ESRC PhD Funding

The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the main source of UK Government funding for research on social and economic issues. ESRC PhD studentships usually cover fees and a maintenance as well as providing high quality research training.

This guide will explain how ESRC funding works for PhD students, including information on the different types of ESRC funding, who is eligible and how to apply.

The ESRC is one of the seven Research Councils that form part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). Each council manages a budget for training and research, provided by the UK Government, some of which is allocated to PhD students.

As the name suggests, the ESRC is responsible for supporting research on economic and social issues.

Which PhD subjects does the ESRC fund?

The ESRC funds PhDs in areas such as:

• Economics
• Environmental Sciences
• Law
• Public Health
• Politics and International Studies
• Sociology
• Town and Country Planning

Interdisciplinary funding for research in partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) may also be available.

What PhD funding does the ESRC provide?

The ESRC provides the national minimum stipend set by UKRI of:

• Tuition fee payment of £4,596 per year
• Stipend of £17,668 per year (additional money is available for students in London)

It's also worth bearing in mind that the value of both amounts rises annually with inflation, which means you'll get the increased amount in each subsequent year of your PhD. The above figures represent the amounts for 2022/23.

These values increase annually with inflation and you’ll receive the new amount each year.

The tuition payment goes straight to your university and covers the full fees for your PhD (the university won’t charge you anything extra for tuition). The stipend is paid to you to cover accommodation and living costs. You do not need to pay this back.

Students are also able to access a Research Training Support Grant (RTSG) to cover the cost of conference attendance and fieldwork as well as have access to the Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA).

How is funding allocated?

You don’t apply directly to the ESRC for PhD funding. Instead, funding for studentships is provided to universities who allocate awards to individual students within either Doctoral Training Partnerships (DTPs) or Centres for Doctoral Training (CDTs).

Some ESRC funding is attached to specific advertised projects, but many studentships will also be held in reserve to fund PhDs proposed by students themselves.

Doctoral Training Partnerships (DTPs) are the main way the ESRC provide PhD studentships. Each DTP is set up by individual universities or, more commonly, by a group of universities in the same region. DTPs are set up to provide additional training and support.

It is sometimes possible for DTPs to join forces with non-academic partners. This provides students with addition training opportunities as well as internships.

ESRC DTPs for 2023

The current ESRC Doctoral Training Partnerships are:

• Cambridge Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership

  Based at the University of Cambridge.

  Partners include the Department for Transport, the British Library, the Behavioural Insights Team and Microsoft.

  Find out more about the Cambridge Social Science DTP.

• Grand Union Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by the University of Oxford, along with the Open University and Brunel University London.

  Find out more about the Grand Union DTP.

• London Interdisciplinary Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by King’s College London, along with Queen Mary University of London and Imperial College London.

  Find out more about the LISS DTP.

• LSE Doctoral Training Partnership

  Based at the London School of Economics & Political Science.

  Find out more about the LSE DTP.

• Midlands Graduate School Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by the University of Warwick, along with Aston University, the University of Birmingham, the University of Leicester, Loughborough University and the University of Nottingham.

  Find out more about the Midlands Graduate School DTP.

• Northern Ireland and North East (NINE) Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by Durham University, along with Newcastle University, Northumbria University, Queen’s University of Belfast, Teesside University, Ulster University and the University of Sunderland.

  Partners include the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.

  Find out more about the NINE DTP.

• North West Social Sciences Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by the University of Liverpool, along with Keele University, Lancaster University and the University of Manchester.

  Find out more about the NWSS DTP.

• Scottish Graduate School of Social Sciences Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by the University of Edinburgh, along with the University of Aberdeen, the University of Dundee, Edinburgh Napier University, the University of Glasgow, Glasgow Caledonian University, Heriot-Watt University, Queen Margaret University Edinburgh, the University of St Andrews, the University of Stirling, the University of Strathclyde and SRUC.

  Find out more about the SGSS DTP.

• The South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by the University of Southampton, along with the University of Brighton and the University of Portsmouth.

  Find out more about the South Coast DTP.

• South East Network for Social Sciences (SeNSS) Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by the University of Essex, along with City University London, the University of East Anglia, Goldsmiths College, the University of Kent, the University of Reading, the University of Roehampton, Royal Holloway University of London, the University of Surrey and the University of Sussex.

