Added on 27 February 2013

The Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) is delighted to announce that it has awarded eight scholarships so that members can attend the Digital Preservation Training Programme in London at the start of March.

'These scholarships are very popular.  Specialist training is hard to find and staff development budgets are being tightly squeezed’, explained Richard Ovenden, Chair of the DPC. ‘We received a record number of applications this round, so we decided that we should try to respond to our members’ need by offering the largest numbers of scholarships so far.  It’s a measure of our commitment to the workforce and it will have an impact across a wide range of institutions.’

The following were selected by a small panel of judges which met to review the applications submitted:

  • Sarah Arnold (University of Portsmouth)
  • Tom Ensom (UK Data Archive)
  • Katie Green (Archaeoloy Data Service)
  • Natalie Harrower (Digital Repository of Ireland)
  • Jenny Hunt (National Records of Scotland)
  • Adele Redhead (HATII, University of Glasgow)
  • Kevin Roberts (Archives and Records Association)
  • Rocio Von Jungenfeld (University of Edinburgh)

Applicants were assessed against three main criteria: the role that DPTP would play in career development; the benefits to their organisation from attendance and the extent to which the applicant's job profile within the organisation pertains to digital preservation. Applications were open to DPC members and associates.
William Kilbride, Executive Director of the DPC reflected on the scheme: 'Specialised skills in digital preservation is a clear strategic priority for organisations that depend on long-lasting data to stay in business or which generate, collect and manage large volumes of data, but it's also time consuming and expensive to produce. By guaranteeing a number of places on training courses like DPTP we reduce the risk that the organisers run. So, although we're not able to fund all the excellent applications we receive, we can still help ensure that the training is offered.'

The Digital Preservation Training Programme (DPTP) is designed for all those working in institutional information management who are grappling with fundamental issues of digital preservation. It provides the skills and knowledge necessary for institutions to combine organisational and technological perspectives, and devise an appropriate response to the challenges that digital preservation needs present. DPTP is operated and organised by the University of London Computer Centre in collaboration with the DPC.

The Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) is a not-for profit membership organisation whose primary objective is to raise awareness of the importance of the preservation of digital material and the attendant strategic, cultural and technological issues. It acts as an enabling and agenda-setting body within the digital preservation world and works to meet this objective through a number of high level goals. Its vision is to make our digital memory accessible tomorrow.