ESRC Studentship Funding

Our Pathway awards offer applicants the opportunity to develop proposals for impactful social science research that engages with the key themes and challenges identified in our thematic interdisciplinary pathways. Pathway Awards fund candidates who have submitted their own research project, and successful students will be supervisors by a team of academic colleagues who share their subject expertise.

The WRDTP is delighted to be able to work with the Stuart Hall Foundation (SHF), supporting two studentships for Black British students. In partnership with the Stuart Hall Foundation, the WRDTP/Stuart Hall Foundation Pathway Awards will support the next generation of Black British social science researchers conducting research aligned to the Foundation’s mission. Awards are available to students applying for a PhD within the WRDTP and can be held in any of our seven partner institutions. The award process will be administered in conjunction with the Stuart Hall Foundation.

Eligibility

These awards are open to Black British students (Black or Black British African, Black or Black British Caribbean, Black or Black British other or Mixed Black or Black British). Applicants will self-identify and sign a disclaimer to the effect that the information they provide is correct.

Please note that international students are not eligible to apply for the WRDTP/Stuart Hall Foundation Awards.

All other standard eligibility criteria for WRDTP awards will apply.

Selection committee

A separate sub-committee will consider the nominations received for the WRDTP/Stuart Hall Foundation Awards and make recommendations to the WRDTP Academic Quality Committee. Representatives from the Stuart Hall Foundation will be consulted on the award decisions made.

Nominations for the Pathway Awards are assessed by senior academic colleagues from our partner institutions. Staff involved in the WRDTP Studentships competition (both professional service and academic) will undertake or be able to evidence that they have already undertaken appropriate high-quality equality, diversity and inclusion training.

How do these awards differ from standard Pathway Award studentships?

In addition to working within one of the WRDTP’s interdisciplinary pathways,  successful candidates will have research interests identifying with Professor Stuart Hall’s research legacy in the areas of securing wider access to education,  race, ethnicity, cultural studies and structural inequalities.

Successful awardees will benefit from working with SHF to develop their career and profile. Post holders will be able to tap into the resources and networks of the Stuart Hall Foundation, including an annual gathering of Stuart Hall Foundation Scholars and Fellows, and privileged access to the work of the Foundation.

Meet the current Stuart Hall Foundation fellows and scholars here.

Our Advanced Quantitative Methods (AQM) awards are aimed at applicants who will use cutting edge quantitative research methods to facilitate impactful research that is aligned with our thematic interdisciplinary pathways.   These projects will use either primary or secondary quantitative data to answer research questions about society.

How do AQM awards differ from the WRDTP Pathway Awards?

AQM studentships are the result of a specific ESRC strategic steer and will use either primary or secondary quantitative data to answer research questions about society. Usually the methods used will go beyond the basic quantitative methods that are often learned in “Introductory Quantitative Methods” modules in social science bachelors and masters programmes for the disciplines they are embedded in. So projects will usually do something more than bivariate analysis/regression, depending on the research question and data being used. For instance, the methods used might deal with complex data structures, consider how to identify causal effects (as opposed to associations), or consider spatial or temporal variability.

However please note that all the typical studentship eligibility criteria apply, the competition timelines and deadlines are the same as the Pathway competition, and applicants are still expected to align with one of the WRDTP’s seven interdisciplinary training pathways in addition to focusing on AQM during their research project. AQM awards will only be made to projects that answer social science questions. Students are also welcome to apply to more than one award – for instance both AQM and a pathway award.

What is the difference between the AQM and the ADA awards? Can I apply to both?

The focus of the two awards is slightly different, with AQM awards focusing on the use of advanced statistical methods to study commonly used datasets (such as survey data). The focus of ADA is more on the use of innovative qualitative or quantitative data (“Big data”, administrative data, location tracking data, etc) and associated methods (machine learning, advanced data visualisations, etc). However, we recognise that some projects will fit in both, and both should answer questions about society. Students are welcome to apply to both if they wish.