  Find out more about the SeNSS DTP.

• South West Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by the University of Bristol, along with the University of Bath, the University of Exeter, the University of Plymouth and the University of the West of England.

  Find out more about the SWDTP.

• UCL, Bloomsbury and East London (UBEL) Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by University College London, along with the School of Oriental & African Studies, Birkbeck College, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the University of East London.

  Find out more about the UBEL DTP.

• Wales Doctoral Training Partnership

  Led by Cardiff University, along with Aberystwyth University, Bangor University, Cardiff Metropolitan University, the University of Gloucestershire and Swansea University.

  Find out more about the Wales DTP.

• White Rose Social Sciences DTP

  Led by the University of Sheffield, along with the University of Bradford, the University of Hull, the University of Leeds, Manchester Metropolitan University, Sheffield Hallam University and the University of York.

  Find out more about the White Rose Social Sciences DTP.

Studying your PhD at an ESRC DTP

Studying within a DTP will provide you with additional training to help you successfully complete your PhD. This is usually provided as a series of workshops and seminars that are run throughout the course of your doctorate.

You will be studying at the university you applied to, however, you may be studying as part of a cohort of other PhD students within your DTP. This provides you with a supportive experience and the opportunity to attend additional training and team building exercises as well as conferences.

You will also have access to additional DTP benefits, such as the Doctoral Training Grants that provide you with money for additional training and any overseas fieldwork, should you need it.

ESRC DTP studentships can either be offered as a 1+3 programme (which includes an integrated Masters year) or a +3 programme, which provides funding for a three year PhD only.

Some DTPs may offer Collaborative (CASE) studentships for ESRC students. This type of studentship is more common for STEM based research councils (such as the BBSRC, MRC or EPSRC), but they provide similar opportunities. Most notably they promote partnerships with non-academic businesses to enhance training opportunities.

Centres for Doctoral Training (CDT) are the other way in which the ESRC funds PhD studentships. Whereas DTPs are set up by networks of universities and support research across broad subject areas, CDTs are usually established in association with, or within, one institution, with very specific research objectives.

Like DTPs, CDTs receive funding for a certain number of PhD studentships each year. These usually involve external partners to provide unique interdisciplinary research opportunities.

ESRC CDTs for 2023

There are currently two CDTs:

• Social-Biology (Soc-B) Centre for Doctoral Training

  Led by University College London, along with the University of Essex and the University of Manchester.

  Find out more about the Soc-B CDT.

• Data Analytics and Society Centre for Doctoral Training

  Led by the University of Leeds, along with the University of Liverpool, the University of Manchester and the University of Sheffield.

  Find out more about the Data Analytics and Society CDT.

Studying your PhD at an ESRC CDT

The ESRC CDTs were commissioned in 2016 and are relatively new. They deliver training focused on specific interdisciplinary research areas. CDTs are developed in collaboration with non-academic partners to support innovative training.

The CDTs provide a four year PhD programme (+4), which is an integrated MSc and PhD in specific areas of research and offer the same fee and stipend payments as an ESRC DTP studentship (subject to eligibility). The first two years are spent on the MSc aspect focusing on training and project rotations. The following two years are then spent on your PhD research topic.

The eligibility for ESRC PhD funding follows the same criteria as all the other UKRI research councils, with UK and international students eligible for funding.

However, only 30% of the total number of awards available at a university may go to international students. International students are also only eligible to have their tuition fees paid at the lower domestic rate, which means they may have to pay the difference between this amount and the higher international rate. Please note that you aren’t allowed to use the living stipend to pay this difference. Some studentships will fund the shortfall in costs for particularly high-achieving students, but this is at their discretion and you may need to find an alternative source of funding.

Residency

• UK students who have been ordinarily resident in the UK for at least three years will be eligible for a full studentship (covering fees and including the doctoral stipend).
• EU students may be eligible for UKRI funding on the same terms as UK students if they have settled status in the UK or applied to the EU Settlement Scheme prior to 30 June 2021. EU students who arrive in the UK for a PhD from 2021-22 onwards may apply as international students.
• Irish students are eligible for UKRI finding on the same terms as UK students as part of the Common Travel Area.

