EPSRC: COMING SOON: Centres for doctoral training

03/11/2022

07/02/2023

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council invites outline proposals for its centres for doctoral training funding programme. This supports CDTs to deliver high quality, cohort-based doctoral education, with a focus on a high value student experience promoting their long-term career development, wellbeing and preparation to follow a diversity of career paths. EPSRC intends to commit up to £324 million and the duration of the funding will be 102 months. Applicants are required to leverage both cash and high value in-kind support from non UKRI sources. Aminimum of 20% of studentships costs as a cash contribution, EPSRC will provide funds for up to 40 doctoral students over the 5 annual cohorts and the studentships costs equivalent to at least 10 students must be provided from other sources.

The focus areas are: •meeting a user need or supporting civic priorities: centres must be co-developed and co-delivered with non-academic partners as well as demonstrate significant co-investment by those stakeholders: •delivering an EPSRC research priority: •supporting an innovative approach to CDT delivery.

Applications are welcome from eligible institutions who can demonstrate the ability to host a CDT in a world-leading research training environment. Given the scale of CDTs, this must include a critical mass of supervisors of internationally recognised research excellence with a proven track record of doctorial supervision. Applications to refresh existing centres are welcomed as well as applications to support new centres. Applications need to be led by a research degree awarding body. We will allow 1 application each, as lead, from the Henry Royce Institute and the Rosalind Franklin Institute. The principal investigator must be from the lead organisation for the application and follow EPSRC’s normal rules for eligibility. Organisations where staff are eligible to participate as co-investigators are those approved by UKRI. Applications are welcomed from both single and multi-institutional teams. Collaborations with non-academic project partners are expected where appropriate for the focus of the centre.