Funded PhD opportunities - ESRC South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership (SCDTP)

Fund your Social Sciences or Psychology PhD with an ESRC SCDTP bursary.

Applications are now open for the 2023 entry round of PhD bursaries, funded by the ESRC South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership (SCDTP). The awards are open to UK, EU and international students.

The University of Portsmouth is part of the South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership (SCDTP) alongside the Universities of Southampton and Brighton. The SCDTP is a beacon of excellence, innovation and imagination in the training of the next generation of social scientists.

Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, the South Coast DTP will be awarding a minimum of 38 studentships per year to social scientists carrying out PhD studies, or Masters + PhD studies. For more information on topics open to applications at the University of Portsmouth, explore the Area Studies and Psychology sections below.

All three universities are home to research centres with global reputations for their expertise and excellence, alongside a diversity of other specialisms.

Explore our research areas 

You should approach potential supervisors with your own research idea, or may develop a proposal to fit within our areas of expertise in Area Studies and Psychology.

Area Studies areas of expertise

• Language Across Borders
• Historical Perspectives
• Transnational Politics & Society
• Social Theory & Policy
• Women’s & Gender Studies
• Citizenship, Race & Belonging
• Mental Health in Childhood & Education
• Peace, Security & Conflict

Psychology areas of expertise

• Forensic Psychology
• Quality of Life, Health & Wellbeing
• Interaction, Development & Diversity
• Comparative & Evolutionary Psychology

Check our dedicated South Coast DTP page for more details, and to make contact with our supervisors and research coordinators.

Entry Requirements

You must have qualifications equivalent to a good honours degree (first- or upper second-class level) from a UK academic higher education institution. Degree qualifications gained from outside the UK, or a combination of qualifications and/or experience that is equivalent to a relevant UK degree, may be accepted. Studentships are open to UK, EU and international students.

English language proficiency at a minimum of IELTS band 6.5 with no component score below 6.0.

How to apply

The first thing you’ll need is a University supervisor to support your SCDTP application – so you’ll need to contact prospective supervisors before you submit an application. You are strongly encouraged to regularly discuss your research proposal with the supervisor as it is developed. ESRC studentships are highly competitive and it is crucial that applications are as good as they possibly can be.

Please check the areas of expertise listed in the 'Explore our research areas' section above and then contact the relevant supervisor to discuss your idea further.

For applications in Area Studies, please use this online application form quoting project code SDTP7270123.

For applications in Psychology use this online application form quoting project code SDTP7280123.

Please note: you’ll need to submit two applications, an online application to the University of Portsmouth plus an application for funding to the SCDTP. For more details, visit the SCDTP website.

Application deadline

The application deadline is Monday 23 January 2023.

General enquiries

If you'd like further information on the scheme, please get in touch with the respective Departmental Degrees Coordinators:

Area Studies: Dr Nora Siklodi

Psychology: Dr Marine Joly