opportunities Further details of the FuelRCA programme for
throughout the year to engage in a wide spectrum 2008–09 will be provided at the beginning of

of drawing activities. There are evening classes:
life drawing, with a range of tutors and models
including, musicians and dancers. In parallel, there
is ‘LAB’, a very popular programme of classes for
those who wish to experiment or re-engage with
drawing. ‘Drawing London’ is a class where students
are taken to various sites across London, some with
astonishing views. There are also the Esemplastic
Tuesdays, Free Music and Free Drawing, sessions
where free-improvising musicians and poets come to
‘play’ with the drawing class. Edited sonic highlights
of the Esemplastic Tuesday’s sessions are broadcast
on Resonance FM on Ben Watson’s ‘Late Lunch
With Out to Lunch’ the next day.
As well as these core activities, the Studio runs a
series of exploratory workshops and regularly invites
visiting poets, artists and designers for one-off
drawing classes, seminars and lectures. Information
on these, and the various prizes organised through
the Studio, appears regularly on notice-boards
and the Intranet.
One of the most popular of the Drawing Studio
initiatives is the Anatomy Course. This course will
take you off-site during the day, so it is important to
check with your tutors that you are free to attend.
There is also the ‘Facial Reconstruction’ workshop
run by one of the top forensic reconstruction experts
in the world, this is a two day workshop and runs
twice a year.
helen hamlyn
centre
Location: Stevens Building, Ground Floor
Director: Professor Jeremy Myerson
Administrator: Mark Byrne (extension 4242)
The Helen Hamlyn Centre provides a focus for
people-centred design and innovation within the
Royal College of Art, giving students and graduates
the opportunity to undertake practical research
and projects with industry.
Its programmes look at how a socially inclusive
approach to design can support independent living
and working for ageing and diverse populations,
improved standards of healthcare and patient
safety, and a flow of innovative ideas for business.
At MA level, the Centre runs an annual award
scheme to help design students focus on social
challenges and test their ideas with people. The
Design for our Future Selves Awards offers second-
year RCA students project bursaries and access to
user groups and other resources to stimulate their
interest in inclusive design.
the autumn term.
Director: Professor Jeremy Myerson 7
Administrator: Pauline Watkins (extension 4249)
Head of Innovation Development:
John Bound (extension 4243)
Intellectual Property Manager:
Dr Nadia Danhash (extension 4149)
InnovationRCA is the Royal College of Art’s
innovation network for business. It builds links
between the multi-disciplinary community of
designers, artists and researchers at the College
and external business organisations of all kinds.
InnovationRCA manages the College’s growing
portfolio of Intellectual Property, and provides
enhanced levels of professional support for RCA
graduates and alumni. It also leads for the College
on strategic projects related to innovation and
entrepreneurship in a range of areas.
RCA students can apply to InnovationRCA
for Innovation Fellowship posts directly upon
graduation, and for business support and patent
protection of their projects through our Selected
Works programme. There are also opportunities
to work with materials scientists through
MADE (Materials and Design Exchange) and with
companies in Japan through the Invited Overseas
Designers Programme.
chapter

“The work of the students is only made possible

by generous funding from research councils,
charities and trusts. All such funding is awarded

8
competitively and it is a mark of the quality of
staff and students that we are so successful in
gaining funding.”
Professor Sandra Kemp, Director of Research

research student 8

funding
70 // research student funding // research rca handbook 08·09
Occasional funding for particular aspects of
MPhil and PhD research, such as trips abroad
or industrial scholarships or sponsorship
for attendance at a specific conference or
symposium, may be available from the student’s
department. The potential for funding does vary
between disciplines and students’ supervisors
and other staff associated with their department
are the best people to advise on sources of
funding relevant to their discipline (particularly
with regard to corporate and industrial
sponsors of work in individual departments).
Students should therefore approach staff in
their department in the first instance.
rca bursary
The Royal College of Art offers financial help to
students through its own bursary scheme. Students
from within the UK or the EU are eligible, and the
scheme can help a substantial number of RCA
students every year with fees and/or maintenance.
The College annually allocates £2.5 million to
provide bursaries for students from England and
Wales. In 2007/08 this enabled 80% of eligible
first year MA and MPhil students to receive £3,240
towards their fees. In their second year 90% of
eligible students received £3,240 for fees and 30%
of eligible students received a further £3,000 as a
maintenance grant. Unfortunately, the RCA cannot
open this scheme to international students and the
College is obliged to charge a fee which represents
the full cost of what it provides.
Please note that PhD students are not eligible for
the RCA bursary scheme. If you were in receipt
of an RCA MPhil bursary, you forfeit this upon
transfer to PhD. PhD students may be offered part-
time teaching, demonstration or research work,
for which payment may be made according to
College guidelines.
research councils There are six other Research Councils; the ones
which support work such as that currently being
The main sources of funding for UK research undertaken in the College are:
degree students (and in some circumstances
students from other EU countries) are the Research The Economic and Social Research Council
Councils. These are funded directly by the (ESRC), which supports work in economics, politics,
government, and each Council is concerned with human geography, psychology, anthropology,
a specific area of research, which it supports by social history, education and housing management.
offering research studentships as well as research Those working in architecture and design may be
grants and fellowships to established researchers. doing work which falls within the ESRC’s remit.
The Councils have different procedures for http://www.esrc.ac.uk
application and criteria for eligibility and it is not
possible to give such detailed information here, The Engineering and Physical Sciences
however the Research Office will be able to provide Research Council (EPSRC), which supports
more information upon request. work in the physical sciences and engineering,
including chemistry, computer science and IT;
The Arts and Humanities Research Council mathematics; manufacturing technology;
(AHRC) runs an annual competition for postgraduate materials; and engineering (chemical, civil,
research funding. The grants cover tuition and/or electrical and mechanical). Those working in
maintenance. Students who are resident in the UK Animation, Architecture, Design Interactions,
or EU are eligible to apply. Eight subject panels cover Industrial Design Engineering, and possibly also
the Council’s remit, but the Council emphasises those working with materials such as ceramics,
that it is liberal in its interpretation of its domain. glass and textiles may be doing research that
The eight subject panels are Classics, Ancient falls within the EPSRC’s remit. 8
History and Archaeology; Visual Arts and Media; http://www.epsrc.ac.uk
English Language and Literature; Medieval and
Modern History; Modern Languages and Linguistics;
Librarianship, Information and Museum Studies;
Music and Performing Arts; Philosophy, Law and
Religious Studies. Full details of the subject domain
for each panel are available on the AHRC website.
In 2008, the Royal College of Art was permitted to
apply for a maximum of six Postdoctoral Awards. As
a result of this quota, all eligible research students
were invited to submit draft applications to the
Research Committee for consideration. In February
2008, the Research Committee then chose which of
the strongest six applications should be submitted
to the AHRC. Applications were then redrafted, with
assistance from the departments and the Research
Office, in preparation for the formal submission date
of 01 May 2008. It is anticipated that the process for
assessing 2009 applications will be similar. However,
we do encourage students to regularly review the
AHRC website.
http://www.ahrc.ac.uk.
72 // research student funding // research rca handbook 08·09
funding for travel
Should the MPhil or PhD research require that
the student spend some time doing research for
fieldwork overseas, the Leverhulme Trust provides
Study Abroad Studentships of one or two years for
students educated in the UK for study or research
at a university in any part of the world other than
the UK or USA. (For more information: http://
www.leverhulme.ac.uk/grants_awards/grants/
study_abroad_studentships/) The closing date
for these studentships is usually March each year.
Further details will be available on the website from
September 2008.
If the research requires trips to Germany or North
America, the German Academic Exchange Service
(DAAD) organizes scholarships and travel grants
for study and research in Germany. DAAD offers
German Studies Research Grants to highly-qualified
undergraduate and graduate students who are
nominated by their department/program Chairs.
The grant may be used for short-term research in
either North America or Germany. PhD students in
the humanities and social science disciplines in the
process of preparing their dissertation proposals on
modern German topics may be nominated for the
grant by their department and/or principal advisor.
For further details go to:
http://www.daad.org.
The Fulbright Commission offers Fulbright UK
awards to UK citizens (regardless of where they
reside) only. Non-UK citizens are required to
apply in their country of citizenship, even if they
are resident in the UK. Fulbright (Traditional)
Postgraduate Awards: Awards to study, lecture or
pursue research in the United States are offered
for Masters or PhD study in any discipline and at
any accredited US university. The award covers up
to $40,000 for the first year of study only, health
insurance and university application and test fees.
Successful candidates will work with the Fulbright
Commission and the Institute of International
Education (IIE) in New York to identify and apply
to the university departments which offer the best
academic fit for their purpose. International Fulbright
Science and Technology Awards: Up to two awards
(covering tuition, activities fees, book and equipment
allowance, research and professional conference
allowance, and a stipend for up to 36 months) are
offered to outstanding British students for PhD
study at a U.S. institution in science, technology,
or engineering. For further details go to:
http://www.fulbright.co.uk/awards/uk/index.html
The Japan Foundation supports Japanese studies
overseas and promotes intellectual exchange
between Japan and other countries. The Foundation
offers a range of funding programmes, including
funding for visits to Japan by UK staff or students.
For further details go to:
http://www.jpf.go.jp/e/intel/index.html
The Japan Foundation Endowment Committee
offers a Research Grant scheme for staff in UK HE
institutions. This includes partial support for the
work of doctoral research students. The Committee
does not fund coursework, Master’s dissertations,
or course development. All applications must be
made by a member of staff: direct applications
from students are not considered. Grants are made
formally to the institutions concerned, which are
required to administer the grants on behalf of the
grant holder. The Committee will consider requests
for grants only towards research projects essentially
related to Japan; covering research on any aspect
of Japan within the humanities or social sciences
(including comparative studies). The Committee
will not normally support applicants who have not
approached the Foundation beforehand. The
deadline for 2008 is 15 November 2008. For further
details go to:
http://www.bajs.org.uk
The Daiwa Foundation offers Small Grants of
between £1,000–£5,000 to individuals, societies,
associations or other bodies in the UK or Japan
to promote and support interaction between the
two countries. They can cover all fields of activity,
including educational and grassroots exchanges,
research travel, the organisation of conferences,
exhibitions, and other projects and events that
fulfil this broad objective. There are two application
deadlines each year, 31 March (for a decision
by 31 May) and 30 September (for a decision by
30 November). For further details go to:
http://www.dajf.org.uk
international
students
If an international student runs into difficulties once
they are registered at the RCA (either because of
problems relaying money from their home country
or because the funding has unexpectedly ceased),
they should inform their supervisors, Head of
Department or Head of School immediately. Advice
can also be obtained from the Student Support
Office and the Students’ Union. International
students should be aware that most of the funding
schemes and awards advertised in this country
are open to UK and EU applicants only. The best
sources of information regarding funding are
therefore likely to be the education section within
their own embassy or consulate in London, or from
the British Council Office in their home country.
Overseas Research Students Awards Scheme
(ORSAS)
A funding scheme available for international
students is the Overseas Research Students Awards
Scheme (ORSAS) which was set up by the Secretary
of State for Education and Science in 1979 to
attract high-quality international students to the
United Kingdom to undertake research. Since 1980,
over 24,000 awards have been made to students
from around the world (excluding EU countries).
The Scheme offers international students the
opportunity to carry out a broad range of research
at well-established UK academic institutions of
worldwide recognition. ORSAS funding is paid
directly to institutions and not to individual students.
To be eligible to apply for an ORSAS award:
• students must be liable for the overseas fee
• students must be of outstanding merit and
research potential
• students must not have previously completed at
PhD or equivalent level
• students must not have held an ORS award before;
• students must be registered as full-time
postgraduate research students.
Further details are available from the Research
Office and at:
http://www.orsas.ac.uk/
Commonwealth Scholarships
The Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in
the United Kingdom (CSC) offers opportunities
to Commonwealth citizens to study in the UK,
and identifies UK citizens to study overseas, as
part of the UK’s contribution to the international
Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan.
For further details go to:
http://www.cscuk.org.uk/
Another useful source of advice and information
for international students is the British Council
http://www.britishcouncil.org.
In addition to providing general information
on studying in the UK, they also operate a
Scholarships Database:
http://www.educationuk.org/scholarships/
Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento
Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq) – Brazil
Available only to Brazilian students or foreigners
with permanent residency in Brazil. CNPq is run in
conjunction with the Brazilian Ministry of Science 8
and Technology to promote and stimulate the
scientific and technological development of Brazil.
The deadline for application is usually in March,
with selection in April. Applicants are informed
in June whether they have been successful and
scholarships start in August. The scholarship cannot
be used concurrently with any other scholarship
from a Brazilian agency. Further information can
be found on the CNPq website:
http://www.cnpq.br/index.htm
Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal
de Nível Superior (CAPES) – Brazil
Available to Brazilian students only. CAPES provides
funding for university training across the sectors
in Brazil and, where training is not available,
internationally. Further information can be found at:
http://www.capes.gov.br/
74 // research student funding // research rca handbook 08·09

Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)

– Portugal
Available to Portuguese students. Portugal’s main
funding agency for research with the status of a
public organisation with administrative and financial
autonomy under the aegis of the Ministry of
Science, Innovation and Higher Education. Further
information can be found at:
http://www.fct.mctes.pt/
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (Portugal)
See entry below in: Additional Sources of Funding
subject-specific
scholarships &
funding
The Pasold Research Fund was established in 1964
to fund high quality research relating to textile his-
tory. The Fund’s field of interest covers the study of
the history of textiles in all their aspects – embrac-
ing the economic and social history of textiles, their
technological development, design and conserva-
tion, as well as the history of dress, and other uses
of textiles. The activities of the Fund fall into three
main categories: sponsoring publications, organiz-
Royal Horticultural Society – Dawn Jolliffe
Botanical Art Bursary: Established in June 2005,
this bursary is to be awarded annually by the RHS
Bursaries Committee in association with the RHS
Picture Committee to assist a botanical artist to
exhibit at one of the RHS shows, or to travel in order
to paint and/or draw plants in their natural habitats.
Preference will be given to artists who are not yet
established. The value of the award will be up to a
maximum of £1,000. The RHS Bursaries Committee
considers applications four times a year and closing
dates are 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and
24 December. For further details and an application
form contact: The Secretary, The RHS Bursaries
Committee, RHS Garden Wisley, Woking, Surrey
In order to support scholarship in the field of British
art and architectural history and to disseminate
knowledge through publications, exhibitions and
education, the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in
British Art offers a variety of grants and fellowships.
Research support grants for travel, subsistence,
and other research costs such as photography,
are offered to scholars already engaged in research
involving the study of British art or architecture.
Grants may be used to visit collections, libraries,
archives or historic sites within the United Kingdom
or abroad. They are not awarded to assist with
conference attendance. Awards do not normally
exceed £2,000. The closing date for applications
is 15 September 2008. Application forms may be

funding for
ing conferences, and awarding grants for research. GU23 6QB; tel: 0845 260 9000; obtained from http://www.paul-mellon-centre.ac.uk
The Fund also offers bursaries of up to £2,500 for email: bursaries@rhs.org.uk or from the Grants Administrator, The Paul Mellon

students with
PhD students in their second or subsequent year of Centre for Studies in British Art, 16 Bedford Square,
study. Priority is given to those applications where The Royal Commission for the Exhibition of London WC1B 3JA, tel. 02075800311;

disabilities
In addition to the support for students with
disabilities outlined on pages 60, a number of other
organisations make funding available to assist
students with disabilities. The Snowdon Award
Scheme helps students with physical disabilities in
the UK aged between 17–25 in further and higher
education. Mature candidates are considered,
subject to the availability of funds. Bursaries are
made for 1 or 2 years and do not normally exceed
£2,500. Awards are made for disability-related
study costs such as sign language interpreters, note
takers, computer and specialist equipment, travel
and other costs. Students of all nationalities may
apply. The deadline for applications for 2009–10
is 31 May 2009. Further details of the awards may
be found at:
http://www.snowdonawardscheme.org.uk/.
it is demonstrated that the bursary will enable
the student to complete their PhD. The deadline for
applications for PhD bursaries is 30 June each year.
Applications for grants under £300 may be made at
any time. There are two deadlines for applications
between £301 and £999 – 01 October and 15 Febru-
ary. For applications between £1,000 and £3,000
there will be a single application date of 30 April.
The deadline for themed workshops is 15 January
and 15 July. Applications in aid of publication (di-
rected at the publication of high quality illustrative
material in research output, particularly monographs
and normally under £1,000) can be submitted at any
time. For further details go to:
http://www.pasold.co.uk.
The Worshipful Company of Weavers Textile
Education Fund Scholarships offers grants of
£1,000–£4,000 to students of weaving technology
or design. Applicants must show a special interest
in weaving or woven textiles, and must be British
subjects. The closing date for applications is in
July each year. Application forms may be
downloaded from:
http://www.weavers.org.uk.
1851 offers up to six studentships annually in the email: grants@paul-mellon-centre.ac.uk
field of industrial design. The studentships are
intended to fund graduates with a good grounding
in engineering or science who wish to develop their
capabilities in industrial design. The studentships 8
cover tuition fees up to the normal UK course level
for UK students; an annual stipend of £9,450; an
allowance of £850 per annum to cover the cost of
materials; some travel expenses. The duration of
the studentship is normally one year, but a second
year may be similarly supported if the first year has
been satisfactorily completed. The studentships are
open to British nationals, resident in UK, who intend
making a career in British Industry. They should also
have a good first degree in engineering or science,
and must have obtained admission to a suitable
postgraduate course. The closing date for 2008–09
is April 2009. For further details go to:
http://www.royalcommission1851.org.uk/
76 // research student funding // research rca handbook 08·09
additional sources
of funding
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs), are
Government and company-funded schemes which
involve graduate student placements in companies
for between one and three years, provided that
the student’s project is central to the needs of the
company and brings with it additional knowledge
and expertise from the host university (in this case
the RCA). Research student projects are eligible
for this scheme. For further details go to:
http://www.ktponline.org.uk.
Career Development Loans, which provide low
interest loans for British students from commercial
banks to fund vocational training for up to two years.
For further details go to:
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/
EducationAndLearning /AdultLearning/
CareerDevelopmentLoans/index.htm
The Wellcome Trust believes the arts are an
effective way of stimulating debate and engaging
people with biomedical science. Visual art,
music, moving image, creative writing and
performance can reach new audiences which
may not traditionally be interested in science and
provide new ways of thinking about the social,
cultural and ethical issues around contemporary
science. Collaborative and interdisciplinary
practice across the arts and sciences can help to
provide new perspectives on both fields. The arts
can also provide imaginative ways of engaging
and educating young people in the field of science.
The Arts Awards support projects that engage the
public with biomedical science through the arts.
The scheme aims to: stimulate interest, excitement
and debate about biomedical science through
the arts; examine the social, cultural, and ethical
impact of biomedical science; support formal and
informal learning; encourage new ways of thinking;
encourage high quality interdisciplinary practice
and collaborative partnerships in arts, science
and/or education practice.
Projects should have some biomedical scientific
input either through a scientist taking on an advisory
role or through direct collaboration. Applicants
are encouraged to investigate new methods of
interdisciplinary working as well as new models of
engagement in biomedical science. For small to
medium sized projects (up to and including £30,000)
deadlines are: 15 October, 9 January, 3 April and
31 July. Decisions will be made approximately three
months after the deadline. For large projects (over
£30,000) the deadline is 23 January 2009. Decisions
will be made approximately five months after the
deadline. For further details go to:
http://www.wellcome.ac.uk
The Harold Hyam Wingate Foundation, which
offers Wingate Scholarships to individuals of great
potential or proven excellence who need financial
support to undertake pioneering or original
work of intellectual, scientific, artistic, social or
environmental value, and to outstandingly talented
musicians for advanced training. They are designed
to help with the costs of a specific project which
may last up to 3 years. The average total award
is about £6,500 and the maximum in any one year
is £10,000. There is no upper age limit and the
Scholarship Committee welcomes applications
from mature candidates and those from non-
traditional backgrounds. Wingate Scholarships
attempt to provide funding for cross-disciplinary
projects that might not fall comfortably into any
of the conventional funding categories.
The deadline for applying for 2009–10 will be
18:00 on Friday January 30th 2009. Application
Materials for 2009–10 will be available from
September 15th 2008 on:
http://www.wingatescholarships.org.uk
The British Foundation of Women Graduates
(BFWG) offers grants to assist women graduates
registered for study or research at an approved
institution of higher education in Great Britain,
regardless of nationality. Scholarships are awarded
to research students who will be entering into
their final year of formal study towards a PhD
degree. Scholarships are normally within the range
of £2,500–£6,000. For further details go to:
http://www.bfwg.org.uk.
The Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust funds
further study, training and practical experience for
craftsmen and women who want to improve their
craft and trade skills. Each scholarship is worth
between £2,000 and £15,000. The size of each
award depends on how much funding is needed for
a project. Although the Trust emphasises practical
work, several awards to fund post-graduate research
have been made in the past. Previous winners have
included textile designers, jewellers, ceramicists,
and photographers. Scholarships are awarded twice
a year. Completed forms must be received not later
than 09 January 2009. For further details go to: 8
http://www.qest.org.uk/links.html
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation
The foundation awards grants for programmes in the
arts, education, social welfare and Anglo-Portuguese
cultural relations. As a guide, grants made by the
Foundation rarely exceed £15,000. Scholarships
for Portuguese students are also available through
the Portuguese office of the Foundation. Further
information can be found at:
http://www.gulbenkian.org.uk/
There are several excellent directories with
listings of many of the smaller trusts and charities
involved in funding education and research. They
are available for reference in the College and local
libraries, and the most comprehensive of these
is The Directory of Grant Making Trusts, published
by the Charities Aid Foundation and available for
reference in the Research Office.
9
chapter