Is there any additional support for AQM studentship award holders?

An enhanced Research Training Support Grant (RTSG) is offered alongside these awards (available during the +3.5 stage of the programme).

Our Advanced Data Analytics (ADA) awards are aimed at applicants who will use cutting edge data analysis techniques (which can be quantitative and/or qualitative), or will deploy large scale or ‘big’ data, to facilitate impactful research that is aligned with our thematic interdisciplinary pathways.  These projects are likely to use forms of secondary data that are not commonly used in social science research, and that require particular techniques to understand and interpret those data. 

How do ADA awards differ from the WRDTP Pathway Awards?

ADA studentships are the result of a specific ESRC strategic steer to encourage the use of advanced data skills. Projects are likely to use forms of secondary data that are not commonly used in social science research, and that require particular techniques to understand and interpret those data. These datasets may include administrative data, unstructured commercial data (such as loyalty card databases), data created through digital interactions between people and/or organisations (e.g. social media data), and interactions with urban environments (such as transport footfall data or phone tracking data). These data are often underutilised in the social sciences, whilst being information rich. They are often large (often described as “Big Data”) and sometimes are not representative of broader populations. This means that they are often suitable for answering different research questions, and require different techniques from more traditional datasets that are used more regularly in the social sciences (such as representative surveys).

However please note that all the typical studentship eligibility criteria apply, the competition timelines and deadlines are the same as the Pathway competition, and applicants are still expected to align with one of the WRDTP’s seven interdisciplinary training pathways in addition to focusing on ADA during their research project. ADA awards will only be made to projects that answer social science questions. Students are also welcome to apply to more than one award – for instance both ADA and a pathway award.

What is the difference between the AQM and the ADA awards? Can I apply to both?

The focus of the two awards is slightly different, with AQM awards focusing on the use of advanced statistical methods to study commonly used datasets (such as survey data). The focus of ADA is more on the use of innovative qualitative or quantitative data (“Big data”, administrative data, location tracking data, etc) and associated methods (machine learning, advanced data visualisations, etc). However, we recognise that some projects will fit in both, and both should answer questions about society. Students are welcome to apply to both if they wish.

Is there any additional support for ADA studentship award holders?

An enhanced Research Training Support Grant (RTSG) is offered alongside these awards (available during the +3.5 stage of the programme).

WRDTP Collaborative Awards support our strong commitment to collaborative research with partners in the private, public or third sectors by involving these partners in a programme of doctoral research. Our Collaborative Award scheme is supervisor-led and academic colleagues who are interested in submitting a Collaborative Award project proposal to the WRDTP can find more information here.

Information for students interested in applying for a Collaborative Award project

Once the successful WRDTP Collaborative Award project proposals have been identified, in early Spring the studentship opportunities will be advertised to prospective PhD candidates. Details will be shared on the WRDTP website here, and directly at institutions via our Scholarships Office colleagues.

Please note that this process will begin *after* the deadline for students to apply to the WRDTP with their own research project. If you have missed the deadline to apply for a Pathway, AQM or ADA Award, this is an additional opportunity to apply to the WDRTP for ESRC funding, outside the main studentships competition.

If you are interested in applying for a WRDTP Collaborative Award studentship, please refer to the list of projects (which will be added here in early Spring) for further details. Each project listing will feature a named contact for enquiries relating to the studentship opportunity, details on how to apply, and any important deadlines/processes that you should adhere to. If you have a question regarding applying for a WRDTP Collaborative Award studentship and cannot find an answer online, please contact enquiries@wrdtp.ac.uk.

The academic supervisor, and their department/school will manage the shortlisting and interviewing of studentship candidates, and when a suitable candidate has been identified, the chosen student will be nominated to the WRDTP for final approval. Successful candidates will be notified by their institution’s Scholarships Office by the end of April, or as soon as possible thereafter, depending on the individual project’s timeline for student recruitment.