Appointed Role Advertisements: The BARS Review Editor and BARS Postgraduate and Early Career Officers 2026-2028

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The British Association for Romantic Studies is currently looking to appoint new Postgraduate and Early Career Officers to replace the outgoing role-holders, Cleo O’Callaghan Yeoman, Kate Nankervis and Zooey Ziller, and a new Editor for The BARS Review to replace Caroline Anjali Richie, who will be stepping down after the next issue (62), but will work with the new editor on the following number (63).  The BARS Exec would like to thank Caroline, Cleo, Kate and Zooey for all their hard work on behalf of the Association.

As specific skills and backgrounds are needed for these roles, we are inviting expressions of interest that will be assessed by subcommittees of the Executive, including the outgoing role-holders and a plurality of postgraduate and early career members for the Postgraduate and Early Career roles.  Expressions of interest for all roles should be received by the end of Friday 12 June 2026.

The BARS Review Editor

Applications are welcome for the role of Editor of The BARS Review, the online journal of the British Association for Romantic Studies. The BARS Review Editor leads the commissioning, editing and publication of The BARS Review, ensuring it reflects the breadth and vitality of current Romantic Studies scholarship.

The BARS Review is published biannually (Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter issues).  Please see: http://www.bars.ac.uk/review/index.php/barsreview. 

The Editor is the main point of contact for publishers, the reviewers and the production team.  The work varies depending on the scale of an issue, but might reasonably be estimated at 30-40 hours per issue.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Role:

  • Request relevant books from publishers
  • Ensure that books are promptly allocated for review by scholars with recognised expertise in the area
  • Ensure that reviewers stick to the agreed timeframe
  • Review and edit submitted manuscripts
  • Identify emerging trends in scholarship [for the Spotlight section]
  • Ensure that the journal has sufficient articles per issue, and that these are published to academic standards
  • Send the final issue to publishers and reviewers
  • Report to the BARS Executive to ensure ongoing development of the journal at Executive meetings (held every 2-3 months), and play a role in the Exec’s wider discussions

Eligibility:

The Editor should have a stable position from which they can receive and send books for review; the time necessary to devote to the role; experience of editing scholarly work; and a strong knowledge of the field of Romantic Studies to support seeking suitable reviewers.

How to Apply:

Please send an expression of interest covering why you would like to take up this role and what you would bring to it, together with a two-page CV including a brief description of your research, to the Secretary of the Association, Andrew McInnes, copying in the President, Matthew Sangster. The deadline for expressions of interest is 12 June 2026.

If you would like to discuss the position further, please feel free to get in touch with:

BARS Postgraduate Officer

We are currently looking for a postgraduate student (or students) willing to join the Executive in to represent our postgraduate members and students in the field more generally.  The Postgraduate Officer represents the interests of postgraduate students within BARS, shaping the Association’s activities and creating opportunities for early-stage researchers to develop and connect.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Role:

During their term, the Postgraduate Officer will attend Executive meetings (typically online; held every 2-3 months) and have the opportunity to co-organise postgraduate events. They will also work with the Early Career Officer to organise the next biennial Postgraduate and Early Career Conference, due to be held in 2027 and announced later this year.

The position offers valuable experience in conference organisation, logistics and communications, as well as excellent networking opportunities. Importantly, it provides the chance to help shape the Romantic Studies community by feeding into the Executive’s discussions and launching new initiatives to support postgraduates in the field. Past Postgraduate Officers have been instrumental in the launch of the BARS Digital Events series, co-editing special journal issues arising from the PGR/ECR conferences, launching new bursaries for these conferences, piloting a Best Paper Prize, and expanding the opportunities for professional development on offer at these conferences.

The Postgraduate Officer will serve for an initial term of two years: after this, there is the opportunity to apply to renew their position, according to their status of their studies, or to apply for the role of Early Career Officer. Please note that BARS offers an honorarium of £750 per annum for this role; also, any agreed travel expenses incurred for attending BARS Executive business onsite will be met by the Association.

