The Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre (SEAC) is pleased to support PhD students at LSE whose research relates to the Southeast Asia region. The PhD Research Support Fund provides funding toward field research expenses in Southeast Asia (maximum £4,000) and conference attendance (maximum £1000).
This scheme is available to PhD students registered at LSE, at any stage of their studies, whose research relates to Southeast Asia and who do not have access to funding from a sponsoring body (e.g. ESRC) that provides support for research expenses. Please note that those who have submitted their PhD thesis are not eligible to apply.
Fieldwork Support Fund
Applications for the fieldwork support fund must involve fieldwork based in the Southeast Asia region (normally defined as countries which are member states of ASEAN). Fieldwork expenses can include travel, accommodation, local services (e.g. transcription/translation) and/or purchase of research materials. Please note that SEAC is no longer supporting expenses related to fieldwork subsitence.
The deadline for applications to the fieldwork fund is now closed. The deadline for the next round of applications will be published in the Autumn Term of the 2025/2026 academic year. Each application is to accompany a support statement from the applicant's supervisor. Applicants should declare any funding received from other sources on their application.
Applications for the conference fund need to be accompanied by evidence of your speaking engagement at the conference, e.g. an email confirmation from the conference organiser. Expenses can include conference registration, travel, and/or accommodation. Please note that SEAC is no longer supporting expenses related to conference subsitence.Applicants can apply for up to £500 for conferences which require a short haul flight/train, and £1000 for conferences which require a long haul flight.
Applications for the conference fund will be accepted on a rolling basis. Applications should be submitted to seac.admin@lse.ac.uk and decisions are expected to be relayed within four weeks of submission. Each application is to accompany a statement of support from the applicant's supervisor.
Please note that annual funding for conference attendance is limited and SEAC may announce the closure of applications as soon as funds have been exhausted.
SEAC supported Tiffany to attend the EuroSEAS2024 Conference to present a paper on Understanding China’s Foreign Online Information Campaigns.
Morris Chan
Department of Government
"I attended my first Southeast Asia studies conference thanks to SEAC PhD Conference Fund. The support was instrumental in assisting me to have the opportunity to interact with academic peers and broaden my horizon in the discipline."
Hadrien Saperstein
Department of International Relations
This research grant is not just financial support; it is the key to unlocking the doors of discovery. It empowers me to delve into uncharted territory, by combining archival work and insightful interview with individuals oftentimes overlooked in Indonesia military studies. With gratitude, I embark on a journey where curiosity meets innovation, fuelled by the profound impact of this invaluable gift from LSE SEAC.
MeshalAlkhowaiter
Department of Government
I have benefitted from the SEAC support fund for my study on the political behavior of unemployed Singaporeans and their response to targeted economic policies.
Joel Chong
Department of Government
The SEAC PhD Research Support Fund will support Joel’s fieldwork in Thailand where he will undertake a combination of archival and interview work as part of his doctoral research on the bureaucratisation of religion.
Cla Ruzol
Department of Anthropology
The LSE Southeast Asia Centre Conference Fund supported Cla to attend the Association for Asian Studies 2023 Annual Conference to present the paper "The production of potable water: using waterworks for colonial and contemporary counterinsurgency".
"I am grateful for the award because it supplemented my conference costs. I was able to make acquaintances and friends with Philippine scholars based all over the world. I want to keep these new connections I made and expand my network on SEA studies."
Armand Azra Bin Azlira
Department of International History
"I am using the PhD fieldwork to travel around Malaysia for archival and oral history research. While documents in the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, are useful, I have planned to travel to a select few states as well as to Singapore and Thailand to collect documents from local administration, enforcement and surveillance to extrapolate a 'history-from-below'. The grant has enabled me to plan collaborative fieldwork research that is important in creating connections as well as to gain different perspectives from my colleagues who are equipped with their own unique specialisations."
Capucine Riom
Department of Geography and Environment
SEAC is supporting Capucine to undertake Fieldwork in coastal cities in Vietnam: Hanoi, Hue, Da Nang in 2023. Capucine's thesis will consider coastal adaptation to sea level rise and flood risks in Vietnam.
Yorga Permana
Department of Geography and Environment
The LSE Southeast Asia Centre Conference Fund supported Yorga to attend the Regional Studies Association Annual Conference to present the paper "The spatial agglomeration of online gig workers in Indonesia: Exploring factors of location decision and the role of physical space".
Dominique Dillabough-Lefebvre
Department of Anthropology
The LSE Southeast Asia Centre Conference Fund supported Dominique to attend the Burma Studies Conference 2023 to present the paper "Infrastructures of Ignorance along the Asia Highway in Southeastern Myanmar".
Marco Del Gallo
Department of Anthropology
The LSE Southeast Asia Centre Conference Fund supported Marco to attend the 8th International Symposium of Jurnal Antropologi Indonesia 2022 to present the paper "Dwelling in the Sinking City: Ecology, Criminality, and Everyday Life in Jakarta's Delta".
Juan Jose Rivas Moreno
Department of Economic History
The LSE Southeast Asia Centre Conference Fund supported Juan Jose to attend the Association of Business Historians Conference 2022 to present the paper "An alternative approach to financing business operations in Asian waters: Manila and the Transpacific trade, 1668-1828".
The LSE Southeast Asia Centre Conference Fund supported Yorga to attend the the Global Conference on Economic Geography 2022 to present the paper "A Typology of Labour Agency in the Gig Economy: Experiences of ride-hailing drivers struggles in Indonesia during the pandemic".
"I undertook long-term fieldwork in central Bali where my research focuses on temple networks and territorial cults, indigenous folklore and ritual practices, and local relations with the divinised environment. My work situates highland Balinese ritual within a comparative perspective to explore its Southeast Asian essence and deep historical connection with the region."
Dominique Dillabough-Lefebvre
Department of Anthropology
"The LSE Southeast Asia Centre Fieldwork Support Fund will assist me in the final six months of fieldwork in the Thai-Myanmar borderlands. This research is a study of agrarian change, particularly alterations in legal land regimes and commercial land-grabs and how these affect long-standing inequalities among minority ethnic and peasant groups in Myanmar. This work aims to contribute to anthropological knowledge on the interplay of development, state building, conflict and ethno-nationalism in upland Southeast Asia. This research aims offer a broader contribution to Anthropological knowledge of indigenous religious and cultural practices in Southeast Asia. The research will also contribute to debates on the role of development and infrastructure projects in upland and indigenous areas, while remaining grounded in locally specific practices, beliefs and ways of living. I am very grateful for the Southeast Asia Centre’s support in completing this research."