dissemination 9

of research
“...the College provides an excellent base for
experimentation, and the creative environment
often provokes stimulating discussion and
critical feedback. Research can be an isolating,
obsessive process, but through the RCA I have
benefited enormously from interaction with
other artists.”
Jo Longhurst, PhD student, Photography
80 // dissemination of research // research rca handbook 08·09
layout of the thesis
These guidelines have been developed in response
to a growing need for clarification on the College
requirements for the presentation of theses and
should be used when presenting the final version of
the work following examination. To assist with this
process, each departmental Research Coordinator
has been asked to build up a collection of recent
MPhil and PhD theses from their discipline which
represent examples of best practice. Research
students should contact their departmental
Research Coordinator for further details. Completed
MPhil and PhD theses are also accessible in the
RCA library.
The order in which the text prior to the main text
of the thesis should come is:
• Title page
• Copyright statement
• Abstract
• Contents
• List of tables/illustrations
• List of accompanying material
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• Author’s declaration
• Definitions
An abstract is essential. It should be bound into
the thesis, but also submitted as a loose page with
the thesis itself.
The order in which the pages following the main
text of the thesis should come is:
• Appendices
• Glossary
• List of references
• Bibliography
• Index
Specimen of title page
• to be printed in at least 24 point type
• the title of the work in full
• author’s name and initials
• the award for which the degree is submitted
(in partial fulfilment of its requirements)
• that the degree is awarded by the Royal
College of Art
• the collaborating establishment (if any)
• the month and year of submission
On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural
Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured
Races in the Struggle for Life
CHARLES DARWIN
A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the
requirements of the Royal College of Art
for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
November 1859
The Royal College of Art
Copyright Statement
The following copyright statement should be
included in each thesis:
“This text represents the submission for the degree
of Master of Philosophy/Doctor of Philosophy* at
the Royal College of Art. This copy has been supplied
for the purpose of research for private study, on
the understanding that it is copyright material, and
that no quotation from the thesis may be published
without proper acknowledgement”.
* delete ‘Master of Philosophy/Doctor of Philosophy’
where appropriate.
Author’s Declaration
• Be sure to include in the thesis a formal
statement confirming that you have not been
registered for any other academic award during
the period of study.
• It is important to state accurately whether any
of the work included in your thesis has been
previously submitted for examination (i.e. the
inclusion of material in a PhD which previously
had been part of an MPhil study.)
Example of Author’s Declaration
Author’s Declaration
1. During the period of registered study in which
this thesis was prepared the author has not
been registered for any other academic award
or qualification.
2. The material included in this thesis has not
been submitted wholly or in part for any
academic award or qualification other than
that for which it is now submitted.
C. Darwin
November 1859
Format of the text
The format of the text must be consistent
throughout the thesis.
Typography
Character size should not be less than 10 point.
Care should be taken when using smaller
character size for notes as legibility may be lost
when copies are made.
• One-and-a-half line spacing (or double if
necessary) must be used in typescript except for
indented quotations or footnotes, where single
spacing may be used.
• Paragraphs should be: either (i) flush left with
additional space between paragraphs or (ii)
indented 5–10mm with no additional spaces
between paragraphs; opening paragraphs and
those that follow headings are not indented.
Method ii) should be used if paragraphs
are numbered.
Headings
Headings should not normally be centred.
• Consistency is essential throughout the text
• If used, a header should appear on the top line
of the page, in smaller size than the main text,
but only in the main text. Information included
should cover name, year of submission, page
number, etc.
Tables
Locate any tables used as close as possible to
the first reference in the text. If there are numerous
references or tables, locate them at the end of
the text.
• Allocate one table per page as far as possible.
If the table extends to more than one page,
headings should appear on both
• Number and title should appear below each table,
in that order
• Each row and column should be clearly labelled
or headed
• Character size should be as in Typography, above.
Pagination
Numbers should normally be Arabic (1, 2, 3, 4, 5
and so on).
• Illustrations and tables should be numbered
9
in a separate sequence from the pagination
• Pages should be numbered consecutively
throughout the main text, including photographs
and/or diagrams which are included as whole
pages and numbers should be at the top outer
corner of each page. Please note that the title
page should be counted but not numbered
• Avoid blank pages, but if necessary, ensure that
they carry the word ‘Blank’ and a page number.
Notes
Footnotes appear at the bottom of the page and
should be separated from the main text and be
preceded by an asterisk, symbol or number which
should also appear above the relevant part of the
text. Footnotes are used to explain terms or to
put something into context and are essential for
understanding the text. They can be in smaller
character size.
82 // dissemination of research // research rca handbook 08·09
Endnotes appear at the end of a section or a
chapter, and should contain additional information
which relates in general to the foregoing text and/or
references or attributions which are not shown in
the footnotes. They should be listed in numerical or
alphabetical order.
If numbers are used to indicate a note, make sure
that they are clear, consecutive and not likely to
be confused with others (such as those for tables
or illustrations).
Images
It is important to bear in mind that the integration
and relatedness of text and images is something that
examiners will consider when examining a thesis.
Images must be more than illustrative and the
choice of caption is fundamental to their inclusion
as it provides continuity between text and imagery.
If many images are included they must be integral
to the text. An alternative method is to consider
producing a portfolio of images on DVD, which would
be available to the examiners alongside the thesis
and at the viva voce. This DVD would act as
a companion to the thesis.
guidelines for
printing
The thesis should be printed on white A4 paper
between 70g/m2 and 100g/m2. If A4 paper is not
to be used, permission must be sought from the
Academic Board for Concessions and Discipline.
• Pages which are larger than A4 will be reduced
when microfilmed. Writing may therefore
become illegible
• Large illustrations should be folded to fit A4
size and should not extend across both pages
of the thesis
• If the thesis contains photographs good
photocopies may be substituted
• If colour is used, the quality must be of a good
standard for reproduction purposes
• The thesis may be printed on one or both sides
of the paper. Where both sides of the paper
are used, the paper must be sufficiently opaque
to avoid show-through
• Each chapter should begin on a new page
• The left margin should not be less than 40mm,
to allow for binding, and others should not be
less than 15mm
• It is recommended that a laser writer printer
is used. Where copies are produced by any
photocopying processes, these must be of a
permanent nature.
guidelines for Bookbinders
The following may be of help for having your thesis
binding soft-bound or if you wish to have additional hard
copies bound for your own purposes. Inclusion on
Soft-binding (for examination) the list offers no guarantee that the work will be
• For MPhil candidates three soft-bound copies of carried out to the Royal College of Art specification.
the thesis must be submitted to the Research It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that
Office for examination – one each for the Chair, the work is carried out to the standards laid out in
the examiner and the supervisor (if present) this Research Handbook.
• For PhD candidates four soft-bound copies of the
thesis must be submitted to the Research Office F J Blissett & Co Ltd
for examination – one each for the Chair, the Roslin Road
two examiners and the supervisor (if present). London
W3 8DH
Soft-bound copies can be either ‘perfect bound’ Tel: 020 8992 3965
or bound with a comb binder. Fax: 020 8993 1815
theses@blissetts.com
Other material http://www.blissetts.com/
Other materials, such as DVDs, must also be
included with the submission, but should be kept Collis-Bird & Withey
separate from the main thesis copy. These 1 Drayton Park
materials should be marked clearly to avoid being London
lost. Slides can be made and kept in the Slide N5 1NU
Library by Information Services. Tel: 020 7607 1116
http://www.thesisbookbinding.co.uk/company.html
Hard-binding (after examination)
The College does arrange for one copy of your final Homerton Bookbinders
9
thesis to be hard-bound following examination. If 166a Glyn Road
you desire additional copies, bound by the College, London
please submit those copies to the Research Office E5 0JE
at the same time as the College copy. The fee Tel: 020 8986 4424
for each additional copy is £25. However, if you p.lamoon@onet.co.uk
wish to have additional copies bound yourself, we http://www.homertonbookbinders.com
recommend the following format:
• the binding should be of a fixed type so that
leaves cannot be removed or replaced
• the front and rear boards should be sufficiently
rigid to support the weight of the work when
standing upright
• each volume should not be more than 70mm thick
• the colour of the binding should be black
• the outside front board should bear the title of
the work in at least 24 point type
• the name and initials of the candidate, the
qualification and the year of final submission
should also be shown on the front board
• the same information (excluding the title of the
work) should be shown on the spine of the work.
84 // dissemination of research // research rca handbook 08·09
guidelines for
exhibiting at the
rca summer show
It was recently agreed by Senate that the RCA
Graduation Show should become a Summer Show
which would enable students who were not yet
eligible to graduate to exhibit their work. Since then,
departments have been free to decide whether
their students should exhibit in the summer prior
to examination, or the summer after examination
(or, indeed, exhibit at all). However, this freedom
has led to some confusion. In order to clarify this
for future years, the following recommendations
have been approved:
• Wherever possible, research students should
exhibit after the submission of their thesis
for examination
• When the Show is professionally curated, the
departmental Research Coordinator should ensure
that the curator is fully aware of the nature of
each of their exhibiting research student exhibits,
in order that their individual requirements can
be accommodated
• All Show publicity material should list the
student as MPhil/PhD by Project/Thesis student:
simply listing as ‘MPhil’ or ‘PhD’ is misleading.
• The Research Coordinator is responsible for
ensuring that the Research Office has an up
to date list of all exhibiting students and their
publicity details (images, text etc.)
• The Show Catalogue should be clear about the
status of the research students.
guidance for stu-
dent participation
in conferences and
publication of work
Originality
It is common in science-based subjects for work
to be published during the period of research, and
this is the model often seen in art and design.
Publication may generate critical peer appraisal and
may offer opportunities, such as access to facilities.
However, it is important to note that work published
during the period of study can only be work in
progress, and this should be stated clearly within
the publication. The primary submission of research
is as a thesis or other form required for examination
for the award of the degree and nothing published
before this should compromise the need for this
final submission to be original. Students should
be aware that others may benefit from their work
before they can deliver their thesis; this places even
more responsibility on researchers to be familiar
with publications in their field of study. Consult with
and receive approval from supervisors and Heads
of Department before embarking on the public
presentation of work. If there are conflicting views
on the suitability of a particular forum or publication,
it may also be necessary to consult with the Director
of Research.
Co-authorship
There is a tradition in some institutions and
cultures for research supervisors to be included,
automatically, as co-authors. In some cases this
may be to the student’s advantage and that is
generally how it is seen by supervisors. Where
research students are being invited to contribute
to supervisor’s or another collaborator’s work,
rather than the work being solely their own, there
are usually benefits in the association.
It is the policy of the RCA that co-authors should
have contributed significantly to the work to be
published, and researchers should be able to
determine what the level of significance is. Since
your research presented for the award of your
degree must be your own, this clearly circumscribes
the contribution that supervisors or other can make.
However, where supervisors are not contributing as
co-authors, they should certainly be acknowledged.
Since the published work arises from your research
degree studies, they will have influenced the work
in some way through direct or indirect support and
advice, critical appraisal, or more specific teaching
and guidance, and they may provide editorial input
to the publication. It is essential that the role of
supervisors is acknowledged, since this helps to
reinforce the status of the work as part of on-going
research for an academic degree and encourages
a wider sphere of influence for each publication.
Publication
Students who are interested in having their thesis
published should firstly identify a publisher who
publishers within their field. They should then send
the publisher a one page outline summarising
the content of the proposed book. This should be
9
adapted from the thesis and include a paragraph
summarising each chapter and a profile of the
intended audience for the book. This proposal
should be accompanied by a sample chapter,
rewritten in book not thesis form, demonstrating
to the publisher the author’s writing style.
10
chapter
“I found at the RCA a sense of community
with helpful staff, generous technicians and
other research students who continually
questioned everything. It is small enough to
know everybody and large enough to allow
individualism. It was an intense experience
but one that changed me and my work.”
Rachel Garfield, Alumni

guidelines 10

on bibliographical
references
88 // guidelines on bibliographical references // research rca handbook 08·09
The aim of this section is to introduce the
concepts, with examples, of citing references
and compiling a bibliography, an important
element in the completion of a thesis.
Why references and bibliographies are important:
• To acknowledge and give credit to all sources
or materials summarised or paraphrased
• To show that other people’s ideas and words
have been used, i.e. to prove that there has
been no plagiarism
• To offer additional information to readers who
may wish to pursue the topic further
• To give readers an opportunity to check the
sources for accuracy.
referencing systems
The Harvard Style (or Author-Date system) has a
common international system, and is recommended
by the Royal College of Art. It is flexible, clear and
easy to use without the need for footnotes and
chapter references as used in other systems. Its
procedures are outlined in detail below. On pages
94 and 95, there are summary notes on three
other referencing systems. Students may use any
of the standard referencing systems, provided their
use is entirely consistent with their chosen system
throughout their thesis.
the harvard system
This system uses the author’s name and date
of publication in the body of the text, and the
bibliography is given alphabetically by author.
Citing references in the text
This is a way of referring to material you are quoting,
paraphrasing, or summarising within your text. In
the Harvard system, giving the author’s surname
and the year of publication indicates this and the
reference will eventually appear in the bibliography
(at the end of the written work).
Authors: The person or organisation shown most
prominently in the source as responsible for the
content in its published form should be given. For
anonymous works use Anon instead of a name.
For certain kinds of work, such as dictionaries and
encyclopaedias, the title may be used instead of
an author.
Dates: if an exact year or date is not known, an
approximate date preceded by [c.] may be used in
square brackets. If no date can be ascertained,
use [no date].
Example:
[c. 1750] or [no date]
If the author’s name fits naturally into the text,
refer to it like this:
Example:
How to write a research project is clearly outlined
in Berry (2000)
Or if the author’s name does not fit naturally in
the text use brackets, like this:
Example:
All scholars are dependent on the generosity of
librarians (Sandweiss, 2004)
If a work has two authors, list both surnames
Example:
Schwartz and Przyblyski (2004)
If a work has more than two, use the first
listed author on the title page followed by ‘et al.’
Compiling a Bibliography
A bibliography is a list of sources you have used.
(which stands for ‘and others’)
The bibliography appears at the end of the work and
Example:
is arranged alphabetically by author or occasionally
Harrison et al. (1998)
title. As well as listing the references referred to in
the text, it may also include other material consulted
If you refer to more than one document by
but not referred to directly in the text.
the same author published in the same year,
use lower-case letters after the date
Information for the bibliography should come from
Example:
the title page of the publication. If more than one
Harrison (2000a) or (Harrison, 2000a)
item by a specific author is used, they should be
listed chronologically (earliest first), and by a letter
If the work is anonymous then “Anon”
(2005a, 2005b) if more than one item has been
should be used
published in the same year.
Example:
In a recent article (Anon, 1998)
A bibliography must include:
Citing Quotations, Diagrams, Illustrations
Books
and Parts of Documents
It is good practice to use the title page (if there
To cite quotations, diagrams or illustrations page
is one) rather than the cover for the information
numbers need to be identified. These appear
needed.
after the date, and within the brackets.
• Author(s) or editor(s) or organisation – the
Example:
abbreviation “ed” denotes editor
At the time of writing it is hard not to respond to
• Date of publication – in brackets
the widespread proclamation of a “postmodern
• Title – including subtitle (if any), separated by a
condition” (Harrison et al., 1998, p.2)
colon. The title may be underlined or emboldened
or in italics, but whichever is chosen remember
Brief quotations – if less than a line long can be
to be consistent throughout the bibliography
included in the text in quotation marks
• Series and individual volume no. (if any)
Example:
• Edition (if not the first) e.g. rev. edn. or new edn. 10
growing market interest instructed us to “value
or 2nd edn.
pictures” (Acton, 2004, p.4)
• Place of publication
• Publisher.
Longer quotation – if it is more than three lines,
Examples:
it is indented and single-spaced, without
Acton, M. (2004) Looking at Modern Art,
quotation marks
London: Routledge.
Example:
In France, Britain and America, interests
Perry, G and Wood, P. (eds) (2004) Themes in
characteristic of Romanticism and of Naturalism
Contemporary Art, Art of the 20th Century, 4,
asserted themselves with increasing emphasis
London: Yale University Press
during the second and third decades of the century
(Harrison et al., 1998, p.7)
90 // guidelines on bibliographical references // research rca handbook 08·09

Chapter in a book If no author is identified, use newspaper title Exhibition Catalogues Audio-visual Resources
• Author of the chapter Example: Where there is no author/editor, use the gallery
For film/video/DVD and off-air recordings it is
• Date of publication The Independent (2004) Italians Say no to De Niro or museum
important to give as much information as possible
• Title of Chapter “the Gangster”, The Independent, 13 August, 22. Example:
to allow any researchers to trace the information
• “In” followed by a colon Tate Gallery (1969), Ben Nicholson, London:
quoted. If you can you should quote the format
• Author/Editor of the book Conference proceedings Tate Gallery.
e.g. VHS Video, 35mm Film, Compact Disc, etc.,
• Title of the book • Conference title
to allow researchers to view/listen to the material.
• Place of publication • Number of conference It is common practice to use capital letters in
• Publisher • Conference location the names of art movements
Films
• Page numbers. • Date of conference Example:
• Title
Example: • Date of publication Rubin, W. (1968), Dada, Surrealism, and their
• Year – for films the preferred date is the year
Baudelaire, C. (2004) ‘The painter of modern life’, • Place of publication Heritage, New York: MOMA
of release in the country of production
in: V.R. Schwartz and J.M. Przyblyski, (eds), • Publisher
• Subsidiary originator – optional, but director
The Nineteenth Century Visual Culture Reader, Example: Visual Information:
is preferred
New York: Routledge, 37–42. Doctoral Education in Design: Foundations of the Photographs and Illustrations
• Place of production
Future, La Clusaz, 8–12 July 2000, (2000) Stoke- Simply follow the rules for referencing a book.
• Organisation
Articles in an encyclopaedia on-Trent: Staffordshire University Press
• Medium: format [in square brackets].
Example: If, however, you wish to specify that you have
Example:
Romanelli, P. (1958) ‘The Phoenicians and the Conference paper only used an image, follow the normal rules for
Adaptation (2002), Directed by Spike Jonze, USA:
Greeks’, in: Encyclopaedia of World Art, vol.1, • Author referencing a book and then add an abbreviation
Columbia Pictures [film: DVD]
New York: McGraw-Hill, 66–70 • Year of publication for illustration.
• Title of contribution Example:
Commercial video
Journal articles • In: followed by colon Clark, J. (2004), Jewellery of Tibet and the
Commercial videos follow the same format as films.
• Author(s) or editor(s) of the article • Author/editor of conference papers or Himalayas, London: V&A Publications, 42, Illus.
The main difference is that the [medium: format]
• Year of publication in brackets proceedings
part is usually [video: VHS].
• Title of the article • Title of conference in italics, including date British Standards
Example:
• Title of the journal or newspaper in italics and place of conference Example:
The Eye (2002), Rachel Whiteread, London:
• Volume and part number, month or season for a • Place of publication British Standards Institution (2000), BS
Illuminations [video: VHS]
journal and a date of publication for a newspaper • Publisher 5454:2000, Recommendations for the Storage and
• Page numbers. • Page numbers Exhibition of Archival Documents, London: BSI
Television and off-air recordings 10
Example: Example:
Television programmes are usually identified
Nisbet, N. (2004) ‘Resisting surveillance: identity Stewart, S. (2000) ‘On reason and habit: an Patents
as video recordings. It is important to include
and implantable microchips’, Leonardo: Journal Aristotelian approach to design theory’, in: D. • Originator
the transmission details, especially for a series
of the International Society of the Arts, Sciences Durling and K. Friedman, (eds), Doctoral Education • Year of publication
transmitted throughout the year.
and Technology, 37 (3), 211–214 in Design: Foundations of the Future, 8–12 July • Title of patent
• Series title
2000, La Clusaz, Stoke-on-Trent: Staffordshire • Series designation
• Series number
Newspaper articles University Press, 127–132 Example:
• Year of production
• Author or newspaper title Philip Morris Inc. (1981), Optical Perforating
• Programme title
• Year of publication Theses Apparatus & System, European patent application
• Place of publication
• Title of article • Author 0021165 A1
• Transmitting organization
• Title of newspaper • Year of publication
• Date of transmission
• Day and month • Title of thesis in italics Research reports
• Medium: format [in square brackets]
• Page numbers • Designation and type The range of reports can be very diverse. However,
Example:
Example: • Name of institution to which submitted it is important to include subtitle and series
South Bank Show (2001), Tracey Emin, London,
Demetriou, D. (2004) Marilyn Monroe was Right Example: information if appropriate.
ITV, 19 August, [video: VHS]
After All. Diamonds Really are a Girl’s Best Friend, Shanahan, P. (2001) Esperantis: Theorising the Post Example:
The Independent, 13 August, 3 Landscape, Thesis (PhD), Royal College of Art Myerscough, J. and Bruce, A. (1988), The Economic
Importance of the Arts in Britain, Research Report
672, London: Policy Studies Institute
92 // guidelines on bibliographical references // research rca handbook 08·09

Sound recordings Example: Example: Interviews

• Composer Holland, M. (2004) Guide to citing Internet sources Fletcher, K. (22 April 2004) Slide query, Arlis-link • Name of interviewee
• Year of production [online], Poole: Bournemouth University, available [online], available from: jiscmail@jiscmail.ac.uk • Year
• Title of work from: http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/library/ [Accessed 27 August 2005] • Title of the interview or details of interview
• Performers using/guide_to_citing_internet_source.html • Location of interview
• Recording company [Accessed 27 August 2008] Personal emails • Date of interview
Example: • Sender Example:
Mozart, W. A. (1990), Symphony No.38 in D major, If there is no named author, or the author is an • Sender’s email address Maxwell, D. (2004), Interview with Sebastian
Vienna Philharmonic, Polydor, [sound recording: institution or company, do this: • Date Faulks, London, 4 Nov 2004
compact disc] Example: • Subject
Birmingham City Council: Leisure and Community • Recipient Useful hints
Recordings of drama, poetry, prose, lectures, etc. Services, (1999) The history of Birmingham’s • Recipient’s address When referring to number, dates, titles in the text
often include the name and location of publisher museum and art gallery [online], Birmingham: Example: the following should be adopted:
and the date of publication. Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, Maxwell, D. (darlene.maxwell@rca.ac.uk),
Examples: available from: http://www.birmingham.gov.uk (1 Sept 2005) RE: Book renewal, email to C. Johns Number up to nine in the text should be given in
Children, Language and Literature (1982), [Accessed 27 August 2008] (cathy.johns@rca.ac.uk). words, 10 and above in figures. However you should
Milton Keynes: Open University Press, never start a sentence with figures.
[sound recording: audiocassette]. Sometimes the whole web site reference CD-ROMS and DVDs Example:
is necessary: • Author Eight yards further on 967 houses were built
Thomas, D. (1980), Under Milk Wood,
Example: • Year last year.
performed by Dylan Thomas et al. Caedmon,
Turner Society, Turner Society [online], • Title
[sound recording: audiocassette].
available from: http://www.turnersociety.org.uk • Medium Dates in the text should be written as follows:
[Accessed 26 August 2008] • Edition 21 October 2005.
Electronic Resources • Place of publication Example:
E-journals • Publisher He left Iceland on 3 February 1884.
Internet
• Author/editor • Available from (supplier/database)
• Be consistent and keep in line with the
• Year • Date (optional) Decades should be written in figures, with
Harvard style
• Title of article Example: no apostrophe
• Cite enough information to allow any researcher
• Title of journal [online] Hawking, S.W. (1994), A Brief History of Time: an Example:
to trace and locate the reference
• Type of medium [in square brackets] Interactive Adventure, [CD-ROM], Crunch Media In the 1990s we left London.
• Sometimes the address for an e-journal can be 10
• Date of publication
very long, in which case it is acceptable to include
• Volume (issue) Online Images
enough of the address to identify the site the Other conventions
• Page numbers • Title of image or description
journal came from
• Available from (location) • Year When doing your own research you may come
• Give the date that the information was accessed
• Accessed date • [Online image] across other referencing conventions that are NOT
Example: • Available from: URL part of the Harvard system. These include:
Internet references will include:
Mortimer, K. (1995) Enterprise in higher • Accessed date
• Author/editor
education: reflections from the chair, Education Example: Ibid. (Latin) – used to refer to the same piece of
• Year
and Training [online], 37(9), 20–24, available from: Susan Collis: Untitled (Trompe L’Oeil), (2003) work in notes.
• Title [online]
http://fernando.emeraldinsight.com [Online image], available from: http://www. Example:
• Edition
[Accessed 28 August 2001]. thecentreofattention.org/exhibitions/susan.html 1. Duchting, H. (2004), Paul Klee: Painting
• Place of publication
[accessed 1 Sep 2004]. Music, Munich: Prestel, p.58–59
a) Publisher
Email discussion lists 2. Ibid p.77
b) Available from: URL
• Author/editor 3. Ibid p.90
c) Accessed date.
• Date
• Title of message
• Discussion list [online]
• Available from (location)
• Accessed date
94 // guidelines on bibliographical references // research rca handbook 08·09
op.cit. (Latin) – used to refer to a work already
mentioned elsewhere.
Example:
1. Opie, J. (2004), Contemporary International
Glass: 60 Artists in the V&A, London: V&A
Publications, p.11
2. Morris, R. (2004), Robert Lee Morris:
the Power of Jewelry, New York: Harry N.
Abrams, p.20
3. Opie (2004), op.cit. p.84
Useful web sites
Holland, M. (2006), Citing references [online],
Bournemouth University, available from:
http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/library/citing_
references/docs/Citing_Refs.pdf
Dee, M. (2004), Quote, unquote: the Harvard style
of referencing published material, available from:
http://www.lmu.ac.uk/lskills/open/sfl/content/
harvard/downloads/harvard_2004.pdf
the mla
(modern language
association) system
Similar to the Harvard style, the MLA system makes
use of parentheses within the text.
An author’s work is referenced by parentheses
containing their surname, followed by a space, and
the relevant page numbers:
Example: (Ranger 253)
Multiple sources can be indicated in the same
parenthetical reference by separating the citations
with a semicolon:
Example: (Brown 149; Wolpert 29)
In the ‘Works Cited’ section, entries are listed by
author with the surname first; middle names or
middle initials follow the first name. For further
details, see Joseph Gibaldi, The MLA Style Manual
and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, Modern Language
Association of America, 1998.
the oxford system
Instead of parentheses within the text, the Oxford
system makes use of footnotes and is characterised
by the following:
• footnote references using a superscript (raised)
number, generally at the end of a sentence
• a list of footnotes at the bottom of each page.
• a bibliography at the end of the thesis giving the
full details of each source referred to.
The first time a source is cited, the footnote must
provide full bibliographic details.
Example:
T Ranger, Voices from the Rocks: Nature, Culture
and History in the Matopos Hills of Zimbabwe,
James Curry Publishers, Oxford, 1999, p. 23
For journal articles, the publisher and place of
publication are not given, but the volume numbers
and dates should be included.
Example:
P Henshaw, “The ‘Key to South Africa’ in the 1890s:
the chicago
Delagoa Bay and the Origins of the South African
War” Journal of Southern African Studies, Vol. 24,
manual of style
No.3, September 1998, p. 527 Another internationally-recognised system for
referencing is the Chicago Manual of Style.
The footnotes for subsequent references to the
same source do not repeat all the details again, but The Chicago Manual of Style, University of Chicago
use a shortened form. Press, University of Chicago Press, 2003.
Examples:
Ranger, Voices from the Rocks, pp. 150–155.
Contacts for advice and help on referencing:
Henshaw, “The ‘Key to South Africa’”, p. 528. Darlene Maxwell, Special Collections and
Services Manager
If you use two or more different publications by the extension: 4234. email: darlene.maxwell@rca.ac.uk
same author, you also need to include part of the
title to distinguish publications by the same author. Cathy Johns, Assistant Librarian
Example: extension: 4219. email: cathy.johns@rca.ac.uk
Ranger, Aspects of Central African History, p. 29
Sometimes you may want to refer to an author
who has been cited by another author. Because
you have not read the original source, you must
list both sources.
Example:
J Brown, Gandhi’s Rise to Power, Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge, 1974, cited in S.
Wolpert, A New History of India, Oxford University
Press, New York, 2003, p. 203.
In your bibliography, only Wolpert, the source you 10
read, would be listed.
In compiling entries for a bibliography according
to the Oxford system, the punctuation and
capitalisation are the same as for footnotes with one
exception – the surname of the author comes before
initials in a bibliography entry (or the surname of
the first-listed author, if there is more than one).
Example:
Henshaw, P, “The ‘Key to South Africa’ in the 1890s:
Delagoa Bay and the Origins of the South African
War,” Journal of Southern African Studies, Vol. 24,
No.3, September 1998, pp. 527–544.
For further details, see: Robert M. Ritter, The Oxford
Style Manual, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2003.
chapter
“I have now reached a stage where I both write
from and through the practice and practice
from and through writing. I do not seek to
validate my work through theory, but rather to
create a feedback loop between the two that
hopefully enriches both.”
Marilène Oliver-Poulsen,
MPhil student, Printmaking

