Lets Apply for Story Telling Fellowship 2027 at University of the Arts London

If your research asks how films, television, TikTok, music, games, podcasts or other forms of popular culture can change what people believe or how society behaves, the Storytelling Research Fellowship 2026/27 is unusually well targeted.

The UAL AKO Storytelling Institute, working with Comic Relief’s Power of Pop Fund, is recruiting 6 researchers for a nine-month fellowship beginning in November 2026. Fellows work two days per week and receive £19,425 for the nine-month contract, subject to normal UK deductions.

But overseas researchers need to check one condition before doing anything else: you must already have the right to work in the UK. The fellowship does not provide visa-cost support.

What Exactly Would You Research?

This is not a creative-writing fellowship or funding to produce a film, podcast or artwork.

It funds research about popular culture and its impact. The central question is essentially: under what conditions can popular culture shift public attitudes, social norms and behaviour on climate and social-justice issues?

For the 2026/27 cohort, projects should address areas including:

• Climate justice and public mobilisation
• Young men’s identity and wellbeing
• Poverty and economic justice
• Migration, race, belonging and national identity
• Populism, democracy and people power

One fellowship focusing on masculinities is specifically intended to use an ethnographic research approach.
The research itself must focus on British viewing audiences, even though the cultural material being studied may be much broader.

Who Is This Fellowship Actually For?

You do not necessarily need a PhD, but you do need to be an experienced researcher.

Applicants must either hold a doctoral degree or demonstrate equivalent research ability through a substantial record of strong academic or independent research outputs. This is explicitly not a practice-based research programme.

That distinction matters. A filmmaker with an impressive portfolio but little evidence of designing and delivering research would not automatically be competitive. An independent researcher without a PhD, however, could potentially qualify if their published work demonstrates comparable research capability.

You must also be fluent in English, able to work independently and available for the whole fellowship.

Can International Researchers Apply?

Nationality itself is not the main barrier; UK work permission is.

Applicants must have the legal right to work in the UK for the entire fellowship and must attend required activities in London in person.

The programme does not provide financial assistance for visas, general living costs, childcare, materials, legal support or dedicated production costs.

So an overseas researcher who would need the fellowship itself to obtain UK work permission should not assume sponsorship is available from this call.

What Will You Receive?

Fellows receive a nine-month UAL employment contract at 0.4 FTE, equivalent to working two days each week.

The full-time annual salary reference is £48,563, producing £19,425 payable over the nine-month fellowship, before PAYE and National Insurance deductions.

The package also includes mentorship, research guidance, engagement with the other fellows, workshops and a final public symposium.

Your principal required research output is a 6,000–8,000-word report, although additional outputs can be agreed where appropriate.

What Should Your Research Proposal Contain?

This is probably where good applicants will separate themselves from merely interesting ones.

Your proposal must stay within 1,000–1,200 words excluding references. It should contain a 300–400-word project description, a 500–600-word methodology section and a roughly 200-word delivery plan.

UAL explicitly welcomes qualitative, quantitative, mixed-method and emerging approaches, including interviews, focus groups, ethnography, social-media analysis and “big listening.”

A compelling proposal therefore needs more than an interesting cultural topic. It needs a researchable question, credible data, a defensible method and findings that creatives could actually use.

How Do You Apply?

Applications go through UAL’s recruitment portal and require:

• CV
• Record of research outputs, with links where available
• 1,000–1,200-word research proposal
• Supporting statement
• At least one example of a research project you previously designed and delivered

Applications are assessed for fit with the programme, ability to deliver the research, proposal quality, previous research and the project’s potential practical impact.

Storytelling Research Fellowship Deadline

Applications for UAL Story telling fellowship opened on 1 August 2026 and close on 11 September 2026. Interviews are scheduled for 28–30 September, with the fellowship beginning through an in-person London workshop on 2 November 2026.

Questions Candidates Are Likely to Ask

Do I need a PhD?
Not necessarily. Equivalent high-level independent research experience can qualify, but you need a substantial track record of credible research outputs.

Can I apply from outside the UK?
You may be based internationally, but you must already have the right to work in the UK and be able to attend required London events.

Will UAL sponsor my visa?
The call does not offer visa-cost support and requires applicants to possess UK work rights for the fellowship duration.
Can artists or filmmakers apply?
Yes, if they can meet the research-experience requirements, but this fellowship funds research rather than practice-based creative production.

Does my topic have to concern the UK?
The study should focus specifically on British viewing audiences, which is an easy requirement to miss when designing the proposal.

Unsure Whether Your Research Idea Fits?

If you are considering applying but are unsure whether your PhD, independent research experience, UK work status, methodology or proposed popular-culture topic fits the fellowship, leave your question in the comments below the article. Briefly describe what you want to study and how you would investigate it; that makes it much easier to judge whether your idea matches what UAL is actually commissioning.