yes I did my undergraduate dissertation on the search for extra terrestrial intelligence. There is work on particle physicists but no work on astronomers (apart from one unpublished doctoral thesis I found)

I have been going over and over the same thoughts in my mind. I really want to be an anthropologist and to do that I need a good doctorate. I can't see how I am going to find a job which pays enough and is flexible enough to fit around research. I think I am going to wait a few years until I am in a better financial/job position to be able to do it. The idea for my research is to study astronomers and the cosmologies they produce as a quasi religious practice. I was interested in astronomers because they pose the big questions that normally only religion asks. They deal with the largest possible distances and time frames. I am probably giving away my idea here but I thought they were a profession ripe for anthropological analysis. I think access would be an issue and you are right that Jodrell Bank has been suggested for closure. I think it would be difficult to do 'proper' field work on a part time basis.

I am a 27 year old social anthropology graduate. I am keen on pursuing a career as an academic in social anthropology. I have a 2.1 degree and have not even thought about applying for ESRC funding. I currently live in Manchester with my partner. I am thinking about getting work to fit around doing an MA and doctorate. Would the fact I was self funded be detrimental to my future career in social anthropology. Are self funders able to get teaching experience whilst doing their doctorate. My idea for research is to study astronomers at Jodrell Bank Observatory and the situated practice of astronomy.