11 core bibliograpy 11
98 // core bibliography // research rca handbook 08·09
recommended
reading 2008–09
General
Research in Art and Design
Allthorpe-Guyton, M. and Payne, A. (eds) (2000),
Research and the Artist: Considering the Role of
the Art School, Oxford: OUP
Barrett, E and Bolt, B (2007) Practice as Research:
Approaches to Creative Arts Enquiry, London:
IB Taurus
Brew, A. (2001), The Nature of Research. Inquiry in
Academic Contexts: Routledge Falmer Research
Brockbank, A. and McGill, I. (2007), Reflection and
Reflective Practice, Facilitating Reflective Learning
in Higher Education, London: McGraw-Hill
De Ville, N. and Foster, S. (eds) (1994), The Artist
and the Academy: Issues in Fine Art Education and
the Wider Cultural Context, Southampton: John
Hansard Gallery
Frayling, C. (1993), Research in Art and Design,
Royal College of Art Research Papers [1]. London:
Royal College of Art
Graves, D. (2002), Art as a Rational Activity,
Journal of Aesthetic Education, 36 (4), 1–14
Gray, C. and Malins, J. (1999), The Digital Thesis:
Recent Developments in Practice-based PhD
Research in Art and Design, Digital Creativity,
10 (1), 18–28
Harrild, A. Frayling, C. Painter, C. and Woodham, J.
(1998), Transcript of Research Seminar on Practice-
based Doctorates in Creative and Performing Arts
and Design, Surrey Institute of Art and Design
Hill, P. (1995), Is there a Doctor in the Art School?
Arts Monthly, Australia
Holridge, L. and Macleod, K. (2003), The Doctorate
in Fine Art: The Importance of Exemplars to
Research Culture, The International Journal of Art &
Design Education 23 (2)
Macleod K. and Holdridge L. (2006) Thinking
Through Art: Reflections on Art as Research, London
and New York: Routledge
Newbury, D. (1996), Knowledge and Research in Art
and Design, Design Studies, 17 (2), 215–9
Newbury, D. (1996), Research Perspectives in Art
and Design Birmingham: The Research Training
Initiative, University of Central England
Strandman, P. (ed). (1998), No Guru, No Method?
Discussions on Art and Design Research, Helsinki:
University of Art and Design Helsinki
Weisberg, R. (1999), Creativity and Knowledge:
a Challenge to Theories, Stemberg, R. (ed).,
Handbook of Creativity, Cambridge: CUP, 226–50.
Research Skills/Techniques
Bauer, M.W. and Gaskell, G. (eds) (2000), Qualitative
Researching with Text, Image and Sound: A Practical
Handbook, Sage
Bizell, P. (1992), Academic Discourse and Critical
Consciousness. Pittsburgh, PA and London:
University of Pittsburgh Press
Booth, W., Colomb, G. and Williams, J. (1995), The
Craft of Research, Chicago: University of Chicago
Press
Campbell, A. (2007), An Ethical Approach to
Practitioner Research, London: Routledge
Cryer, P. (2000), The Research Student’s Guide to
Success, Buckingham: Open University Press
Denzin, N.K. and Lincoln, Y.S. (2003), The Landscape
of Qualitative Research: Theories and Issues (2nd
edition), Sage (Chapters 1, 6 and Part III)
Fairbairn, G.J. and Winch, C. (1991) Reading, Writing
and Reasoning: A Guide for Students. Buckingham
and Philadelphia: Open University Press
Gray, C. (1995), Developing a Research Procedures
Programme for Artists and Designers. Aberdeen:
Centre for Research into Art and Design, Robert
Gordon University
Gray, C. and Malins, J. (2004), Visualising
Research, Ashgate.
Gray, C. and Pirie, I. (1995), Artistic research
procedure: research at the edge of chaos? in Design
Interfaces Conference, Vol.3. Salford: The European
Academy of Design, University of Salford
Kaplan, D. (2004), The Sage Handbook of
Quantitative Methodology for the Social Sciences,
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Mason, J. (2001), Researching Your Own Practice:
The Discipline of Noticing, Routledge Falmer
Newbury, D. (1996), Designing and Managing a
Research Project, in Birmingham: The Research
Training Initiative, University of Central England
Petre, M. & Rugg, G. (2004), The Unwritten Rules of
PhD Research, Buckingham: Open University Press.
Robson, C. (2003), Real World Research:
A Resource for Social Scientists and Practitioner
Researchers, Blackwell
Schön, D. (1991), The Reflective Practitioner: How
Professionals Think in Action. Aldershot: Arena
Seago, A. (1995). Research Methods for MPhil and
PhD Students in Art and Design: Contrasts and
Conflicts in Royal College of Art Research Papers
1 (3), London: Royal College of Art
Seago, A. and Dunne, A. (1999), New Methodologies
in Art and Design Research: The Object as Discourse
Design Studies, 15 (2).
Walliman, N. (2005) Your Research Project:
A Step-by-Step Guide for the First-time Researcher,
Sage Publications
Wisker, G. (2001), The Postgraduate Research
Handbook, Palgrave
Writing/Completing an MPhil/PhD
Jackson, C. and Tinkler, P. (2004), The Doctoral
Examination Process: A Handbook for Students,
Examiners and Supervisors: Open University Press.
Macleod, K. (2000), The Function of the Written
Text in Practice-based PhD Submissions
http://www.herts.ac.uk/artdes1/research/papers/
wpades/vol1/macleod2.html
Macleod, K. and Holdridge, L. (2004), “The
Doctorate in Fine Art: The Importance of Exemplars
to the Research Culture”, International Journal of
Art and Design Education 23 (2), 156–68
Marshall, S. (2006), Your PhD Companion:
How to Books
Murray, R. (2003), How to Survive Your Viva:
Defending a Thesis in an Oral Examination:
Open University Press
Phillips, E. (2005), How to Get a PhD: A Handbook
for Students and Their Supervisors: Study Skills
Winter, R., Griffiths, M. and Green, K. (2000), 11
“The ‘academic’ Qualities of Practice: What are
the Criteria for a Practice-based PhD?”, Studies
in Higher Education, 25 (1), 25–37
100 // core bibliography // research rca handbook 08·09
subject-specific
texts
Applied Arts
Barnett, P. et al (1985), Craft Matters: 3 Attitudes to
Contemporary Craft, London: John Hansard Gallery
Dormer, P., Harrod, T., Hill, R., Roscoe, B. (1992),
Arts & Craft to Avant-Garde, London: South
Bank Centre
Dormer, P. (1994), The Art of the Maker, London:
Thames and Hudson
Dormer, P. and Turner, R. (1985), The New Jewelry:
Trends and Traditions, London: Thames and Hudson
Drutt English, H. and Dormer, P. (1995), Jewelry
of Our Time, London: Thames and Hudson.
Frank, I. (2000), The Theory of Decorative Art –
An Anthology of European and American Writings,
New York, NY: Yale University Press
Game, A. and Goring E. (1998), Jewellery Moves,
Scotland: NMS Publishing
Gaspar, M. and Jönsson, L. (eds), Think Tank: A
European Initiative for the Applied Arts – Annual
Publication, Austria: Salzkammergut Media
Grant, C. (2005), New Directions in Jewellery,
London: Black Dog
Greenhaugh, P. (2002), The Persistence of Craft,
London: A&C Black.
Harrod, T. and Clifford, H. (eds) (1997), Obscure
Objects of Desire: Reviewing the Crafts in the
Twentieth Century, London: Crafts Council
Harrod, T. (1999), The Crafts in Britain in the
Twentieth Century, London: Yale University Press.
Johnson, P. (ed) (1998), Ideas in the Making:
Practice in theory, London: Crafts Council.
Jönsson, L. (2005), Craft in Dialogue: Six Views on
a Practice in Change, Sweden: IASPIS
Design Forty, A. (1986), Objects of desire: Design and
Society since 1750, London: Thames and Hudson
Lees-Maffei, G. and Sandino, L. (eds) (2004), Journal
Braun, T. (2004), The Philosophy of Branding:
Great Philosophers Think Brands, Kogan Page
Gartman, D. (1994), Auto Opium: A Social History
of Design History Special Issue. Dangerous Liaisons: of American Automobile Design. London: Routledge
Buchanan, R., Doordan, D., Justice, L. and Margolin,
Relationships between Design, Craft and Art, 17 (3)
V. (eds) (1999), Doctoral Education in Design.
Hill, D. (2003), Body of Truth, John Wiley & Sons
Pittsburgh, PA: Carnegie Mellon University
Mischler, E. (1999), Storylines: Craft artists’
Narratives of Identity, Cambridge, MA, and London: Hill, J. (2007), Immaterial Architecture, Routledge
Clark, K. (2004), Brandscendence: Three Essential
Harvard University Press
Elements of Enduring Brands, Chicago: Dearborn
Hill, J. (2003) Actions of Architecture: Architects
Trade Publishing
New Craft – Future Voices International and Creative Users, Routledge
Conference (2007), collected papers and
Conekin, B. Cox, C. and Breward, C. (2002),
submissions are available online at: Ingraham, C. (1998), Architecture and the Burdens of
The Englishness of English Dress, Oxford and
http://www.newcraftfuturevoices.com/module/ Linearity, New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
New York: Berg
view-submissions/listfullpapers/
Jeamsinkul, C. and Sawasdichai, N. (2002),
Cross, N. (ed) (1984), Developments in
Stair, J. (ed) (2000), The Body Politic: The Role “Perspectives on Building a Foundation for Design
Design Methodology, Chichester and New York:
of the Body and Contemporary Craft, London: Research: Annotated Principles and Methods of
John Wiley & Sons
Crafts Council Design Research List”, Visible Language, 2 (36),
Helmer Poggenpohl
Cross, N. (2001), “Designerly Ways of Knowing:
Veiteberg, J. (2005), Craft in Transition, Bergen,
Design Discipline Versus Design Science”, Design
Norway: Bergen National Academy of the Arts Jones, J.C. (1992), Design Methods: Seeds of
Issues, 17, (3)
Human Futures, John Wiley & Sons
Zellweger, C. (2007), Foreign Bodies, Spain: Actar
Cross, N., Christiaans, H. and Dorst, K. (eds)
Julier, G. (2000), The Culture of Design,
(1996) Analysing Design Activity, Chichester, UK:
London: Sage
John Wiley & Sons
Kazmierczak, E.T. (2003), “Design as Meaning
De Luca, J. and Lopiano-Misdom, J. (1998),
Making: From Making Things to the Design of
Street Trends, New York: Harper Business
Thinking”, Design Issues, 19 (2)
Dorst, K. and Cross, N. (2001) “Creativity in the
Kiley, D. (2004), Driven: Inside BMW,
Design Process: Co-evolution of Problem-Solution”,
John Wiley & Sons 11
Design Studies 22 (5), 425–437
Kroes, P. (2002), “Design Methodology and the
Durling, D. (2002). “Discourses on Research and
Nature of Technical Artefacts’, Design Studies, 23
the PhD in Design”, Quality Assurance in Education,
10 (2), 79–85
Kress, G.R. and Van Leeuwen, T. (2006), Reading
Images: The Grammar of Visual Design, London and
Durling, D. and Friedman, K. (2000), Doctoral
New York: Routledge
Education in Design: Foundations for the Future,
Staffordshire University Press
Laurel, B. (ed) (2003), Design Research: Methods
and Perspectives, Cambridge, MA, and London:
Evamy, M. (2003), World Without Words,
MIT Press
Watson Guptill
Lawson, B. (1997), How Designers Think: The Design
Evans, C. (2007), Fashion at the Edge: Spectacle,
Process Demystified, London: Architectural Press,
Modernity, and Deathliness, New Haven, CT:
3rd edition
Yale University Press
102 // core bibliography // research rca handbook 08·09
McDonough, W. (2002), Cradle to Cradle:
Remaking the Way We Make Things, New York:
North Point Press
Olins, W. (2003), On Brand, Thames and Hudson
Orna, E, and Stevens, G (1995), Managing
Information for Research, Buckingham: Open
University Press
Oxman, R. (2004), “Think-Maps: Teaching Design
Thinking in Design Education”, Design Studies, 25
Riezebos, R. (2003), Brand Management: A
Theoretical and Practical Approach, FT Prentice Hall
Roth, S. (1999), “The State of Design Research”,
Design Issues, 2 (2)
Schön, D. (1983), The Reflective Practitioner,
New York: Basic Books
Scott, P., (1993), The Book of Silk, London:
Thames and Hudson
Sparke, P., (1995), As Long As It’s Pink: The Sexual
Politics of Taste, London: Harper Collins
Whiteley, N. (1985) “Pop, Consumerism, and the
Design Shift.” Design Issues, II (2), 31–45
Zeisel, J. (1984), Inquiry by Design, Cambridge: CUP
Communication Arts
Carpenter, E. and McLuhan, M. (eds) (1970),
Explorations in Communication, London:
Jonathan Cape
Coles, A. (ed) (2007), Design and Art, Cambridge,
MA: MIT Press
Curtis, D. (2007), A History of British Artists’ Film
and Video, London: BFI
Gerber, A. (2004), All Messed Up: Unpredictable
Graphics, London: Laurence King
Hamlyn, N. (2003), Film Art Phenomena,
London: BFI
Kress, G. (2003), Literacy in the New Media Age,
London and New York: Routledge
Le Grice, M. (2001), Experimental Film in the Digital
Age, London: BFI
Manovich, L. (2001), The Language of New Media,
Cambridge, MA: MIT Press
Massumi, B. (2002), Parables for the Virtual:
Movement, Affect, Sensation, Durham, NC and
London: Duke University Press
Rieser, M. and Zapp, A. (eds) (2002), New Screen
Media, London: BFI
Weibel, P. and Shaw, J. (eds) (2003), Future Cinema:
The Cinematic Imaginary After Film, Cambridge, MA:
MIT Press
Fine Art, Critical and Curatorial Practice Lomax, Y. (2000), Writing the Image: An Adventure
with Art and Theory, London: I. B. Taurus
Arnheim, R. (1969), Visual Thinking, Berkeley, CA,
and London: University of California Press
Maclagan, D. (2001), Psychological Aesthetics:
Painting, Feeling and Making Sense, London and
Arnold, D. and Iverson M. (eds) (2003), Art and
Philadelphia, PA: Jessica Kingsley
Thought, Oxford: Blackwell
Martin, F.D. (1981), Sculpture and Enlivened Space:
Bryson, N. (1983), Vision and Painting: The Logic
Aesthetics and History, Lexington, KY: University
of the Gaze, London: Macmillan
Press of Kentucky
Cazeaux, C. (ed.) (2000), The Continental Aesthetics
Melville, S. and Readings, B. (eds) (1995), Vision
Reader, London: Routledge
and Textuality, Durham, NC: Duke University Press
Davies, D. (2004), ART as Performance,
Mey, K. (ed) (2005), Art in the Making: Aesthetics,
Oxford: Blackwell
Historicity and Practice, London: Peter Lang
Deleuze, G. and Guattari, F. (1994), What is
Robbin, T. (1992), Fourfield: Computers, Art and
Philosophy?, trans. G. Burchell and H. Tomlinson,
the Fourth Dimension, Boston, MA: Little Brown
London: Verso
Young, J. (2001), Art and Knowledge, Routledge.
Duvenage, P. (2003), Habermas and Aesthetics:
The Limits of Communicative Reason, Cambridge:
Polity Press
Elkins, J. (1998), On Pictures and the Words that
Fail Them, Cambridge: CUP
Elkins, J. (2000), Our Beautiful, Dry, and Distant
Texts, New York and London: Routledge
Emmer, M. (ed) (1993), The Visual Mind, Cambridge,
MA, and London: MIT Press
11
Gell, A. (1998), Art and Agency: An Anthropological
Theory, Oxford: Clarendon Press
Harrison, C. and Wood, P. (eds) (2002), Art in
Theory 1900–1990: An Anthology of Changing Ideas,
Oxford: Blackwell
Heusser, M. (ed) (1999), Text and Visuality: Word and
Image Interactions III, Amsterdam: Rodopi.
Heywood, I. and Sandywell, B. (eds) (1999),
Interpreting Visual Culture: Explorations in the
Hermeneutics of the Visual, London: Routledge
104 // core bibliography // research rca handbook 08·09
useful websites
for researchers
Partially recommended by Darren Newbury (ed)
in The Research Training Initiative, Birmingham
Institute of Art and Design
HERO
http://www.hero.ac.uk
HERO is the official gateway to universities,
colleges and research organisations in the UK.
It includes information on higher education
institutions, universities and colleges and the
latest university news.
Department for Innovation, Universities
and Skills
http://www.dius.gov.uk/
The government department responsible for
Higher Education in the UK.
The UK Grad Programme
http://www.grad.ac.uk/
This site has a wealth of material on research skills,
the development of research careers and so on.
It is of use to research students and supervisors.
CRAC Careers Research and Advisory Centre
http://www.crac.org.uk/
CRAC is the independent, national organisation
dedicated to supporting career development
and active, career related learning.
Graduate Prospects
The UK’s official graduate careers website
http://www.prospects.ac.uk/
JISCmail
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/
The United Kingdom National Academic Mailing List
Service, JISCmail is the hosting service for electronic
discussion lists across all subject areas. The website
contains information the many subject-based lists
and how to join them.
Kovacs Directory of Scholarly and
Professional E-Conferences
UK Council for Graduate Education
Produces reports and conducts conferences about
http://www.kovacs.com/directory/
An international database of professional and
graduate education in the UK. The site includes links
to reports and information about the latest advances
academic electronic discussion lists which can in graduate education.
be searched by keyword. http://www.ukcge.ac.uk/
National Postgraduate Committee Internet Public Library
http://www.npc.org.uk/ Run by a consortium of colleges and universities
The website for the United Kingdom organisation with courses in information science. It has links to
for postgraduate students. The site contains websites, organisations, online journals and books
useful information for students and discussions in all subject fields.
on postgraduate issues, as well as links to http://www.ipl.org/
further resources and equivalent organisations
in other countries. The Internet is now so large and changes so rapidly
that it is simply impossible to catalogue its contents
Intute across the art, design and media subject range.
http://intute.ac.uk/ Some library sites do a good job of listing subject-
Free online service providing you with access to the based resources (see, for example, the ‘i page’ at the
very best web resources for education and research. London Institute http://www.linst.ac.uk/library/),
Created by a network of UK universities and but even these will only cover a proportion of what is
partners. Includes online training modules on using available. It is important for researchers themselves
the web as a research resource. to learn to search the Internet effectively, and begin
building up their own sets of useful websites based
BUBL Information Service on their specific research interests.
http://www.bubl.ac.uk/
This is very useful general information resource
covering all academic subject areas.
British Library
http://www.bl.uk/
Includes a link to the online British Library
Public Catalogue.
11
ZETOC
http://zetoc.mimas.ac.uk/alertguide.html
Only available to students based in UK institutions,
this site allows you to set up an email alerting
service for particular journals or user-defined
keywords.
Working Papers in Art and Design
Link to an online journal produced by the University
of Hertfordshire dealing with developments within
art and design research.
http://www.herts.ac.uk/artdes1/research/papers/
wpades/index.html
12
chapter

“The Research Methods Course has been a

fantastic tool to enable me to understand how
to put together and plan my research, but
also the nuts and bolts of things such as using
the library effectively and how to go about
finding the various elements I need. It has
even given me a helpful insight into the dread
subject of health and safety.”
Steve Brown, PhD student, Ceramics & Glass

guide to libraries 12
108 // guide to libraries // research rca handbook 08·09
Architectural Association Library
Address: 36 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3ES
Underground: Tottenham Court Road
Term-time opening: 10am–8pm Mon–Fri,
1am–3pm Sat
Vacation opening:10am–6pm Mon–Fri
(see website for exceptions)
tel: 020 7887 4032
email: hsklar@aaschool.ac.uk (Hinda Sklar)
http://www.aaschool.ac.uk
(includes online catalogue)
Specialist area: Literature on architecture, mainly
in English but including many foreign publications.
History of architecture, current practice, theory,
interior design and landscape design.
Admission procedure: AA members only. Student
membership costs £40 per year, plus a £10
enrolment fee.
Type of library: Open stacks.
Laptops: Welcome.
Photocopying: Self-service, 10p per page.
Photography: AA members can take books
downstairs to the photography studio.
Internet terminals: Yes, but no email access.
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: Art Index, Avery Index
and API are available online. There are also special
architecture CD ROMs, including Pevsner’s Buildings
of England, The Ultimate Frank Lloyd Wright, Fosters
& Partners and Josep Lluis Mateo.
Website: The website has 40 ready-to-print
bibliographies of artists and architects, including
David Chipperfield, Peter Smithson, Gordon Matta-
Clark and Tadashi Kawamata.
Archive: Has a strong Modern movement collection
with original Bauhausbucher, books by Le Corbusier,
Berlage, etc. and 19th-Century material, since the
library was established in 1863.
Birkbeck College, University of London
Address: Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX
Underground: Goodge Street, Tottenham Court Road
Term-time opening: 10am–10:30pm Mon–Fri.
Access restricted during term-time for non-
University of London students. Phone for details
Vacation opening: Opening times vary – check
website. During the summer vacation you may
have access on a daily basis by showing your
home institution ID
tel: 020 7631 6063
email: library-help@bbk.ac.uk
http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/
Admission procedure: Non-Birkbeck students may
be eligible join the Library as an Affiliate Member.
Some form of photo ID (e.g. current ID from the
RCA, your passport or driving licence) is needed and
you will need to provide a recent passport-sized
photo of yourself. Affiliate members have access to
(for reference only):
• all material on open shelves
• the study spaces
• the Library catalogue
• the photocopiers
Access to library services: No visitors are
allowed access to PCs, electronic resources or
printing facilities.
Type of Library: Open stacks.
Laptops: Welcome.
Photocopying: Rechargeable card system. Copies
cost 5p for A4 (50p for colour) and 10p for A3
(£1 for colour).
British Architectural Library Photography: No cameras permitted in the library,
but reproductions of anything in the library are
Address: Royal Institute of British Architects,
available for a fee (020 7307 3627, or email:
66 Portland Place, London WC1N 4AD
photo@inst.riba.org)
Underground: Oxford Circus, Regent’s Park,
Great Portland Street
Internet terminals: Internet use is restricted to
Opening times: Closed Mon & Sun, 10am–8pm Tues,
architectural resources only. No print facilities
10am–5pm Wed–Fri, 10am–1.30pm Sat
are available.
Closed to non-members during August.
tel: 020 7307 3600 (members’ information line)
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: Two terminals are
0960 302 0400 (public information line –
dedicated to RIBA API, DAAI and Avery Index.
calls charged at 50p per minute)
There are also a number of architectural CD ROMs:
email: info@inst.riba.org
Construction Building Abstracts (CBA), Le Corbusier,
http://www.architecture.com
Pevsner’s Buildings of England, Glasgow on Disk,
http://www.riba-library.com
Scotland Listed Buildings, etc.
http://site.yahoo.net/riba-library/oncat.html
(online catalogue for publications after 1984)
Strengths: Periodicals. The library also has the most
comprehensive collection of architectural material
Specialist area: This is the largest architectural
in the UK and arguably in Europe; original editions
library in the UK, and covers all aspects of
of Bauhaus and Constructivist publications, together
architecture: theory, practice, history, landscape
with the journal De Stijl.
architecture, interior design and urban planning.
The scope is international, but with particular
Archives: The drawings, papers, correspondence
emphasis on the UK.
and Grand Tour notebooks of many British
architects, plus the letters of Lawrence of Arabia
Admission procedure: RIBA members only. Buy a
to Herbert Baker.
day ticket (reference only) from the bookshop on
the ground floor – the student rate is £6. Tuesday
evenings after 5pm and Saturdays are half price,
i.e. £3. To become a member it’s best to consult
the elaborate instructions on the website.
Type of library: Most books published after 1955
are on open stacks, as well as magazines. The rest
of the material is closed stacks.
Requisition time: Five minutes. Advance orders can
be made by email or phone. 12
Laptops: Welcome.
Photocopying: Self-service with a copy card (£5,
of which £1 is for the card). A4 is 15p (14p with a
card), A3 is 30p (28p with a card). There is also a
colour copier: A4 is £1 (90p with a card), A3 is £1.40
(£1.20 with a card).
110 // guide to libraries // research rca handbook 08·09
British Council Visual Arts Library
Address: British Council,
10 Spring Gardens, London SW1A 2BN
Underground: Charing Cross
Opening times: None – by appointment only
tel: 020 7389 3050
fax: 020 7389 3101
email: stella.harpley@britishcouncil.org
http://www.britishcouncil.org/arts-art-
architecture-design-library.htm
Admissions procedure: The library is mainly for
use by British Council staff and affiliates. However,
access is granted to external researchers by
appointment – contact Stella Harpley at the above
email to arrange this.
Collection information: The library mainly contains
information on artists born or living in Britain. While
it contains a large selection of books and pamphlets,
its greatest asset is its collection of exhibition
catalogues and biographical information on both
well-known and emerging artists. The website has
an online catalogue.
British Film Institute Library
Address: 21 Stephen Street, London W1P 2LN
Underground: Tottenham Court Road
Opening times: 10.30am–5.30pm Mon & Fri,
10.30am–8pm Tues & Thurs, 1pm–8pm Wed
tel: 020 77255 1444 x 2120
fax: 020 7436 2338
email: library@bfi.org.uk
http://www.bfi.org.uk/nationallibrary/
http://www.lib.bfi.org.uk/cgi-bin/w207.sh
(online catalogue)
Specialist area: British and international film
and television: theory, monographs, catalogues
and magazines.
Admission procedure: A day pass is £6, a weekly
pass is £15 (valid for five consecutive days), and
an annual pass is £20 (£33 for non-students).
It is recommended to ring in advance and reserve
a place, as the library does not sell day passes
when the reading rooms are full.
Type of library: Mainly closed stacks, reference only.
A large number of periodicals are on open stacks.
Three books may be requested at any one time.
Requisition time: Between five minutes and an hour.
Advance orders can be made by phone.
Laptops: Welcome.
Photocopying: Self-service with a copy card: £1 for
8 copies, £4 for 40 copies. Colour copies are done
by staff (A4 is £1, A3 is £2).
Photography: Permitted on Wednesday mornings
following the signing of a declaration that the images
are not for commercial use.
Internet terminals: One.
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: There are several
terminals on which to consult Art Index, BHI, FII,
FIAF and SIFT. There are also many film CD ROMs:
American Film Institute Catalogue, Cinemagic2,
Italian Film and Video, TuttoFellini (see online
catalogue for full list).
Website: Has downloadable bibliographies on many
subjects, including Black Representation in Cinema,
Horror, David Lynch, Mexican Cinema, Hitchcock (for
full list, see http://www.bfi.org.uk/nationallibrary/
collections/bibliographies/index.html). They also
have a number of downloadable thematic study
guides: 60s British Cinema, War Films, Censorship,
Strong Women, etc.
Strengths: The BFI’s own SIFT database, which is
very comprehensive. The press cuttings collection
(on micro film) which goes back to the 1920s. The
free information service by email and phone.
Archives: The BFI’s special collection holds lots of
bizarre material, from NFT audio tapes to BECTU
trade union interviews with cameramen, technicians,
etc. They also hold the papers of Derek Jarman,
Peter Greenaway and Joseph Losey.
Stills Department: Advance orders: These can be made by email
tel: 020 7957 4797 (reader-service-enquiries@bl.uk). Include the
email: stills.films@bfi.org.uk reader’s card number and the call number of the
By appointment only. book – which can be checked on the BL public
catalogue (http://blpc.bl.uk).
Seven million stills from films and TV programmes
worldwide, along with (off-site) a vast collection Laptops: Welcome.
of posters and costume design. Photocopies of
images and reproductions are available for a fee. Photocopying: Self-service in Humanities with a
NB. The collection lags about one year behind a £1 copy card. All copies (A3 and A4) are 20p
film’s release date, as the stills are all images used – photocopy each page singly. An expensive option
by the press. is to order photocopies remotely by writing to the
Reproductions Department (reproductions@bl.uk),
giving full details of the work, page numbers, type
The British Library of photocopy required and the call number (but this
is circa £15 for 1–10 pages).
Address: 96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB
Underground: King’s Cross, Euston
Photography: This is complicated and expensive. To
Opening times: 10am–8pm Mon, 9.30am–8pm
take a photograph from a book, written permission
Tues–Thurs, 9.30am–5pm Fri–Sat
from the author and/or publisher is required. The
tel: 020 7412 7677 (Admissions)
charge is over £25 a print (£15 per slide).
020 7412 7676 (Humanities Reading Room enquiries)
020 7412 7288 (Science, Technology)
Internet terminals: Each Humanities reading room
020 7412 7353 (Newspaper Library)
has an electronic resources room containing two
http://www.bl.uk
Internet terminals and four CD Rom terminals.
http://www.bl.uk/catalogues (online catalogue)
The Internet terminals need to be booked in advance
at the Information Desk. Printouts require
Specialist area: All material published in the UK
a photocopy card. No email access.
from 19th-Century to the Present.
Humanities Reading Room: national reference
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: The British Library’s
collection of printed material in all languages except
exhaustive array of bibliographic CD ROMs is located
Oriental, on all subjects except science
next to the internet terminals, along with online
and technology.
databases accessible via the intranet. There are two
Newspaper Library: as well as newspapers, British
ways to access these: (i) via Netscape (the home
weekly and fortnightly periodicals.
page lists them by title and by subject), and (ii) by
clicking on Start/Programs/Periodical Indexes. This
Admission procedure: Reader’s card (free).
latter route links to Art Index, Philosopher’s Index 12
Bring an NUS ID card
and more. Printouts can be with a photocopy card.
Type of library: Reference only, closed stacks.
Newspapers: The British Library’s newspaper
However, reference material and bibliographies are
holdings are held in Colindale Avenue, London NW9
on open shelves: hard volumes of ABM and Art
5HE. A Reader’s card is required for access.
Index are at HUR 701.6 (Humanities 2). Art reference
books (HLR 703-709) and architecture books
(HLR 720-28) are in Humanities 1.
Requisition time: Most books come within an
hour. However, a lot of art books are in the
Document Supply Centre and take at least 24
hours to be delivered.
112 // guide to libraries // research rca handbook 08·09
The Conway Library
Address: Courtauld Institute of Art,
Somerset House, The Strand, London WC2R 0RN
Underground: Temple, Holborn, Charing Cross
Opening times: 10am–6pm Mon–Fri
tel: 020 7848 2782
email: geoffrey.fisher@courtauld.ac.uk
http://www.courtauld.ac.uk/research/
photographic/conway/index.shtml
(no online catalogue)
Specialist area: Over a million photographs and
reproductions of architecture and architectural
drawings and sculpture from Ancient Greece to the
present day, illuminated manuscripts, stained glass
and applied art. The Western tradition is covered
from Antique/Classical period to the present.
Everything is filed on cards, like the Witt, but this
time the box files are red.
Admission procedure: Free.
No appointment necessary.
Lockers: Located just outside the Courtauld Library.
Photocopying: No copiers in the library, but access
to the Witt’s copier is permitted.
Photography: Not permitted. Reproductions have
to be ordered via the library.
Internet terminals: None. The library isn’t digitally
catalogued, but they do have the Bildarchiv
FotoMarburg (The Marburg Index, a German picture
archive) on microfiche.
Strengths: Many of the photographs are taken by
Courtauld staff for teaching so the quality is high
and negatives, mostly black and white, are held in
the building.
Courtauld Institute of Art
Address: Somerset House,
The Strand, London WC2R 0RN
Underground: Temple, Holborn, Charing Cross
Term time opening: 9.30am–9pm Mon–Fri
Vacation opening: 10.30am–5pm Mon–Fri
tel: 020 7848 2701 (enquiries)
email: booklib@courtauld.ac.uk
http://www.courtauld.ac.uk
http://library.kcl.ac.uk/ALEPH/start/cia
(online catalogue)
Specialist area: History of Fine Art in Europe and
the European tradition, from the classical period
to today.
Admission procedure: RCA students can obtain a
short-term external readers ticket. Take a student
i-d card and proof of address. During the term it
is recommended to phone ahead. A bar-coded card
will be issued.
Type of library: Mainly open stacks. Some special
collections are closed access, and are retrieved only
three times a day – in which case, send an email
request to save time.
Laptops: Welcome. Some tables in the gallery area
are devoted to laptop users.
Photocopying: 5p for A4, 10p for A3, coins only.
No colour copies. The Librarian’s approval is
required for everything that is copied.
Photography: Cameras are permitted in the library.
Internet: There are five terminals. No email access.
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: RAA, RILA, BHA, ABM,
API and Art Index. There is no printer, but downloads
to disk are permitted.
Strengths: Exhibition catalogues are in open-access
rolling stacks for easy browsing. The periodical
holdings on open stacks are excellent.
Crafts Council Library and Resources Centre
Address: Crafts Council,
44a Pentonville Road, London, N1 9BY
Underground: Angel, King’s Cross
Opening times: Visits can be arranged for
10am–1pm or 2pm–5pm on Wed and Thurs.
Contact the Research & Information Team
in advance.
tel: 020 7806 2502
fax: 020 7833 4479
email: rbrockhurst@craftscouncil.org.uk
http://www.craftscouncil.org.uk/ref/index.html
Collection information: National Register of Makers
A unique database of UK based designer-makers
working in contemporary craft.
Photostore: An online index of craft makers
selected by the Council’s panel of contemporary
craft experts. You can also search images from the
Crafts Council’s archive, and objects in the Crafts
Council collection.
Resources Directory : A database of over 700 craft
organisations, including listings of workshop spaces,
short courses, craft fair organisers, funding bodies
and craft guilds.
Geffrye Museum:
Domestic Interiors Study Centre
Address: Kingsland Road, Shoreditch,
London E2 8EA
tel: 020 7739 9893
email: curatorial@geffrye-museum.org.uk
http://www.geffrye-museum.org.uk/
domesticinteriors/
Collection information and admission procedure:
The museum has a comprehensive library and
furniture trade archive in addition to a specialist
enquiry service. Should you wish to speak with the
Curatorial department, contact by phone or email.
Admission to the library is by appointment only.
Hyman Kreitman Research Centre Tate Britian
Address: Millbank, London SW1P 4RG
Underground: Pimlico
Opening times: 10am–5pm Mon–Fri
tel: 020 7887 8838
email: research.centre@tate.org.uk
http://www.tate.org.uk/researchservices/
researchcentre
Specialist area: British art from the Renaissance
to the present and international modern art
– i.e. literature that backs up the Tate’s collection
– plus museum management, curatorship and
conservation.
Admission procedure: Book in advance for limited
reader spaces. An NUS ID card and two photographs
are required for a reader’s card and a letter of
reference from the RCA in order to register fully.
Type of library: Reference only, closed stacks.
Bibliographic volumes and current art magazines
are kept on open shelves in the reading room.
Requisition time: Books are collected every
half-hour.
Laptops: Welcome, but limited spaces.
Photocopying: Self-service, and expensive:
A4 is 20p, A3 is 40p.
Photography: Permitted for personal research
purposes only, following the completion of a form.
Internet terminals: Four. Printouts are free,
although an A4 colour print costs £1. 12
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: Art Index, ABM
and Wilson Art Abstracts are on each internet
terminal. CD ROMs are kept behind the librarian’s
desk: Edward Hopper, Musée d’Orsay, National
Gallery, New York MOMA, etc. The open shelves
have many bibliographical finds – such as the
Index Expressionismus (1972), Encyclopaedia
of Aesthetics (OUP, 1998), and a Futurism
bibliography (1976).
114 // guide to libraries // research rca handbook 08·09

