KEY DETAILS

The Scholarship 

We run an annual competition to select the best doctoral candidates and provide a comprehensive package of financial support over the duration of study, which includes: 

• Payment of tuition fees at the UK Research Councils' Home rate; 
• A maintenance award at the UK Research Councils' national rate (currently £17,668 per annum); 
• A research training support grant to fund the costs of study abroad, conference attendance and fieldwork;  
• Financial support to participate in the consortium's annual conferences, as well a chance to participate in a comprehensive suite of training activities. 

• Financial support for placements and the acquisition of the skills necessary for you to complete your PhD to the highest standards. ‌ 

Number of Awards Available 

• Up to 67 doctoral awards across all partner institutions. 
• Up to 20% (c.13) of these will be allocated to Collaborative Doctoral Awards under the separate Staff-led Collaborative Doctoral Awards competition. 
• As stipulated by the AHRC, no more than 30% of the total number of awards available can be allocated to international candidates.[1] 

Duration of an Award  

• The normal duration of an award is 42 months full-time (3.5 years) or 84 months part-time (7 years).  
• Awards to students who have already commenced their PhD will be reduced by the length of time the student has already been registered on the PhD programme. 
• Part-time students who have already commenced their PhD may apply to transfer to full-time for the remainder of their studies should they be successful in the competition, and vice versa.[2] 
• A part-time award must not be less than 50% of the full-time equivalent.[3] 

Who is Eligible to be Considered for an Award 

• All UK and international applicants with a research proposal falling within the AHRC’s subject domain: (https://ahrc.ukri.org/funding/research/subjectcoverage/ahrc-disciplines/) 
• All UK and international applicants meeting the entry requirements of QUB postgraduate research degrees. 
• All UK and International applicants who have secured the support of a school or departmental-level supervisory team with expertise in the subject area(s) at their preferred host institution. 

 Value of the Award 

• Tuition fees paid at a rate equivalent to the Home UK fee. 
• A minimum stipend per year for living costs, which is paid in regular instalments. Awards increase every year, typically with inflation. As an indicator, the level for 2023/2024 will be £18,622. 
• Award-holders are eligible to apply to a fund reserved for supporting primary research costs to include, for example, conference attendance, fieldwork, language training, overseas research visits and placements with a non-academic partner. 

Employment 

• It is a condition of an award that at the time of commencing the award (1 October 2023) the applicant is not in full-time employment. Applicants in full-time employment are not eligible for an award. 

• An applicant in part-time employment may be eligible for a part-time award providing the hours of employment plus the hours of part-time study do not normally exceed the equivalent of 1.0 full-time equivalent (FTE).  
• During the studentship, award-holders can undertake teaching and demonstrating duties (or relevant alternative employment) provided that their supervisor(s) agree that the total demand made on a student’s time is compatible with their studies. Employment for full-time award-holders is not expected to exceed six hours in any one week, including preparation time.  Students cannot accept employment that involves substantial calls on their time (which may put their wellbeing and timeline for completion at risk) without the written consent of the Dean of Postgraduate Studies. 

Study Location 

• The UKRI and AHRC advise that studentship award-holders are required to be resident in the UK for the majority of their studies, and “The Student must live within a reasonable travel time of their Research Organisation or collaborative organisation to ensure that they are able to maintain regular contact with their department and their Supervisor. This is to ensure that the Student is not isolated and receives the full support, mentoring, training and access to facilities required to complete their research successfully and to a high standard. The only exceptions to these requirements are to cover periods of absence that are an essential part of their study e.g. fieldwork, study visits or conference attendance. 

Source:  

https://www.ukri.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/UKRI-021122-TrainingGrantTermsAndConditionsGuidance.pdf 

[1] Subject areas, schools and departments should especially bear this constraint in mind when nominating applicants to the competition. 

[2] Applicants who have already commenced their doctoral studies are eligible to apply on the condition that they will have completed no more than 18 months of full-time or 36 months of part-time study at the point at which they would take up the award (usually 1 October of the relevant year).  They must notify their supervisors and their host institution’s postgraduate office that they wish to be considered for an award (usually in January of the relevant year).  They must not submit a new postgraduate application form to their host institution or contact their host institution’s Postgraduate Admissions Service; it is not necessary. 

[3] Part-time awards will, however, fall under the relevant regulations of the host institution. E.g., some partner institutions will only permit part-time study at 50% of the full-time equivalent (e.g., they will not allow part-time study at 60% of the full-time equivalent).