University of Surrey
Poet in Residence
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Surrey Poetry Fellowship
The University of Surrey is delighted to announce a renewal of the Surrey Poetry Fellowship, as part of the institution’s longstanding commitment to establishing Guildford as a centre for the creation, performance, publication and study of poetry.
This year’s poet in residence will build upon the legacy of the university’s first teacher of poetry, Morag Morris, and the work of previous Surrey Poetry Fellows, Amy De’Ath, Sophie Robinson, Stephen Mooney, Jessica Pujol, Nicholas Johnson, Prudence Chamberlain, Jow Lindsay-Walton, James Davies, Verity Spott, Robert Kiely, Karenjit Sandhu, Ian Heames, Briony Hughs, Peter Jaeger and James Wilkes.
About the Role
The Poet in Residence will play a key role in organising the Surrey Poetry Festival, will organise five or six regular poetry workshops for students and possibly other members of the university and beyond, will introduce the guest speaker at the Morag Morris Poetry Lecture, and may participate in other projects within the Department. The postholder’s first objective, however, will be to write poetry which engages with the research culture in the department, particularly in the field of contemporary and innovative literature. See https://www.surrey.ac.uk/literature-and-languages
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The Poet in Residence will also convene and teach the 1st Year Understanding Poetry module offered by the Department of Literature and Languages.
Responsibilities
- Organise and deliver poetry workshops for students and possibly other members of the university and beyond.
- Introduce the guest speaker at the Morag Morris Poetry Lecture.
- Write poetry which engages with the research culture in the department.
- Convene and teach the 1st Year Understanding Poetry module.
- Respond to student queries about the module via email.
- Have a regular online office hour for student consultations.
Requirements
- Honours postgraduate degree or equivalent professional qualification.
- Postgraduate qualification/teaching qualification would be desirable.
- Teaching experience and event management experience is essential.
- Good organisational and IT skills.
- Ability to work independently.
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Working Hours
The current expectation is that the post-holder will need to be present on campus to deliver the poetry workshops (five to six spread across both semesters) as well as to teach classes on the Understanding Poetry module on one or two mornings or afternoons per week over Semester Two (February to May 2026). The teaching semester is 11 weeks long.
Overall, this part-time post will amount to appx 65-70 hours for poet in Residence work, plus module teaching hours over the course of the academic year amounting to appx 49 hours.
Application Information
Informal enquiries may be made to Dr Angela Szczepaniak, a.szczepaniak@surrey.ac.uk
For more information and to apply online, please download the further details and click on the 'apply online' button above.
Important Dates
- Closing date for applications: 31 July 2026
- Interviews will take place: 28 August 2026
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