Strengths: International art magazines. Press
cuttings on British art and files on every British artist
are kept in closed stacks and need to be requested:
the most comprehensive and user-friendly
contemporary art resource in London.
Imperial College Library
Address: Central Library, Imperial College London,
South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ
Underground: South Kensington
Opening times: 9.30am–7pm Mon–Fri,
9.30am–5.30pm Sat, CLOSED Sun
tel: 020 7594 8820
fax: 020 7594 8876
email: library@imperial.ac.uk
http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/library
Admission procedure: Students and staff of the
Royal College of Art and Royal College of Music may
join the Central Library on the South Kensington
campus as local borrowers. Please apply for a card
at the Registration Desk on level 1.
You will need to complete a registration form and
show some identification and proof of your current
status. You will be required to provide your date
of birth on the registration form.
Electronic resources: Imperial College PCs and
access to the internet are not available to external
users. Some electronic database and journal titles
can be made available when our licences permit.
If there is a particular resource you wish to access,
contact the Central Library Help Desk.
Photocopying and printing: Guest cards may be
borrowed from the issue desk. Cost for an A4
sheet is 4p.
Strengths: Science & Technology, Engineering.
Special collections: The library holds a large number
of special collections on a wide range of subjects.
See their website for details.
inIVA Library
Address: 6–8 Standard Place, Rivington Street
London EC2A 3BE
Underground: Old Street
Opening times: 10am–1pm & 2pm–5pm Mon–Wed,
10am–7pm Thurs
tel: 020 7729 9616
email: library@iniva.org
http://www.iniva.org/library
(includes online catalogue)
Specialist area: Contemporary art from Africa,
Asia, Latin America and the work of British artists
from different cultural backgrounds.
Admission procedure: Book in advance – spaces
are limited, especially during term time. There is
a charge: £1 per day for students (on production
of a valid ID card), or £6 per year.
Type of library: Reference only, open stacks.
Laptops: Welcome.
Photocopying: Self-service, 10p A4, 20p A3.
Photography: Permitted for personal use.
Internet: Two terminals, which are also the
online catalogue. Print-outs are 10p per page.
No email access.
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: 170 approx CD ROMs
and DVDs, but there are a number of bibliographies
as hard-copy volumes: Latin American Women Art-
ists, The Arts of Africa, Nigerian Artists (look under
keyword ‘bibliography’ in the online catalogue).
Strengths: Non-Western art magazines. Substantial
collection of post-colonial and feminist critical
theory. The catalogue is simple but very detailed,
and throws up references from periodicals and
collections of essays.
Kensington and Chelsea Public Library
Address: Phillimore Walk, London W8 2RX
Underground: High Street Kensington
Opening times: 9:30am–8pm Mon (Children’s
6:30pm), 9:30am–8pm Tues (Children’s 6:30pm),
9:30am–5pm Wed, 9:30am–8pm Thurs (Children’s
6:30pm), 9:30am–5pm Fri, 9:30am–5pm Sat:
tel: 020 7361 3010
020 7361 3610 (24-Hour Renewals)
fax: 020 7361 2976
email: information.services@rbkc.gov.uk
http://www.rbkc.gov.uk/libraries/
Admissions policy: Services available to anybody
who lives, works or studies full-time in the Borough.
Facilities: Computers offering Internet, scanning and
word-processing are available throughout the library.
Laptops: Use only in designated areas.
Museum of Domestic Design and Architecture
(MODA) Study Room
Address: Middlesex University,
Cat Hill, Barnet, Herts, EN4 8HT
Opening times: 10am–5pm Tues–Sat.,
2pm–5pm Sun
tel: 020 8411 5445
email: moda@mdx.ac.uk
http://www.moda.mdx.ac.uk
Admissions procedure: The Study Room is a free
facility, open to everyone interested in finding out
more about MoDA’s collections. MoDA is able to
display only a limited number of items from its
collections, and the rest are held in the Collections
Store. Contact Maggie Wood on the above number
if you are interested in particular items not normally
displayed in the museum.
National Archives (Public Record Office)
Address: Ruskin Avenue, Kew, Richmond,
Surrey TW9 4DU
Underground: Kew Gardens
Opening times: 9am–5pm Mon, Wed, Fri
10am–7pm Tues, 9am–7pm Thurs,
9.30am–5pm Sat
tel: 020 8876 3444
http://nationalarchives.gov.uk/default.htm
Admission procedure: You must obtain a reader
ticket to visit the archives. Proof of identity is
required to get your reader ticket. You can
pre-register online. Reader tickets are valid for
3 years after the date of issue.
Collection information: The National Archives holds
the government or ‘public’ records of the United
Kingdom, England and Wales. Some private papers
such as those of Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald
are also held. The National Register of Archives,
which has information on British historical resources
that are held elsewhere, is also at Kew. Please be
aware that some public records are held locally.
Catalogues are available online. Low-usage items
are kept off-site and need to be requested. It is
recommended that you begin your search online
before making a trip to the actual archives.
Requisition time: 40 minutes
Ordering documents in advance: Up to three
documents can be ordered in advance of your
visit by telephone or email. Documents kept
off-site will be available at the Kew site within
three working days.
12
Copying Services: Copies of documents can be
ordered through the website or at the site.
See website for details.
Photography: Digital cameras can be used to
take photographs of some documents.
Laptops: Welcome in selected areas. The on-site
café has wireless internet access.
116 // guide to libraries // research rca handbook 08·09
Prohibited Items: You cannot use pens, coloured
pencils or scanners, in the reading rooms. No more
than one spiral-bound, stapled or sewn (not glued)
notepad – up to A4 size. Loose sheets of paper
may be taken into the reading rooms only after they
have been stapled together at the security desk.
National Art Library
Address: Victoria and Albert Museum,
Cromwell Road, London SW7 2RL
Underground: South Kensington
Opening times: 10am–5pm Tues–Sat
tel: 020 7942 2400
email: library@vam.ac.uk
http://www.nal.vam.ac.uk
(includes online catalogue)
Specialist area: The UK’s biggest collection of
documents about art, craft and design.
Admission procedure: Present student ID and
proof of home address. The options are either a
Temporary Ticket (three months, renewable) or
a Reader’s Ticket (three years, renewable, take 2
passport-sized photos). Both are free.
Type of library: Closed stacks, reference only – but
key reference materials (bibliographies, dictionaries,
encyclopaedias etc) are on open stacks near the
issue desk.
Requisition time: 25–45 minutes.
Advance orders: Up to six books (not periodicals)
can be ordered in advance by phone.
Laptops: Welcome.
Photocopying: 30p per sheet plus VAT, with a
minimum charge of £1.20 plus VAT on all orders).
Requests must be made by 4.30pm (otherwise
they will be sent by post). Ordering by phone is
expensive: the usual rate plus £5.
Photography: Pictures without flash are permitted
for personal research – following the completion of a
clearance form. A camera stand is also available.
tel: 020 7942 2484
Internet terminals: There are several terminals for
consulting CD ROMs. Printouts are 15p per page.
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: Online databases
include BHA, IAP, British Humanities Index, ABM, Art
Index & Retrospective, DAAI and Art Market Report.
There are many of CD ROMs too: type in ‘CD Rom’
under ‘Document Type/Physical Description’ on the
catalogue for a full list. Includes Edward Hopper,
Mayer International Auction Records, British Art
Collection, etc.
Website: The online catalogue contains
all acquisitions.
Strengths: Periodicals, exhibition catalogues
and sales catalogues. Design and decorative art
is particularly strong because of the V&A’s
collection. They also have a surprising amount
of contemporary theory.
Newspaper Library (part of the British Library)
Address: Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5HE
Underground: Colindale
Opening times: 10am–5pm Mon–Sat
tel: 020 7412 7353
fax: 020 7412 7379
email: newspaper@bl.uk
http://www.bl.uk/collections/newspapers.html
Admissions policy: Admission to the Newspaper
Reading Rooms is by Reader Pass; either a
Newspaper Reader Pass or a British Library
photographic Reader Pass, as issued by Reader
Registration at the British Library, St Pancras. A
Newspaper Reader Pass is available to anybody
over the age of 18 who needs to use the Newspaper
collections for research purposes, to consult
material not readily available in other libraries.
Newspaper Reader Passes are issued to applicants
in person in the Newspaper Reading Room. You
will need to show two forms of identification, one
proof of your identity (e.g. Passport, driving licence,
bank cheque card etc) and one proof of your
address (e.g. utility bill, bank statement, driving
licence with address etc.).
About the collection: The collection includes British Royal College of Art
and Overseas newspapers, popular magazines
Address: Kensington Gore, London SW7 2PU
and periodicals. They are available in hard copy, in
Underground: Knightsbridge, South Kensington,
microform and on CD-Rom for viewing. The website
High Street Kensington, Lancaster Gate
has an online catalogue and archive of some
Term-time opening: 9am–9pm Mon–Fri, 12–5pm Sat
newspapers (pilot scheme).
Vacation opening: 10am–5pm Mon–Fri
tel: 020 7590 4224
Copy services: photocopies, digital and microfilm
email: library@rca.ac.uk
copies of originals can be ordered from the Enquiry
http://www.rca.ac.uk/library
Desk in the Reading Room. There is a minimum
charge of £15.
Specialist area: General art and design and related
subjects, including architecture, photography, film
Facilities and use of the Reading Room: Ppencils,
and cinema. Also humanities related and some
not pens, must be used in the Reading Room. You
technical and scientific material.
may buy pencils at the Enquiries and Admissions
desk. The Newspaper Reading Room has 147
Admission procedure: Free for RCA students.
reader places. These include:
• 77 general seats for consulting hardcopy
Type of library: Open stacks. Back issues of
newspapers
periodicals are kept on closed stacks, which are
• 54 seats for readers viewing newspapers
ordered over the counter on special slips.
on microfilm
• two seats for readers viewing newspapers
Requisition time: For periodical and thesis material,
on microfiche
two or three collections are made per day.
• eight microfilm reader-printers
• six electronic resource workstations.
Laptops: Welcome.
There are also seven newspaper catalogue
Photocopying: Self-service, with a £1 card
terminals and one British Library Integrated
(this gives 50p worth of copies). A4 is 6p, A3 is 12p.
Catalogue terminal.
There is also a colour copier: A4 for 60p, A3 for £1.
Readers may use their own portable micro-
Photography: Permitted. Ask the library staff for
computers in the Reading Rooms and there are
a cameral stand, if required.
special facilities for readers who wish to use
their own typewriters or tape-recorders.
Internet terminals: One, with web access to
databases. Print outs from all terminals are free.
12
Bibliographies and CD ROMs: None – the library
subscribes to web-based databases only: Art Index,
ABM, DAAI, amongst others.
Strengths: The video and DVD collection is great
– both films (to borrow) and TV programmes
(to watch in the library).
118 // guide to libraries // research rca handbook 08·09
Royal Geographical Society –
Foyles Reading Room
(The RGS is on the opposite side of the
Albert Hall to the RCA)
Address: 1 Kensington Gore, London SW7 2AR
Underground: South Kensington
Opening times: 10am–5pm
tel: 020 7591 3000
fax: 020 7591 3001
http://www.rgs.org/SpecialInterests/students/
Foyle+Reading+Room.htm
Admission procedure: Access to the Reading Room
is open to anyone who wishes to view the Society’s
collections. To register as a reader bring ID (i.e.
driving license, RCA photo card, passport and
a recent utility bill). All readers are photographed
on registration. Access is free to those in formal
education (proof of educational status is required).
Collection information: The Society holds one of
the world’s pre-eminent geographical collections
at around 2 million items. Items include artefacts,
books and pamphlets, expedition journals, maps
and atlases, and manuscripts. There is also an
online photographic archive available.
Security and restrictions: Lockers are provided for
items which cannot be brought into the Reading
Room (£1 coin required as returnable deposit).
Cameras and other forms of copying equipment
are not allowed.
Science Museum Library
This is part of the Imperial College Central Library.
See the above entry on the ICL Library for details
on opening times etc.
St Bride Printing Library
Address: St Bride Institute,
Bride Lane, Fleet Street, London EC4Y 8EQ
Underground: Blackfriars
Opening times: 9.30am–5.30pm Mon–Fri
tel: 020 7533 4660
email: stbride@corpoflondon.gov.uk
http://www.stbride.org/stbride.htm
The library’s catalogue is online as part of the
Corporation of London’s library catalogue. University College London University of London Library
http://www.bookhad.ac.uk
Address: Main Library, Address: Fourth floor, Senate House,
Bookhad is a printing reference resource that
Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU
has catalogued part of the library’s collection,
Underground: Euston Square Underground: Russell Square
along with that of the London College of Printing
Term time opening: 8.45am–10.30pm Mon–Thurs, Term time opening: 9am–9pm Mon–Thurs,
and Manchester Metropolitan University.
8.45am–7pm Fri, 8.45am–4.30pm Sat 9am–6.30pm Fri, 9am–5.30pm Sat
Summer Vacation opening: 9.30am–7pm Mon–Fri Vacation opening: Consult website for details
Specialist area: Printing, papermaking and
tel: 020 7679 7793 tel: 020 7862 8500 (general)
bookbinding, publishing and bookselling,
email: library@ucl.ac.uk 020 7862 8461/2 (information centre)
newspapers and periodicals, illustration,
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library email: enquries@ull.ac.uk
graphic design, calligraphy and type.
(includes online catalogue) http://www.ull.ac.uk
Admission procedure: Free, no booking or
Specialist area: This is a multi-faculty library equiv- Specialist area: All subjects taught at the University
card required.
alent to other leading UK universities. The main of London: humanities, social sciences, philosophy,
library holds humanities, economics and law. history, literature, and media.
Type of library: Reference only, closed stacks. The
most popular books (contemporary not historical)
Admission procedure: The RCA is a participant in the Admission procedure: Visitors registered for a PhD
are in cabinets in the Reading Room, while the other
SCONUL Research Extra (SRX) borrowing scheme. or MPhil have free access (reference only) – but
93% of the collection is in closed stacks.
Therefore academic staff and research students can require a letter from the RCA confirming status.
obtain a borrowing ticket (5 books at a time). The Otherwise it’s expensive: student rates are as
Requisition time: 5 minutes.
RCA library will issue an SRX card in advance which follows (reference only) – one day £5, one week £25,
needs to be shown along with a passport photo. one month £45, six months £60, one year £115.
Photocopying: the staff will make copies upon
Fees for borrowing books are: £70 for six months or
request and post them if necessary. A4 is 25p,
Type of library: Open stacks. £117 for one year.
A3 is 50p.
Laptops: Welcome. Type of library: Open stacks on several different
Photography: By appointment only; the library
floors. Special collections and periodicals are on
has a camera stand.
Photocopying: Self-service, with a rechargeable closed stacks.
NB: There is also a slide loan collection.
opy card. Cards cost £5 each: 50p is copy credit,
£4.50 being the cost of the card.) A4 is 5p, A3 is Requisition time: Minimum 30 minutes waiting
Internet terminals: None.
10p. Copy onto acetate (A4 is 25p) and from a laser time for periodicals.
printer (colour: A4 is 70p, A3 is £1; black and white:
Bibliographies and CD ROMS: Ask at the desk to
A4 is 20p, A3 is 40p). Laptops: Welcome, but not in the Goldsmiths’
consult the CD ROMS of PIRA (Printing Industries
Reading Room.
Research Association) Abstracts, the English Short-
Internet terminals: There are several but these are
Title Catalogue, and The Dictionary of National
only accessible with a UCL login name. Photocopying: Self-service with a card (£2–£20)
Biography. For all other bibliographical enquiries, 12
from the Photographic Office or from the issue desk
consult the staff.
Bibliographies and CD Roms: The UCL’s biblio- on the fourth floor. Pages vary from 9p to 13p a copy
graphical databases are on the web, but a UCL depending on the size of the copy card purchased.
Periodicals: Current periodicals are in the Reading
Athens password is required to access them.
Room, and vary from academic obscurities (Paper
Photography: For details consult the photography
Conservation News) and design magazines (Eye)
department on 020 7862 8459.
to trade journals (Labels and Labelling). Over 2000
titles are in stock.
Internet terminals: Four terminals in the Middlesex
South Reading Room. Downloading is free after
Strengths: Printing, typography and graphic design.
purchase of a formatted disc for £2. Printouts are
The head librarian Nigel Roche and his staff are
10p each. It is advised to book these in advance by
completely abreast of printing scholarship.
telephoning 020 7862 8461/2.
120 // guide to libraries // research rca handbook 08·09
Bibliographies and CD Roms: The library’s
comprehensive database resources are listed on the
internet at http://www.shl.lon.ac.uk/resources/.
This site tells whether the resources take the form
of hard volumes, a CD Rom or online subscription,
and if a password is needed to access them.
Strengths: Philosophy and psychoanalysis (the
latter collection is on loan from the British
Psychological Society), and an excellent selection
of interdisciplinary periodicals, including many
not held by the British Library.
Warburg Institute Library
Address: University of London,
Woburn Square, London WC1H 0AB
Underground: Russell Square, Goodge Street
Term time opening: 10am–6pm Mon–Fri,
10am–8pm Tues–Thurs, 10am–4pm Sat
Vacation opening: 10am–6pm Mon–Fri
(Saturdays are closed during August and September)
tel: 020 7862 8935/6
email: warlib@sas.ac.uk
http://www.sas.ac.uk/warburg
(online catalogue covers 80% of the collection)
Specialist area: An interdisciplinary library
specialising in cultural and intellectual history,
with particular reference to the classical tradition.
The collection was started by the German art
historian Aby Warburg and is organised according
to his personal classification system, in which
art is connected to other disciplines, particularly
religion, mythology, politics, social science,
literature and history.
This is reflected in the library’s organisation over
four floors, each of which has its own theme: Image,
Word, Orientation and Action. Image is art history;
Word is works of literature; Orientation covers
religion and philosophy; Action deals with social
and political history, magic and science.
Admission procedure: Free – but PhD students will
need to provide evidence of enrolment and valid ID.
Type of library: Open stacks, reference only.
Ten books can be reserved at a time.
Laptops: Welcome.
Photocopying: Material to be photocopied must be
approved by library staff. A copy card: £3 (30 units),
£10 (125 units). A4 copies use one unit, A3 copies
take one.
Photography: Permission is required; there is an
in-house photographer.
Internet terminals: On the ground floor there are four
terminals connected to the internet, available for
consulting CD Roms, and one terminal on each floor.
The only one that permits email is in the basement.
Bibliographies and CD Roms: The Warburg has a
massive number of bibliographies, both on CD Rom,
hard copy and as online subscription. See the full
list online: http://www.sas.ac.uk/warburg/
intranet/sources.htm
Periodicals: Online: http://www.sas.ac.uk/
warburg/mnemosyne/periodicals.htm
There is also an amazing array of obscure
international academic journals in the pigeon
holes on the ground floor – from the Journal of
Neoplatonic Studies to the Bulletin of British
Byzantine Studies.
Strengths: Classical, Medieval and Byzantine art,
manuscript illumination, iconography, aesthetics,
German and Italian art.
Warburg Photographic Library
Address: University of London,
Woburn Square, London WC1H 0AB
Underground: Russell Square, Goodge Street
Term time opening: 10am–6pm Mon–Fri,
10am–8pm Tues–Thurs, 10am–4pm Sat
Vacation opening: 10am–6pm Mon–Fri
(closed Sat during August and September)
tel: 020 7862 8928
email: photographic.collect@sas.ac.uk
http://www.sas.ac.uk/warburg/photos/
photos_index.htm
Located on the first floor of the Warburg Library,
the photographic collection holds around
300,000 images from Ancient Greece to the
late 17th century (but going beyond this if
iconographically significant).
The images are filed, folder within folder, according
to Warburg’s classification: for example, Magic
and Science leads to Elements, then Effects of the
Elements, then Rainbows.
Unlike the Conway and the Witt Libraries – which
are photographic libraries organised alphabetically
by artist – the Warburg is entirely thematic.
Wellcome Library
Address: 210 Euston Road, London NW1 2BE
Underground: Euston Square
Opening times: 10am–6pm Mon, Wed, Fri,
10am–8pm Tues and Thurs, 10am–4pm Sat
tel: 020 7611 8722
Fax: 020 7611 8369
email: library@wellcome.ac.uk
http://library.wellcome.ac.uk/index.html
Admissions procedure: The library is open to
anyone with a research or study interest in the
history and progress of medicine. Register either
as a day user or full member of the library (three
years). Bring some personal ID and proof of address
(i.e. utility bill) when you register. To save time,
complete the application form before you visit
(available on the website).
Security and restrictions: Bags will be searched.
Larger bags, including laptop bags, are not allowed
in the library. Clear plastic bags are provided to
carry essentials into the library.
Collection information: The library holds an
extensive collection of materials relating to
the history of medicine and medical research.
Far-reaching rare books collection (60,000
pre-1851 texts). Also, the library holds two large
image collections (both moving and static) and
an extensive sound archive.
Electronic resources: Databases on the
collections, digitised texts and electronic journals
are all available through the library. Some of these
resources can be accessed remotely.
12
Laptops: Welcome. Wireless internet available
to registered members.
Computers: Computers with word-processing
facilities are available for members. All
computers have access to the library’s online
databases and collections.
Photocopying: Available only on certain texts:
5p per A4 sheet.
Printing: Available (B&W 5p, colour 50p)
122 // guide to libraries // research rca handbook 08·09

