Graduate Studies

Scottish Studies

The University of Guelph is internationally rec­ognized for a distinguished Scottish Studies graduate program. Along with the Department of History, there are several academic units with scholars and students studying Scottish topics in them. Mentoring a strong cohort of inspired leaders sustains a bright future for the Scottish Studies program.   

Learn more about History Graduate Studies. 

Student Research Spotlight!

Gavin is a MA student in Scottish History working with Dr. Kevin James. 

“My SSHRC-funded project works to analyze Scottish chapbook songs from the Napoleonic period for militarism, patriotism, and national identity. Chapbooks were small cheaply printed works of street literature that sold for about a penny each, making them accessible to the Scottish working class. I am investigating the song lyrics that would be printed in these pamphlets during a time when Britain was increasingly threatened by French invasion culminating in the Battle of Trafalgar (1805). These lyrics, printed in Scotland for Scottish consumption, roused recruitment, patriotism, and anti-French sentiment, negotiating Scotland's place in the British union --- all through song.

The University of Guelph was the natural choice to pursue this work through the MA programme. The resources and expertise provided by the Centre for Scottish Studies makes Guelph far and away the best place to study anything to do with Scotland in North America. I have already had so many great experiences and opportunities at Guelph that I would never have been able to have had anywhere else. This has included greeting the Deputy First Minister of Scotland on a visit to the campus, gaining access to the extensive Scottish collections at the McLaughlin Library (the largest repository of Scottish chapbooks outside Scotland), and being fortunate enough to have been provided funding for a research trip to Scotland in April 2026.

That trip was an opportunity of a lifetime and made possible by the generosity of donors through Scottish Studies with the Frank Watson Travel Scholarship, the Alexander H. Brodie Graduate Travel Scholarship, and the Duncan Campbell Memorial Travel Grant.” ~Gavin Watson

^{Pictured: Gavin Watson © Gavin Watson, 2026}

Brenna is a PhD candidate in Scottish History working with Dr. Susannah Ferreira. Brenna completed her first research trip to Scotland in Spring 2023 with the generous support of the Duncan Campbell Memorial Travel Grant and the Frank Watson Travel Scholarship.

"My SSHRC-funded research project examines the late medieval North Sea trade networks of Orkney and Shetland to better understand how both their Norse cultural heritage and contact with Scotland—represented by their economic links—informed the unique social and cultural identity of the islands. My research focuses on the exchange of parchment and incorporates an interdisciplinary methodology that combines close study of documentary records, like Scotland's exchequer rolls, with genetic analysis of animal DNA retrieved from parchment charters. My work contributes to and draws on the University of Guelph’s established expertise in both Scottish history and animal genetics to inform persistent questions of national identity in the Northern Isles." ~Brenna Clark

^{Pictured: Brenna Clark © Brenna Clark, 2022}

Katherine is a PhD candidate in Scottish History working with Dr. Cathryn Spence. Since beginning her studies in Fall 2022, Katherine has been instrumental in coordinating, along with fellow PhD History students a new lecture series - the Scottish Research Circle, to highlight a blend of senior and emerging scholars in a variety of topics related to the history of Scotland.

“I chose to pursue my PhD at the University of Guelph because the reputation of the Scottish Studies program speaks for itself. I’m humbled to be working and learning with colleagues of this caliber. My research focuses on the Scottish Wars of Independence and the elements of gender present throughout contemporary tellings as well as through epic poems. I hope to highlight how women were not only passive bystanders but actively willing and involved in times of violence within the range of their own autonomy. Women are seen through their familial connections to elite men or working women on campaign. While typically left out of historical narratives, they had a place and purpose. Further I hope to address medieval masculinity and the standards placed on men during this era and specifically in times of conflict.” ~Katherine Foran

^{Pictured: Katherine Foran © Katherine Foran, 2022}