Eligibility:

We are especially keen to receive applications from students who expect to have postgraduate status until the summer of 2028, although this is not required.

How to Apply:

Please send expressions of interest, together with a two-page CV including a brief description of your research, to the Secretary of the Association, Andrew McInnes, copying in the President, Matthew Sangster. The deadline for expressions of interest is midnight, 12 June 2026.

Expressions of interest should be up to 500 words in length. We encourage applicants to discuss their experience, skills, and passion for the role in their expression of interest, and we would very much like to read of proposals applicants have for the location, topic and logistics of the next BARS Postgraduate and Early Career Conference in 2027.

Depending on circumstances and context, the appointing panel will have discretion to propose up to two Postgraduate Officers to the BARS Executive Committee, as has been the case in recent years.

If you would like to discuss the position further, please feel free to get in touch with:

BARS Early Career Officer

Alongside the BARS Postgraduate Officer, we are also looking to appoint an Early Career Researcher willing to join the Executive to represent our early career members and early career researchers in the field more generally.  The Early Career Officer advocates for unaffiliated and recently qualified researchers within BARS, mentoring postgraduate colleagues and co-running the Nineteenth-Century Matters Fellowship with BAVS.  In line with the Copley Awards, BARS considers someone eligible to be considered as early career until they have held an open-ended academic role for three years.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Role:

During their term, the Early Career Officer will attend Executive meetings (typically online; held every 2-3 months) and have the opportunity to co-organise events that benefit the postgraduate and early career community. They will also work with the Postgraduate Officer(s) to organise the next biennial Postgraduate and Early Career Conference, due to be held in 2027 and announced later this year.

The position offers valuable experience in peer mentoring, conference organisation, logistics and communications, and offers excellent networking opportunities. Importantly, it provides the chance to help shape the Romantic Studies Early Career and Postgraduate community by feeding into the Executive’s discussions and launching new initiatives to support early career researchers in the field. Past Early Career Officers have been instrumental in the launch of the BARS Digital Events series, co-editing special journal issues arising from the PGR/ECR conferences, launching new bursaries for these conferences, piloting a Best Paper Prize, and expanding the opportunities for professional development on offer at these conferences.

The Early Career Officer is also responsible for facilitating the Nineteenth-Century Matters Fellowship together with the British Association for Victorian Studies (BAVS) Postdoctoral Representative. The Nineteenth-Century Matters Fellowship is an annual initiative jointly run by BARS and BAVS to offer unaffiliated early career researchers a platform from which to develop their research profiles and organise professionalization workshops and research seminars on a theme related to nineteenth-century studies, relevant to the agreed host institution’s specialisms.

The Early Career Officer will serve for a term of two years. After this, there is the opportunity to apply to renew their position according to their eligibility. Please note that BARS offers an honorarium of £750 per annum for this role; also, any agreed travel expenses incurred for attending BARS Executive business onsite will be met by the Association.

Eligibility:

The Early Career Officer must be an early career researcher based in the UK. The Early Career Officer will mentor the Postgraduate Officer(s) through the process of organising the next BARS Postgraduate and Early Career Conference, to be held in 2027, alongside working with their BAVS counterpart to run the Nineteenth-Century Matters Fellowship on an annual basis. Therefore, demonstrable in-person conference organisation experience is essential. Excellent team working skills and communication skills must be evidenced. Prior mentoring experience is desirable.

How to Apply:

Please send expressions of interest, together with a two-page CV including a brief description of your research, to the Secretary of the Association, Andrew McInnes, copying in the President, Matthew Sangster. The deadline for expressions of interest is midnight, 12 June 2026.

Expressions of interest should be up to 500 words in length. We encourage applicants to discuss their experience, skills, and passion for the role in their expression of interest, and we would very much like to read of proposals applicants have for the location, topic and logistics of the next BARS PGR/ECR conference in 2027.

If you would like to discuss the position further, please feel free to get in touch with:

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