Westminster Reference Library Strengths: The periodical collection, which covers CD Roms: ION Art database, a list of works Strengths: Women’s rights, suffrage, sexuality,
all the main art and design magazines. Almost all by Old Masters at auction (pictures included and health, education, family – in Britain. There is a
Address: Art and Design Department,
of these are on open stack so it’s good for instant Agents for Alinari archives). good selection of vintage periodicals on open stacks:
St Martin’s Street, London WC2H 7HP
consultations – e.g. Artforum from 1973 onwards, from Cosmopolitan to Soviet Woman via Diva, Hypatia
Underground: Leicester Square, Charing Cross
Apollo from 1951 onwards, etc. Strengths: American school database Golden Eye and Women’s Weekly.
Opening times: 10am–8pm Mon–Fri,
and British Artist Database. The collection is useful
10am–5pm Sat
for art-historical provenance and general picture
tel: 020 7641 4636 (general) The Witt Library
research. Invaluable for research on obscure artists.
020 7641 4606 (art and design department)
Address: Courtauld Institute of Art,
email: libraries@westminster.gov.uk
Somerset House,The Strand, London WC2R 0RN
http://www.westminster.gov.uk/libraries/special/ The Women’s Library
Underground: Temple, Holborn and Charing Cross
artdesign.cfm (includes online catalogue)
Opening times: 10am–6pm Mon–Fri Address: Old Castle Street, London E1 7NT
tel: 020 7848 2743 Underground: Aldgate East
Specialist area: This is the largest public library
email: matthew.percival@courtauld.ac.uk Opening times: 9.30am–5pm Tues, Wed, Fri,
collection of books on art, architecture and design.
http://www.courtauld.ac.uk/sub_index/ 9.30am–8pm Thurs, 10am–4pm Sat
In the same building are also found music, theatre
photographic (no online catalogue) tel: 020 7320 2222
and film. As it is aimed at the general public
email: enquirydesk@thewomenslibrary.ac.uk
the collection isn’t very academic, but there are
Specialist area: Two million photographs, cuttings http://www.thewomenslibrary.ac.uk
contemporary art exhibition catalogues (mainly
and reproductions of paintings, prints and drawings (includes online catalogue)
from UK public venues) and some theory.
of Western art from the 13th-Century to the present
day. The library covers works in public collections Specialist area: Women’s history in the UK.
Admission procedure: Free.
and some private ones. Each photograph is mounted
on card with information about the artist, title, Admission procedure: Free. A day pass will be
Type of library: Reference only, closed stacks.
provenance, location, size and medium. issued with proof of student ID.
Periodicals are all on open shelves around the
reading room.
Admission procedure: A photo is taken and reader’s Type of library: Open stacks for books post-1920.
card issued with a key card, cost £5. The pre-1920 material is closed stacks. Open stacks
Requisition time: Up to 15 minutes.
for periodicals post 1970s.
Type of library: Open stacks, organised by national
Laptops: Welcome.
school and artist in alphabetical order. Requisition time: Collections are made on the hour,
and take 15–20 minutes.
Photocopying: Self-service, after staff approval,
Lockers: Outside the Courtauld Library and within
on the first floor: A4 is 10p, A3 is 20p. Colour
the Witt Library. Laptops: Welcome, if not essential, as it is pencils
photocopies are £1 for A4 and £1.50 for A3.
only in the reading room.
Laptops: Welcome.
Photography: With the librarian’s approval,
Photocopying: Self-service. Buy a card from the
beforehand by phone for a timeslot before the
Photocopying: Normal B&W photocopies are self- front desk (£2, £5 or £10). Copies are 15p each for 12
library opens (i.e. between 9am and 10am). If it
service, at 10p per A4 copy (coin operated). Laser A4, 30p from microfilm (no A3 possible).
is for publication, there may be a fee.
photocopies (B&W and colour) are staff operated
at 50p per copy. Photography: Photographs are not permitted in
Internet terminals: On the first floor there are
the library, but there is a reproductions service.
eight, which can be booked and have email access.
Photography: No photography is permitted. There Telephone for details.
The first floor reading room has more terminals.
is a black and white photo service available, with
CD Roms can also be consulted from here via
prices starting from £11. There is also a three to five Internet terminals: Eight. Read-only email access.
the intranet.
week waiting time. Printouts can be made with a photocopy card.
Bibliographies and CD Roms: Ask at the issue
Internet terminals: One. Bibliographies and CD Roms: None.
desk for Art Index Retrospective, Art Abstracts,
ABM, DAAI and Film Index International.
chapter
In 2008 the RCA’s research community

13
ensures that the College continues to be –
in the words of the Rector – the longest
continuous experiment in publicly funded
art and design education anywhere in
the world.

good research 13

practice
126 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09
intellectual
property rights
It is important that all students are aware that some
of the information they identify, receive and utilise
during their research may be confidential or com-
mercially sensitive. It may be that this information
is the result of the efforts of another researcher
who is bound by a confidentiality agreement with
an industrial sponsor. In any case, students must
be careful that such information is kept secret and
confidential and is not divulged other than to a
person who is a staff or student member of the
RCA and that the receiving person is notified that
the information is confidential. Information can be
carefully shared with parties outside the College
provided they have signed an official confidentiality
and non-disclosure agreement.
Many outcomes of research are potentially subject
to intellectual property rights (IPR). A student’s
thesis will be automatically protected by copyright,
the shape and look of 3D work may be design-
registrable and/or the function of an invention
may be patentable. All IPR in the work may be sold
or licensed provided the student has taken the
necessary steps to protect them.
The issue of ownership of the IPR needs serious
consideration, particularly if a student is working
with a company on developing a new product
or technique, or plans to apply for funding from
industry. The Regulations of the College state:
“5.1 The rights, property and title in and to and the
copyright, design rights, patent rights, performing
rights, rental rights and all other rights of a like
or similar nature anywhere in the world (the IPR)
in all work in any dimension, form, or medium
howsoever and whatsoever executed or produced
by the student in the course of his or her studies or
deriving therefrom (the Work) is hereby assigned
to and owned by the College absolutely.” This
means that the College can exploit the work in any
manner whatsoever.
When a student graduates from the College, the
IPR for their work is passed to them, unless they
have successfully applied to the College’s “Selected
Works” programme. This regulation means that
the College can protect the students’ interests
by taking issue with any company that seeks to
use the intellectual property without authorisation.
If the College decides to commercially exploit
a student’s work through the Selected Work
programme, the College will enter into an
arrangement with the student regarding sharing
of any profit arising from the exploitation of the
Selected Work.
The Selected Works programme is run by
InnovationRCA. Research students can submit
applications to the programme should they have
projects which incorporate technical innovations
and suggest commercial potential. The College
covers the legal fees associated with protecting
the IP in the successful projects and works with
the students to promote and sell their products to
industry. For further information on the scheme,
or on IPR issues in general please contact Nadia
Danhash on extension 4149, nadia.danhash@rca.
ac.uk. Or visit the website:
http://www.innovation.rca.ac.uk.
Finally, on joining the College, the student agrees
to be bound by the Regulations of the College. It is
recommended that students familiarise themselves
with section 5 of the Regulations which covers
intellectual property rights in detail. The full text of
these can also be found in the College Handbook.
research ethics
Research at the Royal College of Art aims for the
highest possible standards within the disciplines of
art and design. The College’s reputation depends
on self-regulation of quality and conduct in the work
of staff, associates, research assistants and fellows,
students and collaborators.
Please remember that researchers are expected
to demonstrate professional integrity and discipline
in all aspects of their research.
Researchers should consider the parameters of
their intended research and its potential impact.
Heads of Department should monitor all research
carried out by both staff and students in their
department and identify issues or areas of potential
breach of the Royal College of Art Code of Practice
for Research Ethics.
rca research ethics
checklist
Should any of the following elements be involved
in the proposed research, advice from the RCA
Research Ethics Committee must be sought before
the research is undertaken.
• Active involvement of other participants
• Passive involvement of other participants
• Colleagues and staff within other higher
education institutions
• Members of the public
• Children, young and other vulnerable persons
• Animals
• External bodies
Potential influencing factors:
• Potential adverse impact on the environment
• Moral obligations
• Legal liabilities
• Insurance
• Health and safety
If any of the above elements are present in the
research, researchers are required to complete
the Research Ethics Checklist and Consent Form
(RE 1) (available on the RCA Intranet: http://
intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/research/index.php),
providing details of the methods and procedures
to be adopted in undertaking the project. This
form should be returned to research@rca.ac.uk
for consideration by the Research Office.
Further information about the Research Ethics
Committee can be found in this Handbook on
page 149.
13
128 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09

rca code of practice The Code is outlined in full below: 2. General Principles 3. Observance of the Code