Academic requirements

ESRC studentships are awarded on a competition basis, with the funding being allocated to the best applicants. Typically, the normal requirements for an ESRC PhD is a first or upper second (2.1) class honours degree (or equivalent). If you hold a lower honours grade (2.2), a Masters (or equivalent experience) may help with your application. These are guidelines provided by the ESRC, however, and individual universities may ask for higher degree requirements

It is always a good idea to tailor your application when applying, so make sure you carefully read the advertised criteria.

Working during an ESRC studentship

You cannot work full-time while receiving ESRC funding (this is true for any UKRI funding). It is possible to work part-time, but it is advisable to get your supervisors’ advice on this as studying for a PhD can be time consuming.

Also, while receiving ESRC funding, you cannot apply for a PhD loan. This goes for any UKRI funded studentships.

The ESRC provides funding to their network of DTPs and CDTs but not directly to students. This means that all applications must be made directly to a university, or to the DTP or CDT it is part of.

Self-proposed projects vs advertised projects

Most ESRC DTP studentships ask potential student to propose their own research topics and submit a research proposal for it. These projects are guided by an expert supervisory team and may involve working with external partners that allow you access to data, equipment or participants for your project.

Other projects are designed by universities and advertised in advance, with pre-defined questions, aims and objectives. These research areas have been developed by the academic supervisors that you will work with during your PhD.

Along with your research proposal, you will usually need to also include a personal statement (detailing your academic background and research interests), CV and covering letter (stating your suitability and interest in the project).

If your application is successful, you will then be invited for a PhD interview, where you will be able to discuss the PhD project application further.

Application deadlines

Individual DTPs and CDTs set their own closing dates for applications, and as such, prospective students should contact the programme you wish to apply to directly. For the majority of the time, they open for applications September / October for projects starting in the following October. However, some DTPs offer studentships throughout the year, each with its own closing date.

Here are the deadlines for the current DTPs starting in October 2023:

• Cambridge Social Science – tbc
• Grand Union – 11 / 13 January 2023, depending on institution
• London Interdisciplinary Social Science – 27 January 2023
• LSE – 16 December 2022
• Midlands Graduate School – 24 January 2023
• Northern Ireland and North East (NINE) – 20 January 2023
• North West Social Sciences – 1 February 2023
• Scottish Graduate School of Social Sciences – 8 December 2022
• The South Coast – tbc
• South East Network for Social Sciences (SeNSS) – 20 January 2023
• South West – tbc
• UBEL – 31 January 2023
• Wales – February 2023 (exact date tbc)
• White Rose Social Sciences – 25 January 2023

These dates are for projects starting in 2023 only. The exact dates will probably change for 2024, but you can use these to get a general idea for future deadlines.

ESRC funding application tips

ESRC studentships are very competitive. Here are some tips to help you with your application:

1. Think about what makes your project worth funding – The majority of ESRC studentships are proposed by students, this makes it all the more important for your proposal to have an impact. Explain why your project is important and what makes your research worthwhile.
2. Give yourself time to prepare – Proposals take time to write. On top of that, you also have to prepare your cover letter and update your CV. Start early so you don’t miss the application deadline.
3. Think about the studentship you want – The ESRC offers different lengths of studentships so it’s good to know which one you need to apply to first. Whether that be a 1+3 or +3 or maybe the +4. If you already have a Masters degree, or your Masters isn’t relevant, it’s probably best to go for the 1+3. However, if your Masters degree is relevant and provided training for most of the ‘core training requirements’ then apply for the +3.
4. Contact potential supervisors – Not only will this show your interest in the project, it will also mean supervisors will recognise your name when your application is put in. Plus, they may also help you with your research proposal. Just make sure you contact supervisors that have research interests close to your proposed project, that way they are more likely to take an interest in your ideas and move forward with them.

ESRC projects can be found on the DTP and CDT websites, or can be easily found here on FindAPhD. Also if you subscribe to our newsletter, you will be the first to hear about new listings and opportunities.

Further information

Check the ESRC and UKRI websites for additional funding details.