What Does Carnegie Scholarship Scheme Suspension Mean for PhD Students in Scotland?

What is the Carnegie Trust?

The Carnegie Trust is an independent foundation which aims to extend study and research opportunities at Scottish universities. Since 1903, it has awarded annual scholarships for PhD candidates, and has been a major source of funding for Scottish doctoral students. However, it has recently decided to pause its PhD scholarship scheme due to financial constraints.

Why have the scholarships been paused?

The Carnegie Trust have made the difficult decision to scale back their grant-making activities in light of a challenging economic situation over the last few years. Due to only having the capacity to award a small number of awards in the last year, the scheme has had a very small impact relative to its cost. The Trust have therefore decided that it would be best to divert this funding towards other ways of fulfilling the goals set out by its charter.

What can I apply for instead?

While there are unfortunately no doctoral loans available for students in Scotland – you still have several other options when it comes to funding your PhD!

You are still eligible to apply for a Research Council Studentship, which covers the full tuition, living and research costs of recipients.

You could also consider applying for funding from another charity or trust. There are many organisations that fund PhD research in areas related to their field of work.. . You can search available funding using online databases such as Turn2us or the Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding.

What if I’m already receiving PhD funding from the Carnegie Trust?

Don’t worry – nothing will be changing for current Carnegie scholars! You will continue to be supported until the end of your project.

To learn about alternative ways to fund your PhD, check out our full guide to PhD funding.