for research ethics 1. Definition of Research

This Code aims to provide those engaged in
research at the Royal College of Art with
clear standards of professional conduct in
the following areas:
• Definition of Research
• General Principles
• Observance of the Code
• Obtaining Approval
• Monitoring the Conduct of Research
• Data Collection and Retention
• Publications and Exhibitions
• Recruitment of Participants
• Research Involving Animals
• Misconduct
• The Human Tissue Act
• Information, Resources and Links
• Acknowledgements.
2.1 Researchers are expected to demonstrate
professional integrity and discipline in all aspects
3.1 Researchers should comply with the legal
implications of a piece of research. The Data
of their research. Specifically, they shall: Protection Act, the Computer Misuse Act, the Equal
1.1 Research is defined as “an original
• observe fairness Opportunities Act, the Race Discrimination Act,
investigation undertaken in order to gain knowledge
• avoid or declare conflicts of interest the Obscene Publications Act, the Human Tissue
and understanding. It includes work of the direct
• oppose prejudice with respect to gender, Act, and the Human Rights Act are likely to be
relevance to the needs of commerce and industry,
religion, national or ethnic origin, age, sexual particularly relevant, along with relevant legislation
and to the public and voluntary sectors; scholarship;
preference, race, physical or cognitive on Disabilities, Health and Safety and Animal Rights.
the invention and generation of ideas, images,
disability or health condition
performances and artefacts including design,
• obtain informed consent from, and ensure 3.2 The Royal College of Art must conform
where these lead to new or substantially improved
the health and safety of, those participating in to government rules and legal requirements on
insights; and the use of existing knowledge in
the research access to and freedom of information and meet
experimental development to produce new or
• try to foresee, and keep themselves aware of, the requirements of funding bodies to publicise
substantially improved materials, devices, products
the developing consequences of their work research findings.
and processes, including design and construction.
and redirect it accordingly if necessary
It excludes routine testing and routine analysis of
• render the research and its results open to 3.3 Research should abide by the Code of Ethics
materials, components and processes, such as for
universal scrutiny, with the sole exception of any professional body or subject association of
the maintenance of national standards, as distinct
of respecting confidentiality and anonymity which they are members. They should also be aware
from the development of new analytical techniques.
in relation to personal or commercially of any Code of Ethics which applies to potential and
It also excludes the development of teaching
protected information actual collaborators on the project and/or other
materials that do not embody original research”.
• abide by all legal and ethical requirements as participants. Where the location of the research is
(RAE2008).
required by the Royal College of Art and other external to the Royal College of Art it is essential
relevant bodies that the regulations, procedures, practices and
The definition of research includes the following:
• be given access to appropriate training to guidelines which are relevant in these situations are
• Scholarship: the analysis, synthesis and
support good research practice. taken into account.
interpretation of ideas and information, and
the creation, development and maintenance of
The guiding principles of this Code of Research 3.4 The general principle of integrity should inform
the intellectual infrastructure of subjects and
Ethics are non-maleficence and beneficence, all research activities. Honesty should be central to
disciplines, in forms such as dictionaries,
indicating a systematic regard for the rights and the relationship between researcher, participant and
scholarly editions, catalogues and contributions
interests of others in the full range of academic other interested parties. Research outputs should
to major research databases
relationships and activities. contain acknowledgments of the work of others as
• Basic research: work undertaken to acquire new
appropriate. Particular care should be exercised in
knowledge without a particular application in view
Non-maleficence is the principle of doing, or acknowledging the work of research students. Joint
• Strategic research: work which is carried out to
permitting, no foreseeable harm including ownership of work by students and supervisors
discover new knowledge which might provide for
infringement of rights as a consequence of the should only occur when a substantive contribution
future application
research. It is the principle of doing no harm in has been made by the supervisor. Issues arising
• Applied research: work which is undertaken
the widest sense. Beneficence is the requirement from industrial placements and the protection/
to discover new applications of existing or
to serve the interests and well being of others, registration of materials should also be considered.
new knowledge.
including respect for their rights. It is the 13
principle of doing good in the widest sense. 3.5 All Royal College of Art staff and students
engaged in research must ensure that they
have read the Code and observe its terms. Heads
of School, Heads of Department, and supervisors
of research students have an obligation to
secure compliance with the Code within their
areas of responsibility.
130 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09
3.6 Where a member of staff is unsure of the
applicability of the Code to his or her research,
advice should be sought from the Research Ethics
Committee. Research students should consult
their supervisors in the first instance. The ultimate
responsibility should belong to the researcher.
4. Obtaining Approval
4.1 If there are any ethical dimensions to the
research, a researcher is required to seek advice
from the Research Ethics Committee before
undertaking the project. In order to do so, the
researcher is required to complete the Research
Ethics Form (available on the Research Office pages
of the RCA Intranet (http://intranet.rca.ac.uk):
and furnish details of the methods and procedures
to be adopted in undertaking the project.
5. Monitoring the Conduct of Research
5.1 Researchers who have obtained Research
Ethics Committee approval for a project must
submit a brief report of progress annually, including
review of Health and Safety and, if appropriate,
risk assessment. Perceived and potential conflicts
of interest should be noted at the beginning of the
research project.
5.2 Copies of published or disseminated
accounts of the research must be sent to the
Research Ethics Committee.
6. Data Collection and Retention
6.1 Researchers must comply with the Royal
College of Art’s Regulations regarding Intellectual
Property Rights. Researchers must guarantee that:
• they arrived at their own work independently
and without having copied the work or infringed
the rights of any third party;
• the rights, property and title in and to and the
copyright, design rights, patent rights, performing
rights, rental rights and all other rights of a like
or similar nature anywhere in the world (the IPR)
in all researchers’ work is assigned to and owned
by the College absolutely, in accordance with the
Royal College of Art Regulations;
• in the first instance, Nadia Danhash in
InnovationRCA is the person to contact for advice
on Data Protection and IPR nadia.danhash@rca.
ac.uk or extension 4149.
6.2 Researchers must record accurately their
data in a durable form that may be audited, with
appropriate references to enable ready recovery.
6.3 Security arrangements to protect research
data (where there is an ethical imperative to do so)
must be established.
6.4 Video/audio recordings of participants must
be kept in a secure place and not released for use
by third parties.
6.5 If the project undertaken involves qualitative
research*, researchers must ensure that:
• Respondents are honestly and comprehensively
informed about the qualitative
• research in which they are taking part
• Respondents are openly asked to give their
consent to take part and to any subsequent at-
tributable use of their comments (and any other
material arising from the group/interview)
• Undertakings made to respondents are honoured
• The research respects the interests of clients
• Respondents are treated with respect at all times
• The rights of respondents are paramount.
* Qualitative research, for the purposes of this Examples of good publication practice can be
Code, is defined as research conducted whereby: found in the document produced by the Committee
• the basic methodology involves techniques which on Publication Ethics entitled Guidelines on good
seek to reach understanding through dialogue publication and the code of conduct available at
and evocation (rather than measurement); http://www.publicationethics.org.uk/guidelines
• the data-collection process involves open- and in A Code of Practice on Archives for Museums
ended, non-directive techniques (not structured and Galleries in the UK available at
questionnaires); http://www.archivesandmuseums.org.uk/scam/
• the data analysis output is descriptive (rather publications.htm
than statistical).
8. Recruitment of Participants
6.6 Quantitative research should be conducted
8.1 Informed Consent: Consent is voluntary
in a professional manner, without unwelcome intru-
agreement based on adequate information. Potential
sion and without harm to respondents. It should
participants should be:
be transparent to respondents and its only purpose
• invited to participate;
should be to collect and analyse information.
• apprised of the project’s purpose;
Guidelines on the design of questionnaires can be
• given details of what their participation will entail;
found on the Market Research Society website:
• assured that they are under no obligation to
http://www.mrs.org.uk/standards/quant.htm
participate in the project;
• assured that they may withdraw from the project
6.7 This Code of Practice should be read in
at any time and their data destroyed, and that
conjunction with the RCA Heath and Safety Policy
their withdrawal will be accepted without question;
which is available on the Health and Safety section
• assured that they will not be asked to carry out
of the RCA Intranet.
any activity that involves risk
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/administration
• represented by someone (such as a family
member or carer) well-placed to appreciate the
7. Publications and Exhibitions participant’s reaction, as well as an objective and
independent advisor, should the participant be
Publications and exhibitions are often key to the
unable to give consent owing to impairments in un-
dissemination of research and constitute an implicit
derstanding or communication. Where participants
or explicit undertaking that good research practice
are not in a position to give informed consent the
has been followed. This is a complex area, with many
researcher should have regard to the advice of
sources of advice and information, but in general:
the Royal College of Physicians (1990) and the
• results should be published in an appropriate form;
Royal College of Psychiatrists (1990). English law
• the contributions of formal collaborators and all
may not currently permit guardians/parents to
others who directly assisted or indirectly support-
give consent on behalf of mentally incapacitated
ed the research should be properly acknowledged;
adults in certain matters. Researchers should seek
• there should be frank reference to the work
advice as to whether they need to obtain a decla-
of others;
ration from the court that the proposed research
• there should be avoidance of redundant
procedures are lawful; 13
publication;
• informed of who is sponsoring an event and of
• fraud and plagiarism are utterly unacceptable;
any commercial outcomes it may have;
• referees and sponsors should observe appropriate
• assured that all data held electronically shall
guidelines for good conduct in terms of
conform to the provisions of the Data
confidentiality, disclosure of conflicts of interest
Protection Act;
and so forth.
132 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09
• assured that users names and addresses and
any other details recorded as background during
projects will be treated as confidential and that
such information will not be made available to
anyone else or published in any form without
specific permission;
• informed that the appropriate Health and Safety
measures will be observed. And that project
organisers will have contact details for medical
and other services should these be required in
an emergency;
• reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses incurred
in attending events or participating in trials or
research of any kind. Payment over and above
this is optional. Any special arrangements or
facilities needed to meet the needs of people
with particular impairments will be made at the
RCA’s expense.
• assured that full indemnity insurance will be
taken out to cover all participants;
• assured that the venue will be checked for
accessibility where requested. This will include
access from public and private transport,
communication and other facilities including
toilets. All potential participants will be asked
for details of their access requirements;
• assured that refreshments will be provided.
This will include food for any meeting or
event that lasts two hours or longer. Potential
participants will be asked for details of any
special dietary requirements.
8.2 The purpose of the consent procedure is
to ensure that the participant has the necessary
information to make a decision, and that the
decision is freely made. Researchers are advised
to provide their potential participants with:
• a written record of invitation;
• encouragement to ask questions;
• time to reflect on the decision to participate
and a means of contacting the researcher
whilst deciding.
8.3 Young persons over the age of 16 are
generally thought to be able to give informed
consent but it might be appropriate to seek advice
depending on the nature of the work. Research
involving children under 16 will require the
informed consent of parents, carers or guardians.
Notwithstanding the fact that parental consent
has been obtained, primary responsibility for
safeguarding the rights of the child remains with
the researcher.
8.4 Research involving children: children
should be consulted when the question of their
participation in research arises. In a situation where
a child is capable of giving consent, the approval
of a parent or guardian must still be obtained for
any child under 16 years of age. Children should
participate in research only if the same knowledge
could not be gained from research using adults
or where the research specifically addresses issues
relating to juveniles.
8.5 Researchers should be aware that they
are often in a position of authority or influence
over participants who may be their students or
employees. This relationship must not be allowed
to impel those participants to take part in, or
remain, in the investigation.
8.6 Research involving people with learning
difficulties or those who are mentally ill: research
that could be undertaken with adults without
learning disabilities or who are not mentally ill
should never be carried out with those who have
learning disabilities or mental illness. Moreover:
• such research should be limited to that which
is related to the learning disability or illness;
• consent must be obtained from the subject,
but it is good practice to obtain consent as well
from the next-of-kin or legal guardian after clear
explanation of the intended research.
8.7 Research involving pregnant participants
should only be undertaken if pregnancy is
an essential part of the research. Research
into pregnancy and childbirth requires special
consideration, as both mother and child are
involved. Moreover, the rights and concerns of
the father may need to be taken into account.
8.8 Researchers have a primary duty to protect
participants from physical and mental harm during
the investigation.
8.9 Subject to the requirements of legislation,
including the Data Protection Act, information
obtained about a participant during the process
of research is confidential unless otherwise
agreed in advance.
8.10 The collection, storage, disclosure and use
of research data by researchers must comply
with the Data Protection Act 1998. Researchers
should be aware of the risks of identification and
breach of privacy and confidentiality posed by
all kinds of information storage and processing,
including computer and paper files, email records,
photographic material, audio and videotapes
and any other information in which an individual
is named, or from which an individual could
be identified.
Templates for consent forms are available on
the Research Office pages of the RCA Intranet
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk
9. Research involving animals
9.1 Researchers studying animals that are living
free should take precautions to minimise interfer-
ence with individuals, as well as the populations
and ecosystems of which they are a part.
10. Misconduct
10.1 Misconduct occurs when a researcher
knowingly and deliberately seeks to corrupt,
misrepresent, or falsify the outcomes of the
research. It is important that the investigation
of allegations of research misconduct will
be a fair process that protects the interest of
all parties involved.
10.2 Research misconduct has been defined as:
“The fabrication, falsification, plagiarism or deception
in proposing, carrying out or reporting results of
research or deliberate, dangerous or negligent
deviations from accepted practices in carrying out
research. It includes failure to follow established
protocols if this failure results in unreasonable
risk or harm to humans, other vertebrates or the
environment and facilitating of misconduct in
research by collusion in, or concealment of, such
actions by others. It also includes intentional,
unauthorized use, disclosure or removal of, or
damage to, research-related property of another,
including apparatus, materials, writings, data,
hardware or software or any other substances
or devices used in or produced by the conduct
of research ... It does not include honest error
or honest differences in the design, execution,
interpretation or judgement in evaluating research
methods or results or misconduct unrelated to
the research process. Similarly it does not include
poor research unless this encompasses the
intention to deceive,” (Wellcome Trust) [as based
on the definitions given in the MRC’s Policy and
Procedure for Inquiring into Allegations of Scientific
Misconduct (December 1997) and the GMC’s
report Good Practice in Medical Research (in
print, January 2002) and Imogen Evans, ‘Conduct
Unbecoming the MRC’s Approach’, British Medical
Journal, vol. 316, June 1998.
“Scientific misconduct can be recognised to cover
two broad categories, the distinction being in
terms of the focus of the dishonesty. Thus the first
arises where there is fabrication or falsification of
the research results; the second arises where there
is plagiarism, misquoting or other misappropriation
of the work of other researchers. Colluding in, or
concealing, the misconduct of others is, in itself,
misconduct. Honest errors do not, of course,
constitute scientific misconduct.” (Drosphilia
Genomics Resource Center).
It is also generally considered to include applications
for funding with inaccurate or fraudulent information.
13
10.3 Intentional non-compliance with the
terms and conditions of external funding awards, or
with the College’s policies and procedures relating
to research, constitutes misconduct.
134 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09
10.4 Misconduct also includes:
• Plagiarism: presenting the work or thoughts
of another as one’s own without permission
or citation;
• Fabricating one’s results or analysis;
• False claims of publication or dissemination;
• Intentional damage to, or removal of, another
person’s research-related property.
10.5 The Royal College of Art will investigate
allegations of research misconduct made against
its staff, associates, students and others for
research being conducted in association with the
College. The Royal College of Art is committed
to dealing responsibly with cases of suspected
misconduct. Researchers are encouraged to report
issues to the Research Ethics Committee and to
do so in a responsible manner.
10.6 As a result of failure to comply with the
provisions of the Code, research will be subject to
the College’s disciplinary procedures as set out
in the Regulations and funding will be withdrawn.
Future applications for funding may also be barred.
11. The Human Tissue Act
11.1 The terms of the Act make it illegal to publicly
display any human tissue unless prior authorisation
has been obtained from the Human Tissue Authority.
Under the Human Tissue Act, public display of a
whole body, body parts, or tissue also requires the
consent of the person to whom it belongs, whether
they are living or deceased.
More information is available on the Human Tissue
Authority website, http://www.hta.gov.uk
12. Information, resources and links
Medical Research Council
• MRC Applicants Handbook (2007)
http://www.mrc.ac.uk/Utilities/
Documentrecord/index.htm?d=MRC001873
• Good Research Practice (2000)
http://www.mrc.ac.uk/Utilities/
Documentrecord/index.htm?d=MRC002415
• Policy and Procedure for Inquiring into Allegations
of Scientific Misconduct (1997)
http://www.mrc.ac.uk/Utilities/
Documentrecord/index.htm?d=MRC002454
• Human Tissue and Biological Samples for use in
Research http://www.dt-toolkit.ac.uk/home.cfm
• Personal Information in Medical Research
(2000) http://www.mrc.ac.uk/Utilities/
Documentrecord/index.htm?d=MRC002420
• Responsibility in Investigations of Human
Participants and Material and on Personal
Information (1992). Parts of this are superseded
by guidelines issued in 2000 and 2001.
• Responsibility in the Use of Animals in Medical
Research (1993) – the main principles are
summarised in Mice and Medicine
• Principles in the Assessment and Conduct of
Medical Research and Publicising Results (1995)
• Research Involving Human Participants in
Developing Societies: Ethical Guidelines for MRC
– Sponsored Studies – interim guidelines
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research
Council (EPSRC)
Good Practice in Scientific and Engineering Research
http://www.epsrc.ac.uk/ResearchFunding/
GrantHolders/GuideToGoodPracticeInResearch.htm
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research
Council (BBSRC)
BBSRC Statement on Safeguarding Good Scientific
Practice http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/funding/
overview/good_practice.pdf
Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
Safeguarding Good Scientific Practice (available in
the ESRC Research Funding Guide, p. 35)
http://www.esrcsocietytoday.ac.uk/
ESRCInfoCentre/Images/ESRC_Research_Funding_
Guide_May_2008_tcm6-9734.pdf
Also available on the Dept for Innovation,
Universities and Skills website: 13. Acknowledgements
http://www.dius.gov.uk/press/safeguarding-
• The University of Surrey, Code on
statement.html
Good Research Practice
• The Toronto Resolution (TTR)
COPE – Committee On Publication Ethics
• Ethical Principles of Psychologists and
http://www.publicationethics.org.uk/
Code of Conduct 2002
• British Psychological Society, Code of Conduct,
Wellcome Trust
Ethical Principles, and Guidelines, 2002
http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/node3610.html
• The Centre for Medical Law and Ethics,
King’s College, London, Manual for Research
European Science Foundation (ESF)
Ethics Committees (Third Edition)
Good Scientific practice in research and scholarship.
• The University of the Arts,
European Science Foundation Policy Briefing. http://
Code of Practice on Research Ethics
www.esf.org/activities/science-policy.html
• The National History Museum,
Good Research Practice
General Medical Council (GMC)
• RICABILITY – Research Institute for Consumer
Draft report Good Practice in Medical Research
Affairs guidelines
(December 1999)
• Market Research Society (MRS) –
http://www.gmc-uk.org/guidance/current/
Code of Practice http://www.mrs.org.uk/
library/research.asp
standards/guidelines.htm
National Academy of Science (NAS)
NAS 1995 – On being a scientist: responsible
conduct in research
http://www.nasonline.org
British Sociological Society
Statement of Ethical Practice, 2002
http://www.britsoc.co.uk/equality/Statement+
Ethical+Practice.htm
Market Research Society (MRS)
Market Research Society Code of Practice
http://www.mrs.org.uk/standards/guidelines.htm
Data Protection Act Guidelines for
Social Research
http://www.mrs.org.uk/standards/dp.htm#sra
13
136 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09
rca health and
safety policy
It is the responsibility of every research
degree student to familiarize themselves with
the RCA Health and Safety Policy and to ensure
that they abide by it throughout their research
career at the RCA.
Below is a summary of the RCA Health and
Safety Policy. The full Policy is published in
the RCA Regulations and on the website:
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk
Summary Statement
1. The Council of the College regards Health
and Safety as of prime importance in the pursuit of
its mission.
2. It is the policy of the College to:
2.1 Provide safe and healthy working condi-
tions for all employees and students, to carry out
risk assessments and comply with all relevant
statutory requirements;
2.2 Conduct its activities without risk to the
general public;
2.3. Provide appropriate supervision, training
and personal protection, so far as is reasonably
practicable in each case.
3.
3.1 The Rector is responsible for the implemen-
tation of the Health and Safety policy. He has
delegated these responsibilities to the Registrar.
3.2 All Heads of Schools, Heads of Administrative
Departments and other designated managers and
supervisors are responsible to the Registrar for
Health and Safety within their areas.
3.3 The Council will ensure that, within the overall
resources of the College, appropriate provision is
made to enable the College to fulfil its Health and
Safety obligations.
4.
4.1 Health and Safety procedures, bulletins and
Heads of Schools /
Administrative departments
Academic, technical and administrative staff
Academic, Technical and Administrative Staff are
other information will be issued as the need arises
and will be held in each School and Department.
Each Head of School/Department is responsible
to the Registrar for the implementation of the
responsible for assisting the Head of School/
Department in achieving the objectives of the
4.2 The College Health and Safety Policy
Health and Safety Policy within the School/ Health and Safety Policy and will:
and Procedures are supplemented by School/
Department and will: 1. Report accidents/dangerous occurrences in
Department Codes of Practice, which are regarded
1. At all times comply with Health and Safety accordance with the Accident Reporting Procedure.
as extensions of the Health and Safety Policy.
policy and procedures and thus set a good example
4.3 Heads of Schools and Heads of Administrative
to employees, students and visitors. 2. Take appropriate immediate action to stop
Departments are responsible for ensuring that
any unsafe practices or procedures within their
Health and Safety information is circulated to all
2. Ensure that all employees with supervisory delegated responsibility.
employees, students, contractors and other visitors
responsibilities for staff and/or students know and
within their areas of responsibility, as appropriate.
understand their responsibilities under the Health 3. Work within all statutory regulations, and
and Safety Policy. codes of practice applicable to the places of work
5. All employees, students, contractors and other
under their control.
visitors are required to cooperate in achieving the
3. Ensure that the requirements of appropriate
aims and objectives of the Health and Safety Policy
legislation, relevant Codes of Practice and College 4. Ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable
and to recognise their own responsibilities for safety.
Health and Safety Procedures are observed by that all equipment is safe to use and that there
The College encourages staff and students to make
staff, students and visitors. is maintained a safe means of access to, and egress
suggestions for the improvement of Health and
from the place of work under their control.
Safety within the College, through the appropriate
4. Plan and set up in consultation with the Col-
managers, supervisors and union representatives.
lege Safety Officer a Health and Safety programme 5. Ensure that all safe working procedures and
within the School/Department. The programme instructions applicable to the place of work are
6. The College has established a Health
should include routine safety inspections, risk applied, and review and revise them as necessary
and Safety Committee which meets regularly to
assessments, COSHH assessments, and planning if there is a change in the work place or in light of
consider all aspects of Health and Safety,
safe workplace layouts. new information.
recommend changes in procedures and update
policies as necessary.
5. Establish a suitable organisation in 6. Ensure that all new employees and students
consultation with the College Safety Officer to receive appropriate induction training and any
7. The College will ensure that appropriate
put the programme into effect. The School Safety further safety training necessary for the safe
advice, guidance and training in Health and Safety
Officers should be identified and a reporting performance of their duties or studies.
are provided for all employees and students.
system established. Heads of Schools should notify
the Registrar in writing of the names of the School 7. Ensure that protective clothing and
8. The Health and Safety Policy will be reviewed
Safety Officers. equipment are used for those activities and tasks
annually and when changes in circumstances or
requiring them.
legislation so dictate.
6. Monitor the implementation of the
School Health and Safety Programme and the 8. Ensure that contractors on College
implementation of Codes of Practice, and premises are issued with the relevant statements
revise as necessary. of Procedures and Codes of Practice.
13
7. Report to the Registrar annually on the
progress of the Health and Safety Programme
within the School/Department.
8. Make such arrangements as are appropriate
and reasonably practicable to assist accredited
trades union safety representatives to carry out
their duties.
138 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09
Employees
All employees will:
1. Familiarise themselves with the College
Health and Safety Policy Statement and the
relevant School/Department Health and Safety
Codes of Practice.
2. Ensure that they and any persons under their
supervision use safe working practices.
3. Ensure that any health and safety problem
which cannot be resolved immediately is raised
with the relevant responsible person as a matter
of urgency.
4. Ensure that at all times full use is made
of appropriate safety devices, protective clothing
and equipment.
5. Report to their line manager unsafe practices,
systems of work which may be unsafe, unsafe
working conditions and damage to plant, machinery
or equipment.
6. Take reasonable care for their own health
and safety and that of others who may be affected
by their acts or omissions whilst at work.
7. Cooperate with the College management so
as to enable the responsibilities under the Health
and Safety at Work Act to be carried out.
8. Not intentionally or recklessly interfere with
or misuse anything provided in the interests of
health and safety by the College.
9. At all times set a good example in matters of
health and safety for students and visitors to follow.
10. Ensure that visitors using the facilities of
the College do not intentionally or recklessly
interfere with or misuse anything provided in the
interests of Health and Safety.
Students, contractors and visitors
All students, contractors and visitors are required to
co-operate fully in achieving the aims and objectives
of the Health and Safety Policy and to recognise
their own responsibilities for Health and Safety.
Students, contractors and visitors must not
intentionally or recklessly interfere with or misuse
anything provided in the interests of safety, health,
or welfare in the pursuance of any of the relevant
statutory provisions.
Accident and incident reporting
All accidents at the College must be reported.
Accident report forms are kept by First Aiders and
Department Administrators or in each First Aid
Box. They are also posted on Departmental Health
and Safety Notice Boards and are available on the
College Intranet. First Aid staff should complete a
report form immediately after treating the casualty.
Completed accident report forms should be
forwarded to the Safety Officer.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) requires
that specified injuries and conditions are reported
to them as soon as possible, normally within seven
working days. Accidents to staff which result
in admission to hospital for 24 hours or three
consecutive days’ absence from work, including
Saturday and Sunday must be reported to the HSE.
All accidents involving students which require
hospital treatment, including visits to Accident and
Emergency Departments, should be reported if
they are work-related. A complete list of reportable
accidents is held by the Safety Officer.
The area where an accident which is reportable to
the HSE occurred must not be touched, except for
the purposes of making it safe, until an investigation
by the Head of School/Head of Administrative
Department and the Safety Officer has been carried
out. The purpose of the investigation is to determine
the cause and prevent a re-occurrence.
Near miss report forms are also available for
reporting dangerous occurrences. These are posted
on Departmental Health and Safety Notice Boards
and are also available on the College Intranet.
Hazardous substances and gases
No chemicals, paints, or solvents (including
spray cans) may be brought into College without
authorisation. A material safety data sheet must
be obtained for all hazardous substances in
use. A risk assessment must be carried out for
all activities and processes involving hazardous
substances where there is a potential risk to health
in accordance with the Control of Substances
Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations.
COSHH assessment training is available for staff.
To reduce the risk of accidents involving chemicals,
particularly flammable liquids, their use is restricted
to those who have been adequately trained. This
will include the appropriate action to be taken in
case of emergency.
All compressed gas cylinders must be handled
carefully, kept upright and protected from excessive
heat. Staff and students will be given adequate
training in the handling and use of compressed
gas cylinders to enable them to identify and
understand the risks associated with each product
being handled.
Any adverse health effects, however minor, which
may be related to the use of hazardous substances,
should be reported to the Occupational Health
Department and the Safety Officer.
Contractors
A copy of the Code of Practice for Contractors
will be issued to Contractors by the Head of
Buildings and Estates or the Safety Officer.
The Head of Buildings and Estates is responsible
for ensuring that all building work complies with
the appropriate building and electrical standards
and is carried out safely. Contractors must provide
a copy of their public liability insurance and health
and safety policy. Risk assessments and method
statements must be provided for all hazardous
operations. A permit to work system is also in
operation for hazardous activities such as ‘hot work’.
The Head of Buildings and Estates and the Safety
Officer are responsible for ensuring compliance
with the Construction (Design and Management)
Regulations (CDM).
An asbestos risk register for all College buildings
is held by the Safety Officer.
Display Screen Equipment (DSE)
All staff DSE workstations should be assessed in
accordance with the Health and Safety (Display
Screen Equipment) Regulations. Guidance on the
ergonomic design and safe use of DSE equipment
is available on the College Intranet. A DSE self
assessment form should be completed and returned
to the Safety Officer. All necessary measures will
be taken to reduce any risks identified in the
assessment to an acceptable level. Persons using
DSE for the first time can contact the Occupational
Health Department to arrange for an eyesight test.
Electrical Equipment
Staff and students MUST NOT bring their own
electrical equipment, including radios, onto
College premises unless the equipment has been
tested for electrical safety by the Chief Engineer
13
or his nominee.
Faulty or damaged equipment must not be used.
No repairs should be attempted.
Electrical equipment should not be used in damp
surroundings or where flammable vapours may
be present.
140 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09
Fire
All staff and students must ensure that they
know the fire alarm procedure. They should
familiarise themselves with the evacuation routes
and fire exits for their area. On hearing the alarm,
any equipment in use must be switched off or
made safe. All persons must leave the area by the
nearest exit using the stairs and go to the assembly
point. Designated College Fire Wardens will assist
in the evacuation. The assembly point for the
Kensington Gore site is the Albert Hall steps. The
assembly point for the Howie Street site is opposite
the main entrance. The member of staff in the
Security Control Room is responsible for calling
the Fire Brigade.
If you discover a fire, raise the alarm immediately
by breaking the glass of the nearest Fire Alarm
Call Point. If you feel competent and it is safe to
do so, try to put the fire out using the appropriate
extinguisher.
• Do not take any personal risk.
• Do not use the lifts.
• Do not re-enter the building until you are told
to do so.
Fire Prevention
Fire equipment and escape routes must be kept
clear at all times. Fire or smoke doors are clearly
marked as such and must not be wedged, propped
or tied open. Fire extinguishers must not be used
to prop doors open. Flammable liquids and aerosol
sprays must only be used in accordance with
safe working procedures and should be stored
in a flammable storage cabinet when not in use.
Workplaces must be kept clear of fire hazards.
Fire safety guidelines are posted throughout the
College and are available on the College Intranet.
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk
First Aid
First Aiders and Appointed Persons are available
to treat injuries at work. Notices detailing the
names and locations of the nearest First Aid boxes,
First Aiders and appointed personnel are shown
in prominent locations throughout the College.
Nominated First Aiders are also trained in oxygen
administration and the use of defibrillators.
For all First Aid or medical emergencies contact
Security by phoning 333 for the Kensington
premises and 477 for Howie St.
Health and Safety Committee
The Health and Safety Committee is responsible
for the development of the College’s policies on
Health and Safety and for the monitoring of their
implementation. The Committee, which meets once
a term, is chaired by the Registrar and reports to
the Staff Committee which is a sub-committee
of the College Council. Membership includes the
Rector, the Director of Administration, the Safety
Officer, Departmental Safety Representatives and
Safety Representatives appointed by the recognised
trade unions.
Housekeeping
A tidy and systematic method of working is
necessary to promote a safe working environment.
Clean your work area daily. Do not leave items on
the floor. Wipe up any spills immediately. Corridors
and staircases as well as access routes through
studios must not be used as storage areas. Do not
leave waste materials in stairwells or corridors.
Inform the Buildings and Estates Office if you have
any waste materials or items. Safe access and exit
must be maintained at all times. The build up of
combustible materials should also be avoided.
Ladders and Working at Height
If you work above two metres from the ground
special precautions are required. As well as
safeguarding yourself, consideration must be given
to people below. Working platforms must have guard
rails/toe boards and other appropriate equipment.
Tower Scaffolds should only be erected or moved
by trained College staff.
Ladders and step ladders must be maintained in
good condition and defects reported immediately.
Before using any ladder it should be examined to
make sure it is safe. Appropriate warning notices
should be posted when working at height. Guidance
on the safe use of ladders and step ladders is
available on the College Intranet.
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk
Lifting Equipment, Fork Lift Trucks and Hoists
Only those persons who are trained and authorised
to do so may use forklift trucks. Passengers must
not be carried on fork lift trucks, hoists or lifting
equipment. No lifting equipment should be used
on College Premises unless it has been examined
by the College insurers. The safe working load
displayed on the equipment must not be exceeded.
Manual Handling
If your work involves the movement of bulky,
heavy or awkwardly shaped objects you will be
given information and training about safe handling
techniques. One of the commonest injuries is
caused by incorrect lifting and handling. Do not try
to lift or carry anything which is too heavy. Guidance
on the safe manual handling techniques is available
on the College Intranet. http://intranet.rca.ac.uk
All manual handling activities will be assessed in
accordance with the Manual Handling Operations
Regulations. All necessary measures will be taken
to reduce any risks identified in the assessment
to an acceptable level. Manual handling aids such
as trolleys and barrows will be provided. Make use
of the equipment provided and ask for assistance
if necessary.
Noise at Work
Noise assessments have been carried out to
identify any areas or machinery where the noise
levels may exceed the levels prescribed in the Noise
at Work Regulations. All areas and machines for
which hearing protection is required are identified
by appropriate signage. Ear protection must be worn
in these areas when operating machinery or working
alongside people using the machinery. Ear plugs
are provided for students in workshop areas.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Where personal protective equipment (e.g. safety
shoes, ear defenders, respirators and gloves) are
required because of the work-related risk, they will
be issued free of charge to staff. Provision will also
be made for students. The equipment must be
used properly and stored correctly. Where training
in the use of PPE is needed it will be provided.
Staff and students should always use PPE when it is
required and should report any defects immediately.
Risk Assessments
The College will, in accordance with its general
duties, make an assessment of the risks to the
Health and Safety of its staff and students to
which they may be exposed.
These risks will then be controlled so far as is
reasonably practicable so that neither staff and
students nor others who could also be exposed
to them will be put at risk.
Responsibility for the implementation of the
provisions of this policy lies with the Safety
Officer and the Heads of Schools/ Heads of
Administrative Departments.
Guidance on Risk Assessment and the relevant
forms can be found on the College Intranet.
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk 13
Smoking Policy
Smoking is prohibited in all RCA buildings
and vehicles.
142 // good research practice // research rca handbook 08·09

Placements and Trips
The College recognises that it has a duty of
care for the Health and Safety of students
while on placements. The College also expects
that the necessary action will be taken by the
Placement Provider to ensure the Health and
Safety of our students. A placement Health and
Safety questionnaire will be sent to companies/
organisations where students are to be sent
on placements. Guidance on placements and
the relevant forms can be found on the College
Intranet. http://intranet.rca.ac.uk
The College also recognises that it has a duty of
care for students on trips associated with their work.
A travel checklist should be completed for all trips.
An Overseas Travel Risk Assessment should also be
completed if there are significant hazards associated
with the destination (e.g. poor infrastructure/roads,
terrorism, extreme climate) or if students are
involved in hazardous activities. Guidance on trips
including information on insurance, vaccinations etc.
can be found on the College Intranet.
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk
The use of any machinery can involve significant
risks. These risks can be minimised by adhering
to the following:
• Use only equipment that you have been
trained on and are authorised to use
• Ensure that you are familiar with and adhere
to the College colour-coding scheme
(traffic light system).
• Ensure that you know how to use the
equipment safely.
• Always use machine guards
• Keep long hair and loose clothing securely
away from all rotating parts of the equipment
• Wear appropriate footwear (open toed sandals
and flip flops are strictly prohibited)
• Wear eye protection and hearing protection
at all times where instructed to do so
• Ensure that you know where the emergency
stop buttons are located.

Working Alone
If you have to work alone, ensure that someone
knows where you are and at what time
approximately you will finish. Do not carry out
work of a hazardous nature.

Workshops and Machinery Safety

All College workshop equipment is colour coded
(traffic light system). Signs explaining the coding
are displayed in all workshops and the instructions
must be followed. Details of the coding of each
machine are included in Departmental Safety
Policies. Students must attend a workshop induction
before they use any machinery. Staff or students
using a workshop for the first time must be shown
the emergency exits. This is the responsibility of 13
the Technician or another appointee of the Head
of School.
14
chapter

“It was unclear at the outset whether there

would be any particular discipline or university
department that would accommodate my
project. The College, with its reputation for
innovation in all subject areas, its broad
outlook and staff expertise in every creative
field provided the perfect environment.”
Lois Walpole, Alumni

