معرفی
Dr Kate Houlden is a Senior Lecturer in English Literature at Brunel University London, based in the English and Creative Writing department within the College of Business, Arts and Social Sciences. She is also the Admissions Tutor for English and the Lead of the Staff Neurodivergent Network at Brunel. Previously, she held permanent lectureships at Anglia Ruskin University and Liverpool John Moores University, and has taught at the University of Surrey and Queen Mary University of London.
Education:
- PhD in English, Queen Mary University of London (2010)
- MA in Writing in the Modern Age, Queen Mary University of London (2007)
- BA (Hons.) in English Literature & Communications, University of Liverpool (2000)
Research Interests:
Dr Houlden’s research lies at the intersection of queer theory, materialist feminism, and world literature. Her current monograph, Female Migrant Domestic Workers in Post-Millennial Global Fiction (Palgrave, 2026), examines how global fiction portrays the gendered and racialised labour of migrant domestic workers under neoliberal capitalism. She explores themes of social reproduction, precarity, and resistance, drawing from texts across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Britain, and the Americas.
She has co-edited a special issue in Feminist Theory on 'Social Reproduction Feminism and World-Culture' (2024), and contributed chapters to volumes on commodities and literature, world-literature, and Black British writing. Her work consistently foregrounds the lived experiences of women and queer individuals under global capitalism.
Scientific Awards & Recognition:
- Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
- Nominated for Ken Darby-Dowman Memorial Prize (2024)
- Nominated for EDI Champion of the Year (2025)
- Student-led awards for 'Excellent Teaching', 'Outstanding Personal Tutor', and 'Inclusive Lecturer'
PhD Supervision & Mentorship:
Dr Houlden supervises and mentors PhD students across literature and creative writing. Her current and past supervision includes projects on Kamila Shamsie, South Asian trauma fiction, Middle-Eastern fantasy, Latin American Gothic, Dalit food-systems, maternal ambivalence, and Vincentian literature. She welcomes proposals on gender/sexuality, world-literature, and materialist feminism.
Grants & Projects:
- Techne funding for PhD training event on women's work (2023–)
- Brunel Athena Swan funding for research leave (2022)
- CAPES Brazil visiting PhD placement (2023–2024)
- National University of Ireland, Galway Visiting Fellowship (2017)
- ISRF Flexible Grant (2016) – 'The Marlon James Conundrum'
- Postcolonial Studies Association Symposium Grant (2012)
- AHRC-funded PhD studentship (2007–2010)
