The University of Aberdeen’s Chair of Scottish Politics, Professor Michael Keating, has been made a Fellow of the British Academy.
The Professor is one of only 38 academics to be elected a Fellow at the British Academy’s Annual General Meeting on Thursday July 19.
Fellows are scholars who have 'attained distinction in any of the branches of study which it is the object of the Academy to promote’.
Professor Keating becomes one of only a handful of academics to be simultaneously a fellow of the British Academy, the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Academy of Social Sciences.
Professor Keating's research interests include European politics, nationalism, public policy, urban and regional politics and society, and social science methodologies.
He is currently working on a large project on Rescaling Europe examining the emergence of new levels of government and policy making in six countries; the first results will be published in a book with Oxford University Press in 2013.
Professor Keating has also been working to improve the interface between academics and practitioners in the field of public policy in Scotland and beyond.
He said “I am delighted to be made a Fellow of the British Academy, and have already been working in a joint Royal Society of Edinburgh-British Academy project on the constitutional future of Scotland.
“The British Academy is the UK’s national academy for the promotion of the humanities and social sciences and it is an honour to have been elected to such a distinguished organisation.”
Sir Adam Roberts, President of the Academy said: “The new Fellows, who come from 23 institutions across the UK, have outstanding expertise across the board – from social policy and government, to sign language and music.
“Our Fellows play a vital role in sustaining the Academy’s activities - from identifying excellence to be supported by research awards, to contributing to policy reports and speaking at the Academy’s public events.
“Their presence in the Academy will help it to sustain its support for research across the humanities and social sciences, and to inspire public interest in these disciplines.”