information for 14

research staff
146 // information for research staff // research rca handbook 08·09
All members of the academic staff at the College
are expected to engage in research calculated
to advance and underpin the subject that they
teach and to make public the results of that
research. The Research Committee monitors
the quality and quantity of the research being
carried out by each member of staff and ensures
that deadlines are met. The Research Committee
ensures that research conducted at the RCA
does not breach the College’s Research Ethics
Code of Practice. The Staff Committee decides
upon the allocation of days released from
College activities to enhance the research of
individual members of staff.
The following mechanisms have been developed
to assist this process: Research Allocation
(including Remission); funding through the
Research Development Fund (RDF); Research
supervisor training and support for external
funding applications.
Please contact the Research Office if you require
further information on any of these procedures
or application deadlines.
research committee
The role of the RCA Research Committee is:
1. To develop and implement staff research
policy College-wide and to develop the RCA policy
with respect to recruitment of research and
degree programmes.
2. To advise the Senate on the development of
a research strategy which will include:
2.1 The organisation, development and conduct of
research and allied activities in the College including
strategic planning for the Research Assessment
Exercise (RAE2008) and beyond;
2.2 Development of interdisciplinary and
collaborative research;
2.3 Development of research component of
InnovationRCA;
2.4 Development of strategic research initiatives
within South Kensington in accordance with the
recommendations of the Council Working Parties.
3. To deploy internal research project funds
from the Research Development Fund.
4. To encourage the development of sponsored
research and to develop external research networks
and projects through funding applications to the
private as well as to the public sector.
5. To monitor the research carried out by
individual members of staff and by research studios
and centres within the Royal College of Art and to
review the relationships between:
5.1 Research and learning and teaching;
5.2 Research and international strategy;
5.3 Research and commerce, business
and industry.
6. To advise the Staff Committee on the
allocation of research time in staff contracts.
7. To create a programme for staff development
and equal opportunities, to include the development
Membership of the Research Committee:
Professor Jeremy Aynsley
of a structure for research staff career development Professor Wendy Dagworthy
(including supervisor training, accreditation for Professor Anthony Dunne
supervisor training and promotion of good practice Professor Dan Fern
in research supervision) and to review the funding Professor Sir Christopher Frayling, Rector
and career structure of Research Assistants, Hilary French
Research Fellows and Senior Research Fellows. Professor Sandra Kemp (Chair)
Martina Margetts
8. To advise the Senate on the most effective and Professor Jeremy Myerson
economic utilisation of facilities, accommodation Dr Claire Pajaczkowska
and staff for research purposes, including projects, Professor Olivier Richon
refurbishment and equipment supported by the Alan Selby, Registrar
Science Research Investment Fund (SRIF). Professor Martin Smith
Professor Hans Stofer
9. To maintain a College-wide record and index
of research degree activity and to ensure that the Quorum: one half of the total actual membership
provision offered to research students (including
supervision resources, space, equipment and other Members of the Research Committee are
support) is in compliance with good practice as responsible for updating the research staff within
outlined in the HEFCE/QAA Code of Practice for the their Department/School of all, non-confidential,
assurance of academic quality and standards Research Committee business.
in higher education.
Research Committee meetings, 2008–09
10. To advise Academic Standards Committee on 16 October 2008
the development and annual review of the Research 10 November 2008
Methods Course. 25 November 2008
19 January 2009
11. To review and maintain Royal College of 23 February 2009
Art research publications including the Research 09 March 2009
Handbook and the staff and student research pages 27 April 2009
on the Royal College of Art website. 25 June 2009
12. To receive reports from the Research Ethics
Committee on the discharge of its responsibilities.
14
148 // information for research staff // research rca handbook 08·09
research
development fund
The Research Development Fund (RDF) is admin-
istered by the Research Committee and welcomes
applications from all contracted members of staff.
Staff on externally funded research contracts
are eligible to apply to the Research Develop-
ment Fund as principal investigators for their own
research. A termly call for RDF is circulated to all
research-active staff.
The Research Development Fund welcomes
applications for:
• short-term research assistance including
assistance for the appointment of a Research
Assistant or Research Fellow
• match-funding for an existing project
• travel and subsistence for conference
presentations where publication is expected or
conference attendance when it is essential to
the applicant’s own research
• contribution towards the costs of materials and
equipment (where these are crucial and used
solely for the purposes of the specified research)
• contribution towards publication costs of
research (including the preparation of illustrative
materials and fees relating to reproduction
rights of texts or images, but excluding editorial
related tasks or subsidies to publishers).
• pump-priming of new research projects.
Please note:
• The Research Committee will assess your
application on the basis of evidence of your
ability to conduct research;
• Exhibition catalogues are only eligible for funding
where there is a significant and demonstrable
research component;
• Where the application concerns the publication
of a book, a publication contract or a written
expression of interest and a publication schedule
are required;
• Research Development Fund Application forms
(RS1; RS2 & RS3) must be word-processed
and returned to the Research Office. All
forms must be signed by the applicant’s Line
Manager and accompanied by supplementary
documentation where appropriate;
• All Research Development Fund awards are
authorised by the Research Committee;
• The Research Committee will not provide
funding retrospectively;
• If you are awarded RDF funding, the Research
Office will send you a letter confirming the
amount of the award and the process for claiming
the funding. To receive reimbursement, please
submit your original receipts to the Research
Office along with the relevant, fully completed,
finance form.
research allocation
The Research Committee monitors the quality
and quantity of the research being carried out by
each member of staff. It is also responsible for
recommending to Staff Committee the allocation
of days released from College activities to
enhance the member of staff’s research (Research
Allocation). Research Remission from teaching
duties is allocated for a period of two years and is
reviewed annually. Allocation can be awarded for
either half day or one day per week, additional to
current contractual days (allocation) or as remission
from other duties (remission), depending on staff
requirements. The Research Committee allocates
this research time (and HEFCE funding) strategically,
with a view to enhancing the overall RCA Research
strategy, rather than to particular individuals for
the duration of their time at the College. All
recipients of Research Allocation are required to
complete a Research Allocation Annual Report Form
by 01 June each year in order to have their period
of remission renewed.
If you are interested in applying for Research
Allocation, please take the following steps:
1. meet with your Head of Department to
discuss your proposal in its own context and within
the departmental research strategy
2. submit a fully completed and signed Research
Allocation Application Form (RS3) to the Research
Office by the published deadline.
Your application will be discussed at the relevant
Research Committee meeting. You will be notified
in writing by the Research Office of the decision
of the Committee.
research ethics
committee
The Research Ethics Committee (REC) is a sub-
Committee of the Research Committee established
to advise on legal, moral and ethical issues relating
to research undertaken at the Royal College of
Art and to ensure that research conducted at the
College does not breach the Royal College of Art
Code of Practice for Research Ethics, published
in this Handbook.
The Committee:
• considers all matters concerned with the
ethics and integrity of investigations involving
research subjects;
• considers all legal matters arising from research,
including issues relating to Intellectual Property
Rights, Copyright, and the authentication and
dissemination of research findings and outputs;
• safeguards the interests of volunteers taking
part in investigations and research, to include
the preservation of the right of anonymity of
participants in, and respondents to research,
and ensure that they are informed of any risks
relating to participation in research;
• advises the Research Committee, as
appropriate, on legal, moral or ethical issues
relating to research;
• publishes the Royal College of Art Code of
Practice for Research Ethics, the Research Ethics
Checklist and a series of Participant Consent
Forms (RE1–6), all available on the RCA website.
In 2008–09 the remit of the Royal College of Art
Code of Practice for Research Ethics will be
extended to include MA projects.
Research Ethics Committee meetings,
2008–09
25 November 2008
09 March 2009
training available
for research staff
All RCA staff are encouraged to attend the termly
Research Supervisor Fora. Chaired by the Director
of Research, these informal, lunch-time sessions
provide supervisors with an opportunity to discuss
any matters of concern.
• Tuesday, 28 October 2008, 1pm
• Tuesday, 17 February 2009, 1pm
• Tuesday, 26 May 2009, 1pm
The Research Supervisors’ Training Day is an annual
workshop where external speakers are invited to
provide training to RCA supervisors on a variety of
supervisory skills. The Research Supervisors Training
Day 2008–09 will be held on Tuesday 18 November
2008 at 10am. The Research Office will cover the
costs associated with attending these training
sessions for non-contracted members of staff who
would not normally be in College on the above
dates. The Research Office will publish separately
additional staff training events for supervisory teams
throughout the year.
Centre for Learning and Teaching in Art and
Design Supervisors’ Training Course
In 2000 the College became a founder member of
the Centre for Learning and Teaching in Art and
Design (CLTAD) along with the University of the
Arts and Wimbledon School of Art. Attendance at
the CLTAD Supervisors’ Training Course has been 14
mandatory for all new supervisors at the RCA.
150 // information for research staff // research rca handbook 08·09
The programme seeks to improve practice in
supervision and prepare participants to deliver high-
quality supervision to research degree students.
It also seeks to keep abreast of the growing pro-
fessionalism of research supervision across the
sector and to take a lead in such developments in
art and design. The programme will aim to develop
appropriate networks in art design supervision
resulting in the creation of a specialist research
community. The Course provides a specialist pro-
gramme of study for research supervision, leading
to a SEDA accredited qualification. Assessment
will be portfolio-based, including a reflective journal,
a critical-incidence log, case studies and a critical
analysis of a research proposal. Participants will
also do a presentation on their own research.
Mentor support will be integral to this programme.
Course leader: Katy Deepwell
What does the programme cover?
• Values and purposes of research degrees
• Preparing for supervision
• Recruitment, selection and admission of students
• Managing the process
• Monitoring the process
• Student supervisor relationship
• Documenting the process
• Completing
• Assessment
• Personal and professional development
• Career needs
• Own research
• Practice-based degrees
This course will run over one year, with taught
sessions (10) over two terms. Completion of this
course is mandatory for all new research supervisors
and is paid for by the RCA. The course will run on
Thursday afternoons 2.30–4 30pm at Catton Street.
In addition to the taught sessions some assessment
tasks must be completed. Course commencement
October 2008.
To download an application form please go to:
http://www.arts.ac.uk/cltad/14707.htm and
submit it directly to the Course office. For further
information please contact the Course office on:
tel: 0207 514 8162 or email: cltad@arts.ac.uk
For further information on the supervision of MPhil
and PhD students please refer to the ‘Role of the
Supervisor’ section in this Handbook [page 17] and
also to The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher
Education ‘Code of Practice for the assurance of
academic quality and standards in higher education’
Section 1: Postgraduate research programmes
– September 2004 available on the RCA website at
http://intranet.rca.ac.uk/pages/research/qaa_
special_review_of_3327.html
Limited copies of the Code of Practice are available
from the Research Office.
Support for Doctoral Studies
The RCA actively supports the career development
of its staff and will contribute two thirds of the
cost for contracted members of staff pursuing staff
development activities relevant to their work.
Please contact the Research Office for more details.
external funding
opportunities
The Research Office actively encourages all research
staff at the College to enhance their research
potential by submitting applications for external
funding to a wide range of public and private funding
bodies. There are a variety of funding schemes
available for early-career researchers through to
established academics, in all fields of research
undertaken at the College. There are funds available
for providing researchers with Research Assistants;
Doctoral Students; Research Leave; Fellowships and
Research Grants.
If you are interested in submitting an external
funding application during 2008–09, please take
the following steps:
1. Review the research rca guide to external
funding schemes 2008–09 to identify a possible
source of funding for your research project
(downloadable from the RCA website and available
from the Research Office).
2. Go to the website of the funding agency to
thoroughly familiarise yourself with the guidelines
for submission and the particular eligibility criteria
of the scheme that you are interested in applying to,
for example: http://www.ahrc.ac.uk;
http://www.epsrc.ac.uk;
http://www.artscouncil.org.uk or
http://www.britac.ac.uk
3. Once you have identified a suitable scheme,
send a proposal via email to research@rca.ac.uk
detailing your specific research question; aims;
objectives; methodology; timescale; funding
requirements and project collaborators.
4. On receipt of this written proposal the
Research Office will work closely with you to
develop the application in readiness for final sub-
mission by the scheme deadline, including liaison
with Personnel, Finance Office, ILS and Health &
Safety to ensure that your application satisfies
College requirements.
Please note that although the Research Office will
provide as much support as possible during the
application process (and subsequent reporting
process), it is the responsibility of the Principal
Investigator to ensure that the correctly completed
application is submitted within the scheme deadline.
Principal Investigators are also responsible for the
submission of all subsequent reporting.
Please remember that all research applications
to external funding agencies must be submitted by
the Research Office. The Research Office will
not submit applications which have been hastily
compiled or inadequately completed as this may
jeopardise future applications to the College.
Joint Electronic Submission (Je-S) System
Since September 2006, the majority of research
grant proposals to the six UK Research Councils
must be submitted online through the Joint
Electronic Submission (Je-S) System. To submit
a proposal using Je-S, the Principal Investigator
must be registered for Je-S. To register with Je-S,
please go to the Je-S login page (https://je-s.rcuk.
ac.uk) and choose ‘Create Account’ and follow the
prompts. Please choose the ‘registered’ account
option where indicated. The Research Office will
be notified of your registration automatically.
Once you are registered with Je-S, you will be able
to circulate your draft application to the Research
Office and your collaborators in other HEI’s
electronically, enabling contributors to develop an
application simultaneously. When complete, the
Principal Investigator submits the final proposal
via Je-S to the Research Office, who then submit
the proposal to the relevant Research Council.
For further information on both Je-S proposal
submission and the registration process, please
go to the login page and choose ‘Tutorials’.
On-line tutorials and registration guidance may
be accessed from here, even if you do not have
an individual account.
If you require further assistance with Je-S, please
contact the Research Office on research@rca.ac.uk
or on 020 75904126. The Je-S helpdesk is also very
helpful on 01793 444 164.
research assessment
exercise (rae2008)
The Research Office was responsible for the
Royal College of Art’s submission to the Research
Assessment Exercise 2008 (RAE2008). RAE2008
was the sixth in a series of exercises conducted
nationally to assess the quality of UK research and 14
to inform the selective distribution of public funds
for research by the four UK higher education funding
bodies. Further information can be found on the
RAE website: http://www.rae.ac.uk/
15
chapter

The Royal College of Art’s principal

research aim is to develop its contribution
to scholarship and applied research in
art and design and to act as a catalyst to
encourage and stimulate industry at
national and international level.

guide to forms 15
154 // guide to forms // research rca handbook 08·09

Guide to forms used by research

students and staff
Research Ethics
RE1 Research Ethics Checklist and Consent Form
forms relating Training
CLTAD Supervisors’ Training Course
To be completed by student submitted to the
Research Ethics Committee
to staff Application Form downloadable from
http://www.arts.ac.uk/cltad/14707.htm

forms relating
To be completed by researcher and Head
Research Development Fund
RE2 Non-disclosure form of Department and submitted to the
RS1 Application for research development

to students
To be completed by student CLTAD course office.
funding (research leave, replacement teaching
costs, research assistance, match-funding,
RE3 Parental Consent
cost of materials, publication costs)
Admissions To be signed by the parent/guardian of a minor
To be completed by researcher and Head of
Application Form participating in a research project
Department/School
To be completed by applicant
RE4 Minor Consent
RS2 Application for conference funding
PG1 Admissions Criteria Checklist for MPhil To be signed by a minor participating in a
To be completed by researcher and Head of
To be completed by Chair of the Admissions Board research project
Department/School

PG2 Admissions Criteria Checklist for PhD RE5 Survey Participant Consent
Research Allocation
To be completed by Chair of the Admissions Board To be signed by individuals participating in a survey
RS3 Application for Research Allocation
for a research project
To be completed by researcher and Head of
PG3 Unsuccessful Admission Checklist Department/School
To be completed by Chair of the Admissions Board RE6 Focus/User Group Consent
To be signed by individuals participating in a focus
RS4 Research Allocation Annual Report
Personal Development Plan or user group for a research project
To be completed by researcher
PDP1 Supervision Tutorial Log
To be completed by the student and supervisor(s) Interim Examination
Research Ethics
PG5 Interim Examination Report for MPhil or PhD
RE1 Research Ethics Checklist and Consent Form
PDP2 Training Needs Analysis To be completed by Chair of Examination Board
To be completed by researcher and submitted to
To be completed by the student; Research Ethics Committee
signed by supervisor(s) Transfer of Status
PG6 Transfer of Status from MPhil to PhD
RE3 Parental Consent
Leave of Absence To be submitted by student to the Examination
To be signed by the parent/guardian of a minor
PG4a Application for Leave of Absence Board; then completed by Chair of the
participating in a research project
To be completed by student; Examination Board
signed by Head of Department RE4 Minor Consent
Final Examination
To be signed by a minor participating in a
PG4b Return from Leave of Absence PG7 Notification of Submission of Thesis
research project
To be completed by Head of Department for MPhil or PhD Examination
To be completed by student and supervisor(s)
RE5 Survey Participant Consent
To be signed by individuals participating in a survey
PG8 Appointment of External Examiner
for a research project
To be completed by Head of Department
RE6 Focus/User Group Consent
PG9 MPhil Final Examination
To be signed by individuals participating in a focus
To be completed by Chair of Examination Board
or user group for a research project

PG10 PhD Final Examination

To be completed by Chair of Examination Board 15
156 // appendix 1 // research rca handbook 08·09
appendix 1: school of
applied arts
current research
Ceramics & Glass
Maham Anjum-Chesti
students 2008–09
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
What are the present attitudes towards the ceramic
crafts in the Indian subcontinent and are there
opportunities for the development and promotion for
these crafts – for cultural benefit and consumption
within the subcontinent and for global appreciation
and sales?
Martin Smith
Emmanuel Boos
PhD by Project, Part-time. AHRC
The Poetics of Glaze: Ceramic Surface and the
Perception of Depth
Emmanuel Cooper
Heike Brachlow
PhD by Project, Full-time. AHRC
Shaping Colour: Density, Form and Light in
Solid Glass Sculpture
Martin Smith
Steve Brown
PhD by Project, Full-time. AHRC
The Physicality of Print: an enquiry that offers
to expand the dialogue between screen-printed
image and ceramic material/form through
practice, history and theory
Felicity Aylieff, Glenn Adamson
Suresh Dutt
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
Constructing Space: in what ways can a sense
of space be communicated using the optical
qualities of a geometric construction in glass?
Felicity Aylieff
Frances Federer
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
Gold, Glass and the Image
Alison Britton
Edith Garcia*
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
The Absence and Presence of the Human Form
in Sculpture: Where is the Vanishing Point?
Felicity Aylieff
Daniel Harvey*
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
Synthesizing Bone to Stone
Emmanuel Cooper
Min Jeong Song*
MPhil by Project, Full-time
Image-on-Glass Technology: a Technology-led
Conceptual Approach in Glass Art
Alison Britton
Goldsmithing, Silversmithing,
Metalwork & Jewellery
Tine de Ruysser
PhD by Project, Part-time. AHRC
Deployable adornment: electroforming to create
jewellery and fashion accessories with deployable
and adaptive structures.
David Watkins, Beatriz Chadour-Sampson, Julian
Vincent, David Humphrey
Kathryn Hinton*
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
The Craft of Digital Tooling
Michael Rowe, David Humphrey
Stephen Knott*
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time. AHRC
Spot the Difference: Concealing the ‘ever-same’
in modern adornment using historically
constructed illusions
Glenn Adamson, Hans Stofer
Leon Williams
PhD by Project, Full-time. AHRC
Jewellery for Disabilities
David Watkins, Beatriz Chadour-Sampson
158 // appendix 1 // research rca handbook 08·09
school of
architecture
& design
Architecture
Ruth Campbell
PhD by Project, Full-time. EPSRC
Out of Place: exploring identity through archi-
tectural experiment into psychological space
Nigel Coates, Jeremy Myerson
Mohamad Hafeda*
MPhil by Project, Full-time.
Informal Design Production in Beirut:
The negotiation of spaces, factors of conflict
Nigel Coates, Mark Garcia, Fernando Rihl
Emilia Serra
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
Sequence and montage in the perception of
public space: designing along the East London
line extension
Nigel Coates, Al Rees
Chrysostomos Tsimourdagkas
PhD by Project, Full-time.
Greek State Scholarships Foundation
Typotecture: Incorporating typographic
elements into the architectural field
Nigel Coates, Mark Garcia
Design Products
school of design Luke Harmer
PhD by Project, Part-time
Jorge Roberto Lopes dos Santos
PhD by Project, Full-time. CNPq Conselho Nacional
for production
From where I’m sitting – improving the design of
public transport through commuter perspectives:
de Desenvovimento Científico e Tecnológico
Physical three-dimensional models for design
Industrial Design Engineering
with specific reference to the bus
Dale Harrow, Dr Paul Ewing
projects: the impact and complementary roles
of conventional and new techniques Eunju Han
Simon Harris
Hilary French PhD by Project, Full-time
MPhil by Project, Part-time
Floating spaces: Hybrid-mapping between physical
A new people’s car: changing the bias of vehicle
and non-physical factors in city spaces
Design Interactions control layouts from vehicle-centred to user-centred
Tom Barker
Dr Paul Ewing, Dale Harrow
James Auger*
MPhil by Project, Full-time. Microsoft Research Labs Ben Storan
Louise Kiesling
Living with Robots: an interaction-focused approach MPhil by Project, Full-time
MPhil by Thesis, Part-time
exploring the implications for robots in the home Domestic wind turbine designs
Design Transience – The impact fashion has on
Anthony Dunne, Alex Taylor Tom Barker
the Automobile Industry
Dale Harrow, Dr Paul Ewing
Elio Caccavale Alison Wright
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary MPhil by Project, Full-time
Artur Mausbach
Future families: a practice-based research project How can roadblocks to the design of inclusive
PhD by Project, Full-time. The Ministry of Education,
to explore social, cultural and ethical issues housing and home products be overcome through
Brazil (CAPES)
surrounding emerging reproductive technologies a practical tool or system of communication, which
The Style of the Sustainable Car
and new family forms will encourage a wider uptake of inclusive design?
Dale Harrow, Dr Paul Ewing
Anthony Dunne Tom Barker, Ashley Hall
Osmar Rodrigues
Björn Franke Ding Yu*
PhD by Project, Full-time. CNPq – Conselho Nacional
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary MPhil by Project, Full-time
de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico
Designing influence: artefacts as influential actors Design of Global Brands in China
Vehicle Design for Transportation of People in
manipulating human behaviour and thought Tom Barker, Cai Jun
Off-Road Conditions
Anthony Dunne
Dale Harrow, Dr Paul Ewing
Vehicle Design
Konstantinos Grivas
David Swann
PhD by Project, Part-time. EPSRC Sheila Clark
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time. EPSRC
Interfacing intimacy: designing ubiquitous MPhil by Project, Full-time.
Smartpods: Taking Healthcare to the Community
technology for the intimate dwelling RCA Staff Development Fund
Dale Harrow, Roger Coleman
Anthony Dunne, Phil Tabor Material, Form and Colour for Vehicles of the Future
Dr Paul Ewing, Dale Harrow
Lino Vital
Julijonas Urbonas
MPhil by Project, Full-time, RCA Bursary
MPhil by Project, Full-time Max Fickel
New approaches to vehicle architecture for
Highbrow Fairground: Reflective Design MPhil by Project, Full-time, RCA Bursary
future electric automobiles
towards sublimation of Amusement. Structural optimisation with aesthetic constraints
Dr Andrew Nahum, Dr Paul Ewing
Anthony Dunne, Brendan Walker as exemplified by the design of an ultra lightweight
human powered vehicle
Dr Andrew Nahum, Dr Paul Ewing
160 // appendix 1 // research rca handbook 08·09

school of Matthew Flintham

PhD by Thesis, Full-time.
Paul Scattergood*
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
Kirsten Scott
MPhil by Project. Full-time
communications AHRC Landscape and Environment Scheme
Parallel Landscapes: A spatial and critical analysis
Digital and Spatial Materiality in 3D
Illusionistic Projection
Can new, natural millinery materials be
developed and could Africa be a source?
of militarised sites in the United Kingdom Jon Wozencroft, Al Rees Philippa Watkins
Animation
Patrick Keiller, Patrick Wright
Tereza Stehlikova* Karin von Ompteda Emma Shercliff
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary Rod Judkins MPhil by Project, Full-time. PhD by Project. Part-time
Tactile Imagination & Film: How Invoking the MPhil by Project, Part-time Commonwealth Fellowship Through the eye of the needle: Understanding
Sense of Touch Can Enhance the Viewing Chaos theory Typefaces for Low Vision contemporary domestic textile craft in the UK
Experience of Film Jon Wozencroft Jeff Willis, Tony Cobb Freddie Robins
Joan Ashworth, Deborah Levy
Robert Kernohan* Suzanne Stankard

school of fashion
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary PhD by Thesis, Part-time.
Communication Art & Design
Support Structures for Immaterial Objects: Moving Contemporary Malaysian songket: relationships
Sofie Beier
& textiles
Images within Exhibition Formats between technique, culture and material aesthetic
PhD by Project, Part-time. Al Rees, Nicky Hamlyn Philippa Watkins, Suzanne Keuchler
Legibility in contemporary typography
Jeff Willis, Kevin Larson Olivia Lory Kay Menswear
MPhil by Project, Part-time
Jocelyn Cammack Nicholas Clements
Narrative development and technological innovation
PhD by Project, Full-time. AHRC MPhil by Project, Part-time
Al Rees
Visual deception: cinematic exploration of Dad’s Style: Naming a New Sub Culture.
a neurological phenomenon Wendy Dagworthy
Clive Myer
Al Rees, Christopher Kennard PhD by Project, Part-time. University of Glamorgan.
The role of collective consciousness in the diegetic Textiles
Daniel Campbell Blight space of the film subject
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary Katie Louise Gaudion
Al Rees, Jorem ten Brink
How can interdisciplinary study, for example with MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
the cognitive neurosciences, allow for a greater The development of interactive textiles structures
Alistair Nash
understanding of human perception of sonic art? to encourage haptic and proprioceptive response for
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
Jon Wozencroft the service-users of multi-sensory environments
The Symbolic Creation and Collection of Information
Prue Bramwell-Davis
– A New Brand Definition
Jorge Dos Reis Tavares Duarte Tony Cobb
MPhil by Project, Part-time Elaine Igoe
New Vowel Notation System for the MPhil by Project, Part-time.
Rachel Pedder-Smith
Adult Classroom University of Portsmouth.
PhD by Project, Part-time
Tony Cobb Flocking: potentiality and transferability
The Representation of Biological Diversity in Art
Prue Bramwell-Davis
Dan Fern
Abbe Fletcher
MPhil by Project, Part-time Rachel Philpott
Claire Robertson
Between the frames: The role of the interval PhD by Project, Full-time. AHRC
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
between the Frames and Shots Structural textiles: adaptive form and surface
The Babylon system is breaking me down:
Al Rees in the third dimension
a description of male youth culture located in
Clare Johnston, Prue Bramwell-Davis
London and Paris
Al Rees
162 // appendix 1 // research rca handbook 08·09

school of fine art Photography Printmaking school of

Painting
Frederico Camara*
MPhil by Project, Full-time
Andrea Büttner
PhD by Project, Full-time humanities
Daniel Baker Views of Paradise Aesthetics of shame: the relevance of shame
Yve Lomax, Francette Pacteau for contemporary art and visual culture Conservation
PhD by Project, Full-time. AHRC
Sight Unseen: The Role of Gypsy Aesthetics Nigel Rolfe
Victoria Button
in the Transmission of Cultural Agency Justin Coombes*
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time. RCA Bursary
Elizabeth Price MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary Hélène Martin
Hans Holbein the Younger: An investigation into
Recollected Places: Ekphrasis, Nostalgia MPhil by Project, Part-time
his choice and use of materials and techniques
Teresita Dennis and Photography A Vindication of the Void: a Lack Fulfilled
with particular reference to his portrait drawings
PhD by Project, Full-time. Olivier Richon Jo Stockham
Alan Derbyshire, Harriet Standeven
Locating Experience: Painting and its Reserve
Elizabeth Price, Jonathan Miles Criodhna Costello Marilène Oliver-Poulsen
Stavroula (Iris) Kapelouzou
MPhil by Project, Full-time. Irish Arts Council MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
PhD by Thesis, Full-time.
Nadine Feinson The Temporal Loop Representing the absent body – resurrecting
Harming works of art. The challenges of
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary Yve Lomax, Francette Pacteau the digitised and coded self
contemporary conceptions of the artwork
Painting the Perfect Cannibal: An investigation Jo Stockham
Jonathan Ashley-Smith, Nick Zangwill
into paint, image and deformation through Jessica Potter
the monstrous PhD by Project, Full-time
Sculpture Richard Mulholland
Elizabeth Price Mapping and unmapping the perception
PhD by Thesis, Full-time. AHRC
of space in contemporary visual art Claire Carter
A Technical study of David Smith’s drawing media
Ian Kiaer Yve Lomax MPhil by Project, Full-time
Harriet Standeven, Narayan Khandekar
PhD by Project, Part-time. AHRC Manipulative installation: devices set up to heighten
The Endless House: buildings as a thought model John Seth responses in the experience of the spectator
Cordelia Rogerson
Jonathan Miles PhD by Project, Part-time Keith Wilson, Elizabeth Price
PhD by Thesis, Part-time
Chance conscious seeing
Preserving jewellery made from plastics and rubber:
Robin Mason Yve Lomax, Olivier Richon Wijnand De Jonge*
values embodied in materials and objects
MPhil by Project, Part-time MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary
William Lindsay, Beatriz Chadour-Sampson
Pathetic sublime and erotic meditations on Francis Summers Monuments Against Infinity
the Isenheim Altarpiece. PhD by Project, Part-time Elizabeth Price, Keith Wilson
Compulsions to enjoy Critical and Historical Studies
Elizabeth Price
Yve Lomax, Francette Pacteau Katrina Palmer
John Joseph Charlesworth*
Hephzibah Rendle-Short PhD by Project, Full-time
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time. RCA Bursary
MPhil by Project, Full-time. RCA Bursary Esther Teichmann The object of sculpture and the subject of narrative
Art Criticism: the mediation of contemporary art
Re-Picturing – re-presentation PhD by Project, Part-time Elizabeth Price, Keith Wilson
in Britain, 1970–2005
Elizabeth Price, Jonathan Miles Loss and Creation
Martina Margetts
Francette Pacteau Antigoni Pasidi
Michelle Stevenson PhD by Project, Full-time
Duncan Cook
PhD by Project, Full-time Norma-Louise Thallon The restorative role of the work of art:
PhD by Thesis, Full-time
Reading Meaning into Order: an investigation PhD by Project, Full-time the work as a stage
Art, agency and eco-aesthetic practices
into the value and interpretation of the Humour and Art Denise de Cordova, Elizabeth Price
John Stezaker, Peter Mortenbock
institutional object Yve Lomax, Francette Pacteau
Jo Stockham Jorge Rivera Fraga
Emmanuelle Dirix
PhD by Project, Part-time
MPhil by Thesis, Part-time
Representing Narcissus – reflections in the
The thin divide: reflections on the shop window,
process of self-recognition
the display of fashion and the construction of
Trish Lyons, Margarita Gluzberg
modern desire (1848–1910)
Joe Kerr
164 // appendix 1 // research rca handbook 08·09

