The Institute awards a dissertation prize each year for either an undergraduate (the Tony Baggs Undergraduate Dissertation Prize) or Master's dissertation on an alternating basis. The prize goes to the best dissertation on a subject concerning the archaeology or architectural history of Britain, Ireland and adjacent areas of Europe. The chief criteria considered are (a) quality of work and (b) appropriateness to the interests of the Institute as reflected in the Archaeological Journal. The winner receives £500, one year's membership subscription and the opportunity for a paper based on their dissertation to be published in the Archaeological Journal.
Master's Dissertation Prize
The RAI Master's dissertation prize winner, covering years 2022 and 2023, has been awarded to Hannah Lycett-Smith from Cardiff University for her dissertation, Dietary reconstruction in Early Medieval South Wales: a comparative analysis of microwear and dental calculus at Llandough Monastic Cemetery, Glamorgan. The prize was presented to Hannah on 13th March.