Chris Naughton, BA Ancient History and Archaeology, 1999, and MPhil Egyptology, 2000
Chris completed his BA in Ancient History and Archaeology in 1999 before going on to complete an MPhil in Egyptology in 2000. He is currently working as the Director for The Egypt Exploration Society.
'My tutors, Anthony Leahy and Lisa Montagno Leahy, had recommended I join the Egypt Exploration Society and make use of their library while I was researching for my MPhil thesis. A few months after finishing, I got a job as Librarian and Membership Secretary at the EES, and have worked for the Society in a variety of roles ever since, now as Director. With help from Anthony, I also arranged to join a University of Pennsylvania dig in Abydos, Egypt, which the EES encouraged me to do, even though I had already started working for them by the time the dig came around, and this was the first of five seasons I spent in Egypt, all of which provided me with enormously useful experience. It goes without saying as well that Anthony and Lisa, and my two Birmingham degrees gave me a very sound grounding in Egyptology which has served me well ever since. I love working for an organisation that makes a real difference to public understanding of Egyptian history and archaeology, and that also has a rich (130 year) history of its own.'
David’s PhD looked at the monochord in Greek harmonic science. He is now Lecturer in Classics at the School of History, Classics and Archaeology, Newcastle University.
'I came to Birmingham to study with the world authority on ancient greek harmonics, Professor Andrew Barker. I benefited not only from his excellent, challenging supervision, but also from the generosity and expertise of many other members of staff in Classics. I had the opportunity to teach in undergraduate modules and receive expert feedback on my teaching, to present papers both in Birmingham and further afield, and to co-organise a postgraduate conference at the university. I enjoyed living in a city with a vibrant musical scene and studying on a pleasant campus well connected by public transport.
When I began applying for academic jobs, I received detailed, practical and effective advice on my CV and job search. The care, attention and expertise of the Classics staff at Birmingham helped me to complete a publishable thesis and land my first academic job. Now I am doing what I love best: new research and teaching in the field in which I was trained.'