Cecilia Jardemar Louli Kyriaki Michaelidou Marina Emmanouil Catharine Rossi

PhD by Thesis, Full-time. AHRC
Face to Face: the quest to capture the contained
Olivier Richon
Filipa Roseta Vaz Monteiro
PhD by Thesis, Full-time.
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation
The modern avenue: the automobile’s place in
the architecture of the city
Joe Kerr, Stewart Geddes
Juliet Thorp
MPhil by Thesis, Part-time.
RCA Staff Development Fund
Royal College of Art Collection:
Gemstone or Millstone?
Martina Margetts
Curating Contemporary Art
Stefano Cagol
PhD by Thesis, Full-time
Crossing the Exhibition: the need for a modern
approach to contemporary art exhibition
Mark Nash
José Filipe Costa
PhD by Thesis, Full-time.
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia
Tracking the Carnation Revolution: Cinema
and memory in post-revolutionary Portugal
Mark Nash, Rosalind Gray
Inês Costa Dias
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time
The lusophone contemporary arts –
a postcolonial perspective
Mark Nash, Jean Fisher
Olga Fernandez
PhD by Thesis, Part-time
The ‘institutionalisation of curatorship’:
the relationship between curatorial practice
and institutional critique’
Claire Bishop
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time
Post-1960s Cypriot Art: Locating Contemporary
through the Post-Colonial
Mark Nash
Rafal Niemojewski
PhD by Thesis, Full-time
Curator’s playground: rise of contemporary biennial
Teresa Gleadowe, Claire Bishop
Nuria Querol Antich
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time
Curating the Postcolonial? Positioning Contemporary
Art in India Through its Exhibitions
Mark Nash, Jean Fisher
Polly Savage*
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time. RCA Bursary
An Analysis of the Impact of Marxist Government
and Petro-Diamond Patronage on Art Frameworks
in Angola from 1975 to the Present
Mark Nash
Marieke (Maria) van Hal
MPhil by Thesis, Part-time
The Biennial Effect
Mark Nash
History of Design
Mary Ann Bolger
MPhil by Thesis, Part-time.
Waterford Institute of Technology
Celtic Modernism: the negotiation of national
identity, tradition and modernity as reflected through
Irish graphic design in the period 1949–1978.
Jeremy Aynsley, David Crowley
Laura Elliott
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time. RCA Bursary.
To what extent was the V&A able to overcome
its colonial and socially-deferential history in
order to embrace modern design and a modern
British public?
Ulrich Lehmann, Glenn Adamson
PhD by Thesis, Full-time. PhD by Thesis, Full-time. AHRC
The emergence of graphic design in Greece, The transition to modernity: the practice,
1950s–1970s: graphic design education at the dissemination and consumption of modern craft
Athens Technological Institute in postwar Italy 1945–60
Jeremy Aynsley, Viviana Narotzky Glenn Adamson, Tanya Harrod
Sarah Foster Diane Silverthorne
PhD by Thesis, Part-time. PhD by Thesis, Full-time. AHRC
Cork Institute of Technology. New Spaces of Art, Design and Performance
The expression of national and religious identities in Vienna 1890–1920: Alfred Roller and the
in the 19th-century Irish Domestic interior. Vienna Secessionists
David Crowley, Christopher Breward Jeremy Aynsley, Simon Shaw-Miller
Denise Hagströmer Alice Twemlow
PhD by Thesis, Full-time MPhil by Thesis, Full-time. RCA Bursary
In search of a national vision: Swedish The politics of design criticism since the 1950s
embassies and residences from the mid-20th David Crowley, Viviana Narotzky
century to the present
David Crowley, Viviana Narotzky
*New research students due to register
Miya Itabashi October 2008
PhD by Thesis, Part-time. Japan Foundation
Japonisme: The representation of Japanese Art in
late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Britain
Tanya Harrod, Jeremy Aynsley
Michelle Jones
MPhil by Thesis, Part-time
English Couture: The Incorporated Society of
London Fashion Designers
Christopher Breward, Viviana Narotzky
Claire Leighton
MPhil by Thesis, Full-time. RCA Bursary.
Collecting and interior decoration at Strawberry
Hill during the period of residency of Lady
Waldegrave in the 19th Century
Glenn Adamson, Angela McShane
Livia Rezende
PhD by Thesis, Full-time.
The Ministry of Education, Brazil (CAPES)
The Brazilian quest for modernity and national
identity through participation in
international exhibitions, 1851–1922
David Crowley, Christine Guth
166 // appendix 2 // research rca handbook 08·09

appendix 2: school of
applied arts
Goldsmithing, Silversmithing,
Metalwork and Jewellery

research alumni
Saemi Cho MPhil 2006
Studies on the condition of labour and work
Ceramics & Glass related to the fundamental role of craft
Mike Eden MPhil 2008

1995–2008
Cornelia Nuis MPhil 2005
The Hand and the Glove: Actual and Virtual
Ornament: from servant to prominent –
Explorations of the Ceramic Container
3d ornamental mapping
Bonnie Kemske PhD 2008
Clare Finn PhD 2004
Evoking intimacy: touch and the thoughtful in
The decorative metalwork of Pablo Picasso;
sculptural ceramics
his collaboration with Francois Hugo
Skarl Thampirak PhD 2008
Sompit Fusakul PhD 2003
The investigation and development of stable zinc
Interactive ornaments
silicate crystalline wares suitable for small-scale
production for domestic and utilitarian use at
David Humphrey PhD 2003
1200 C or lower
iReEn Integrated Research Environment; an
innovative computer-based, collaborative, research
Martin Hosken MPhil 2003
to prototype environment for use in the decorative
Clay and psyche, breaking the vessel
and applied arts, with specific focus on its
application in historical jewellery research
Sylvie Vandenhoucke MPhil 2003
Glass – towards an inner space on introducing
Sarah McAleer PhD 2003
metal oxides in pate de verre making
Children’s jewellery in Europe traditions and
contemporaneity
Julian Stair PhD 2003
Critical writing on English studio pottery
Stephen Bottomley MPhil 2001
1910–1940
Making with New Technology. CAD/CAM &
Contemporary Jewellery Craft Practice
Keith Fraser MPhil 2002
The Arcanist – a study of reduced lustres fired
Rita Coquet MPhil 2001
on high temperature glazes
Chinese traditions (960-1912) looking through
the female eye
Richard Slade PhD 2002
Autoreductive glazes: a systematic
Marianne Ridge MPhil 2000
practical exploration
Electroforming for studio jewellery
Etsuko Nishi MPhil 1999
Apinya Boonprakob PhD 1999
Investigation of multiple-layered thin pate de verre
Evocative Thai jewellery
Mey Saied MPhil 1997
Ann-Marie Carey MPhil 1997
An investigation of Sudanese raw materials for
Laser surface – aesthetic
ceramic manufacture

Ian Ferguson PhD 1996

Felicity Aylieff MPhil 1996
The development of solid state diffusion
The elusive body
bonded Mokume Gane
168 // appendix 2 // research rca handbook 08·09
Ruth Faulkner MPhil 1995
The adaptation and application of rotational
moulding for jewellery making
school of
architecture
& design
Architecture
Thomas Modeen MPhil 2005
CADCAMMing – The use of solid freeform
fabrication in the conceptualization and
actualization of design and architecture
Socrates Yiannoudes MPhil 2005
Exploring the kinaesthetic aspects of spatial
experience and perceptions through the
design of (inter)-active architectural projects.
Judith Kimpian PhD 2001
Pneumatrix: the architecture of pneumatic
structures in the digital world, curved
spaces transient volumes dynamic structures
Design Products
Richard Liddle MPhil 2006
Can new manufacture processes and technology
be developed to use recycled HDPE plastic
effectively in product design?
Lois Walpole PhD 2004
Weave, coil & plait: crafty containers from
recycled materials
Natalie Woolf PhD 2004
Plastic: A Material Metaphor
Jyri Kermik PhD 2000
The Design and Production of Furniture with
Limited Resources with Particular Reference
to Estonia
Ming-Huang Lin PhD 1999
Bamboo, dragon and phoenix: the influence of
Design Interactions school of
cultural icons on the aesthetic language of everyday
objects, especially when applied to Taiwanese
Sebastiaan Raijmakers PhD 2007
Design Documentaries: Using documentary film communications
to inspire interaction design
product design
Animation
Diego Masera PhD 1998
Judith Aston PhD 2003
Interactive multimedia: an investigation into its
Ho-Won Nah MPhil 2008
Trick or Treat: The Materiality of Animation
Eco-production: sustainable product development
potential for communicating ideas and arguments
in small furniture enterprises in the Purepecha Technique and the Representation of the Animator’s
Presence in Early Animations
region of Mexico
Jason Lewis MPhil 1998
Dynamic poetry: introductory remarks to a
Tajinder Dhami MPhil 2007
Industrial Design Engineering digital medium
Space is the Place: an extension of the
Ben Shaw PhD 2007 viewing frame
Robert Spence PhD 1998
More than the Sum of the Parts:
Shared Representations in Collaborative Liz Gould MPhil 2003
Anthony Dunne PhD 1997
Design Interaction Observing the gaps: a study of the transmission
Hertzian tales; an investigation into the critical
of ideas in animation
and aesthetic potential of the electronic product
Pattarapol Chantkam MPhil 2003
as a post-optimal object
A new hybrid of natural material for Thai Shilpa Ranade MPhil 1995
furniture industry
Fiona Raby MPhil 1995
Communication Art and Design
Neil Barron MPhil 2001
Technology as handmaiden to Generative Drawing Vehicle Design Alun Harris PhD 2008
The Fruit of the Poison Tree: Jurisprudence and
Kleber Puchaski PhD 2008
Kathleen McCluskey MPhil 2001 ‘Dirty Harry’
Feel the future: perceptions of branding and
Beyond the Touch Screen: An investigation into
design towards product development in the
Gallery based Virtual Environments from a user Adam Kossoff PhD 2008
motoring industry
point of view On Terra Firma: Space and Place in the
Moving Image
Joseph Simpson MPhil 2008
Rosemary Wallin MPhil 2000
‘Where’s my flying car?’ – the future of the car
Hybrid Footwear Simon Payne PhD 2008
in an urban context
Materiality and medium-specificity: digital aesthetics
Ben Shaw MPhil 1998 in the context of experimental film and video
Merih Kunur MPhil 2004
Speaking different languages: metaphor, discourse
What is really needed in city transport to increase
and disciplinary conflict in product development Matthias Hillner MPhil 2007
quality of life?
Virtual typography – The poetics of transition
Frances Geesin PhD 1995
Sonja Dahl MPhil 2001
The chemical and structural manipulation of fabrics Claudia Müller-Hermann MPhil 2006
The challenge of change: automotive design
and fibres through stiffening techniques with Spatial Spheres – Form and synthesis of virtual,
strategies for the future
specific emphasis on electrodeposition (the resulting architectural and cultural spaces
material have applications in fine art, fashion and
the applied arts. Cynthia Silver MPhil 2006
The influence of Botanical illustration, biodiversity
and conservation on the loss of species
Andrew Conio MPhil 2005
An interdisciplinary fine art video practice, which
borrows from the modalities of theory, theatre,
literature and film
170 // appendix 2 // research rca handbook 08·09

Richard Wolfson MPhil 2005 Paul Stickley MPhil 2000 Timothy Freed PhD 1997 Constructed Textiles
Visual music A psychological and philosophical mapping of colour The butterflies of Kensal Green Cemetery; the
Jessica Payne PhD 2004
development of a Victorian urban cemetery and
Exploration of the design potential of 18 gauge-
Jung-Mei Tsen PhD 2005 Helen Bowling MPhil 2000 its viability as a butterfly conservation area
electronic circular double-jersey knitting machine,
The face of Chinese typography An investigation into Czech illustration
with regards to the development of weft-knitted.
Joao Manuel Madeira MPhil 1996
Sean Gregory MPhil 2004 Thomas Flemming MPhil 1999 Post-Humanism: the Post-Modern idea of self
Diana Irani MPhil 2002
Quality and effectiveness in creative music Breaking the Flow: a study of cinematic and
A system for manufacturing and marketing
workshop practice digital graphic imaging Lyn Wells MPhil 1996
customised herbal properties in textiles
Natural History illustration and bird behaviour
Rebecca Jewell PhD 2004 Juthamas Tangsantikul MPhil 1999
David Poyser MPhil 2001
African designs Interactive media research for the third age Philip Hockey MPhil 1995
The combining of static and interactive exhibits
Shizuko Kimura MPhil 2000
Heitor Alvelos PhD 2003 Leonard Massey MPhil 1998
A research into figure and life drawing through stitch
The fabrication of authenticity graffiti beyond A research method for electrostatic media

school of fashion
subculture
Jane Harris PhD 2000
Niki Stylianou MPhil 1998
Surface tension – the aesthetic fabrication of digital

& textiles
Nada Prlja Serafimovski MPhil 2002 Labyrinthine structures: the idea of the labyrinth
textiles (the design and construction of 3D computer
Personal art: blurring the boundaries between as a tool for mapping the space between text
graphic animation)
the artist and the viewer and architecture
Fashion/Menswear
Emma Salmon PhD 2000
Stefan Szczelkun PhD 2002 Peter Jarvis MPhil 1998
Daniel Kearns MPhil 2000 Skin deep? a cultural and aesthetic study of
Exploding cinema 1992–1999, culture The role of the architectural illustrator:
Reshaping bespoke calendered vinyl
and democracy an empirical study into aspects of representation
Andrea Carter MPhil 1999
Mariko Dawson MPhil 2001 Yukki Yaura MPhil 1998 Fashion/Womenswear
The stroke-web Japanese scroll painting and its contemporary
Daijiro Mizuno PhD 2008 Christine Westwood-Davis MPhil 1999
application in wild-life art
Clothing, Space and Perception: Computer aided or computer crafted
Jiwhe Koo MPhil 2000
Orality in Fashion Design
The future of books: interactivity between Miurne Dineen PhD 1998
Savithri Bartlett MPhil 1997
text & form Jaipur Fresco Technique: an investigation into
Janice Turner MPhil 2004
its practical and contemporary application,
A uniform surface – can a uniform compliment Robert Mew MPhil 1996
Heashin Kwak MPhil 2000 and explorations into the origins and context of
enforced identity? Printed Textiles
Structural design of paper and board packaging its indigenous usage
for sustainable development
Manel Torres Balash PhD 2001 Rachel Wingfield MPhil 2002
Geoffrey Schott PhD 1998
Fabric in a can – the future Luminescence and the textile environment
Michael Leek MPhil 2000 Picturing the functions of the brain: 20th century
Information illustration: developments through graphic illustration of brain function: observations
Joanna Norman MPhil 2000 Joan Farrer PhD 2000
naval architecture and shipbuilding c1586 –1902 and critical analysis
The relationship between fashion and fragrance From straw to gold; an ecological assessment
Alan Male MPhil 2000 Susan Michaelson MPhil 1997
Frankie Ng PhD 2000 Wendy Wilson MPhil 1999
Illustrating prehistory; the development of A transpersonal perspective in art and design
The creation of seamless fashion
illustrative conventions in the reconstruction and
Katherine Wells PhD 1998
depiction of prehistoric life forms Nicholas Ardizzone PhD 1997
Rosalind Hibbert MPhil 1999
Edward Ardizzone R.A. 1900 –1979 commissioned
Deconstructing denim
Jeremy Radvan MPhil 2000 works of the Second World War
The computer as a tool for observation
Mary Patterson MPhil 1996
Fashion and disability
172 // appendix 2 // research rca handbook 08·09

Bernadine Green MPhil 1997

An investigation into the decision making processes
school of fine art Jo Longhurst PhD 2008
Perfectability: the whippet as a mode of inquiry
Printmaking
Joy Gerrard MPhil 2008
used by colourists within clothing fashion prediction, Drawing Politics, aesthetics and the spectacle –
with special reference to women’s wear Kimberly Schoen MPhil 2008
John McNorton PhD 2004 witnessing the crowd in the city space through
Inherence of habit: rethinking the series
Choreography of drawing: the consciousness of contemporary art
Louise Henning MPhil 1997 in photography
Innovation and the development of new visual the body in the space of a drawing.
Mabe Bethonico PhD 2001
languages in printed textile design created CAD Michael Schwab PhD 2008
That which recurs
Painting Image Automation: Post-Conceptual Post-
Eros Tang MPhil 1997 Photography and the Deconstruction of the
Simon Logan MPhil 2008 Gail Henderson MPhil 2004
The creative use of three dimensional Photographic Image
The Lens of Literature: Looking for the Imaginary Drawing the erroneous body and female
computer graphics as a primary medium for
sexual difference
printed textile design Wiebke Leister PhD 2007
Christos Michaelopoulos MPhil 2006 Apropos laughter in photography: freeze frame
The Frozen Flatland: A Secret Continuation Julian Simmons PhD 2004
Sharon Baurley PhD 1997 on an open mouth: is it joy, pain or despair?
of Modernism Gardening computer drawing imagery
An exploration into technological methods to
achieve three-dimensional from in textiles Jonathan Whitehall PhD 2006
Gabriel Klasmer PhD 2005 Tsai-Wei Chen MPhil 2003
Incommensurable Times – representations
Machinery: painting and the machine Mapping with gaps
Jennifer Tillotson PhD 1997 of the personal and historical
Interactive olfactory surfaces: the Wellness
Rachel Garfield PhD 2004 Julian Simmons MPhil 1997
Collection – a science fashion story Shez Dawood MPhil 2005
Identity politics and the performative encounters The design and fine art application of
The metaphor of brightness
with recent Jewish art computerised draughting techniques
David Edmond MPhil 1995
Establishing a small textile printing business Runa Islam MPhil 2005
in the 1990s Jean Beuchat Shaw MPhil 2003 Roads with no ends: The Open Narrative of Sculpture
Boat memory: the myth-making role of distance David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive
and mobility in work of the contemporary artist. Stephen Wilson PhD 2007
Myth and reality from childhood to maturity:
Vanda Playford PhD 2005
Mark Hayward PhD 2000 Pinnochio and the complexity of relationships
Reconsidering the consulting room: role playing,
Venus in chairs: a neo-Darwinian analysis of between artist and creation’
rituals and story telling in general practice.
classical beauty in art and its subsequent passage
from art to design William Horner PhD 2006
Francis Summers MPhil 2003
Beauty Composition and the Formless
Feedback: the use of noise in contemporary art
Yvonne Kyriakides MPhil 2004 to trouble the logic of identity
Genocide and culture competing discourses in Juliet Haysom MPhil 2005
post-World War II art practice and theory Cloud-A schematic of appearance
Nicola Coutts PhD 2002
Insectile; an analysis of insect imagery
Pnina Shinebourne MPhil 2002 Michael Roles PhD 1998
and mythology
Beyond fragmentation Two kinds of being; an interface between
photography and sculpture
Patrick Shanahan PhD 2001
Katherine Meynell PhD 2000 Esperantis theorising the post-landscape
Time-based art in Britain since 1980; Patrick Beveridge MPhil 1995
an account of an interdisciplinary practice The art of James Turrell
Mohini Chandra PhD 1999
Pacific album vernacular photography of the
Jim Mooney PhD 2000 Fiji Indian diaspora
Praxis-ethics-erotics towards an eroticisation
of thought: a matter of praxis Karen Askham MPhil 1997

Photography
174 // appendix 2 // research rca handbook 08·09
school of
humanities
Conservation
Helen Evans PhD 2008
How Damage Alters Meaning: An Analysis of the
Conservation and Display of War-Damaged Objects
in War Museums
Timea Tallian MPhil 2007
Science and serendipity: exploring the secrets
of early portrait miniature painting
Fotini Koussiaki MPhil 2006
Insight into the techniques and painting materials
of Pablo Picasso
Maria Troupkou MPhil 2005
An application of risk analysis for the conservation
management of photographic archives
Charalampos Theodorakopoulos PhD 2005
The UV photo-ablation of terpenoid picture varnishes
Nicole Ingram MPhil 2004
Management of Risk Analysis: the impact of special
events on the contents of historical buildings
Harriet Standeven PhD 2004
The historical and technical development of
gloss house paints, with reference to their use
by 20th century artists
Victoria Doran MPhil 2003
An evaluation of composition ornament in
Britain from the late eighteenth to the early
twentieth century
Pedro Costa Gaspar PhD 2003
A comparative study of methods used in
conservation for the cleaning of stone and
related materials
Francesca Cappitelli PhD 2002
The chemical characterisation of binding
media in 20th century art
Athanasios Velios PhD 2002
Virtual conservation; the reconstruction of
a fragmented object with the aid of the three-
dimensional computer models
Christos Maris MPhil 2001
Risk management in preventive conservation
Angela Geary PhD 2001
Computer related imaging in conservation; the
visualisation in three dimensions of the original
and present appearances of European polychrome
sculpture using laser scan data, presented in
virtual and enhanced reality environments
Kirstie Reid MPhil 2000
Lyndsey Morgan MPhil 1999
The chemical and visual characterisation of
artificial patinas on bronze sculpture
Silvia Valussi MPhil 1999
Stretching the lifetime of a synthetic material
characterisation of modern elastane fibres
Sandra Grantham PhD 1999
Byo bu & Fusuma developing an approach to
the conservation of Japanese screens through
historical and technical study and an investigation
of current practices
Magdalena Kozera MPhil 1997
Mounting and framing in British photographic
exhibitions 1851–1916
Paraseki-Vivi Tornari MPhil 1996
Applications of holographic interferometry in
preventive conservation and diagnosis of work of art
Konstandia Vigli-Papadaki MPhil 1996
Applications of holographic interferometry to the
study of museum objects
Jane Davies MPhil 1995
‘On gilded clouds...’ a study of the materials of
oil on plaster murals of the late seventeenth and
early eighteenth centuries in England
Critical and Historical Studies Victoria Kelley PhD 2005
Soap and Water – cleanliness, class and gender
Stewart Geddes MPhil 2007
The unstable: tearing, scraping, Cubist theory
1880–1914
and ruins
Inger Sarin MPhil 2004
Oil-Cloth, wachstuch and toile ciree: the floorcloth
History of Design its origin, European connections and place in the
18th century London interior
Robert Barker MPhil 2008
Style Transmission: Rococo Silver and
Quintin Colville PhD 2004
Colonial Jamaica’
The role of material culture in constructing class
related identities among male Royal Naval personnel
Ana Beatriz Ferreira Da Rocha E Silva MPhil 2008
1930–1960’
‘...and the Tate became Modern’ – Discourses of
Urban Regeneration and Cultural Tourism as Agents
James Lindow PhD 2004
in Shaping a new Identity
Magnificence and splendour: the palace in
Renaissance Florence
Isabel Godson PhD 2008
The design of public events in the Irish Free State
Deborah Landis PhD 2003
1922–1949
Scene and not heard: the role of costume in
the cinematic storytelling process
Harriet Atkinson PhD 2007
Imaginative reconstruction: designing place at
Viviana Narotzky PhD 2003
the Festival of Britain, 1951
An acquired taste the consumption of design
in Barcelona, 1975–1992
Amanda Girling-Budd PhD 2007
Holland and Sons: a nineteenth-century
Elizabeth Audas MPhil 2002
cabinet-making firm and its clients, 1835–85
Reflections of modernity shop display 1930–1940
Aisling Molloy PhD 2007
John Cross PhD 2002
Frederick Vodrey: an artisan-entrepreneur in
Furniture in colonial Jamaica 1700–1830
the Irish economic and cultural revival
Line Pedersen Mphil 2001
Alison Fitzgerald PhD 2006
The design of art nouveau jewellery in Denmark
The production and consumption of goldsmiths’
work in eighteenth-century Dublin.
Diane Bisson PhD 2001
Museums in transition; past and present
Maria Sacchetti MPhil 2006
interpretations of the concept of design
Uncluttered dress: minimalist aesthetic, design,
retailing and consumption in a case study of
Brenda King PhD 2001
the fashion designer Donna Karen.
Collections of Indian silk textiles and their
connection with the English silk industry
Tom Sawyer MPhil 2006
between 1830 and 1930.
From Gothic to Roman: the transformation of our
standard letterforms from Medieval to Modern
Nicolas Maffei PhD 2001
Designing the image of the practical visionary:
Trevor Keeble PhD 2005
Norman Bel Geddes, 1893–1958
The domestic moment: design, taste & identity
in the late Victorian interior
176 // appendix 2 // research rca handbook 08·09

Rick Poynor MPhil 1998 Humanities

Modernism and eclecticism: Typographica,
Malcolm Quinn PhD 2001
1949–67
Enculturation and its critiques
Christopher Breward PhD 1998
Susannah Handley PhD 1997
Manliness and the pleasures of consumption
Cloth, clothes and chemistry synthetics, technology
masculinities, fashion and London life
and design in the 20th century
1860–1914
John Cussans PhD 1995
Jennifer Salahub PhD 1998
Revolting subjects and epidemic disorder: George
Dutiful daughter: fashionable domestic embroidery
Bataille, heterology and broadcast horror
in Canada and the British model,
1764–1911
Randy Cutler PhD 1995
The songs of science. The surrealist fascination
Yasuko Suga Ida PhD 1998
with the culture of science, 1919 –1936
Image politics of the state: visual publicity of the
General Post Office in inter-war Britain
Paul Kilsby PhD 1995
The seer and the seen themes and strategies in
Susan Weber Soros PhD 1998
experimental European photography in the inter
E.W. Godwin secular furniture and interior design
war years.
Darron Dean PhD 1997
The design, production and consumption of English
lead-glazed earthenware

David Attwood MPhil 1996

Worlds in a box technology and culture in 1950s
British radio design

Elizabeth Atkinson PhD 1996

The formative years the evolution of photography’s
role in British periodical advertising during the
1920’s and 1930’s

Amin Jaffer PhD 1996

Furniture in British India 1750–1830
178 // notes // research rca handbook 08·09

notes
180 // notes // research rca handbook 08·09
182 // notes // research rca handbook 08·09
184 // notes // research rca handbook 08·09
186 // notes // research rca handbook 08·09
188 // notes // research rca handbook 08·09
190 // notes // research rca handbook 08·09
192 // credits // research rca handbook 08·09

Credits
compiled by: Prof. Sandra Kemp
edited by: Jessica Rana
designed by: Esther Mildenberger MA RCA
envision+, http://www.envisionplus.com
printed by: Vereinigte Verlagsanstalten GmbH
KONKORDIA/Wesel Kommunikation

2008
Please open flap for Important Dates and Contact Details.
research Please open flap for Chapter Overview.

researchrca handbook 08·09

handbook
08·09

rc
Royal College of Art
Kensington Gore
London SW7 2EU
t +44 (0)20 7590 4126
f +44 (0)20 7590 4542
research@rca.ac.uk
www.rca.ac.uk/research