ESRC Co-funded Studentships
Co-funded Studentships are doctoral projects which are jointly run by both academic and non-academic organisations.
What's on offer?
Applications now open to supervisors (Deadline 11 December 2026)
Co-funded Studentships are PhD projects that are run in collaboration with non-academic organisations, e.g. public, private and civil-society sector organisations, with involve substantive user engagement and knowledge exchange as part of the award.
In collaboration with non-academic partners, projects address research topics of both theoretical and practical importance, providing opportunities for the selected student candidate to gain first-hand experience of work outside an academic environment.
Co-funded Studentships can be held on a full-time or part-time basis and within a 1+3.5, 4-year (Integrated PhD) or +3.5 programme, where an individual pathway allows for these structures. Projects must fit within an appropriate UBEL Pathway.
UBEL requires a minimum contribution by co-funders of £10,000 per year for three years, but matched funding is also welcomed.
UBEL ESRC DTP co-funded studentships cover tuition fees at the UKRI rate and an annual maintenance stipend. Stipend and fee levels for academic year 2026/2027: a minimum stipend of £23,805 (including London Weighting Allowance) and support for home tuition fees at £5,238.
Academic applications will be reviewed following the deadline (11 December 2026), with the successful applicants then able to recruit a student to work on the project in open competition. Student applications will open in February 2027, to start in October 2027.
Necessary Information you need for an application can be found below the Schedule.
Deadlines for 2027 Entry
| 12 October 2026 | Survey Monkey Apply opens for Staff application |
| 11 December 2026 | Deadline for Staff applications at 23:59 |
| 22 January 2027 | DTP informs Staff of application outcome |
In addition to standard information about the academic supervisory team, you will need to provide:
Project Title & Project Proposal (maximum two pages)
Ethical considerations
Contact details of Project Partners, including name of company and relevant sector, together with a brief description of the main activities of the collaborating organisation.
Proposed Training and Support (The academic and non-academic supervisors will be expected to agree the arrangements for the delivery of formal research training, regular formal progress meetings and briefing meetings with the student, throughout the period. The DTP Board will therefore be looking for evidence of a structure that will also be responsive to the needs of the individual student.)
Intellectual Property Rights (a description of how property rights issues will be addressed. An official agreement between the academic and non-academic partner concerning the distribution of proceeds from commercially valuable research is considered an essential element of any Co-funded studentship. Please note that the student retains all student-generated IPR and the ability to publish all findings.)
Financial contributions from collaborating partner
Note that you must complete the following before you can submit your application:
- Upload the project proposal
- Upload the letter of support from your collaborative partner;
- Complete the table indicating cash and in-kind contributions;
- Initial contract information for Co-funded application
- Upload a draft studentship advertisement.
15 September 2025 | Survey Monkey Apply opens for Staff application |
5 December 2025 | Deadline for Staff applications at 23:59 |
16 January 2025 | DTP informs Staff of application outcome |
30 January 2025 | Full application form available to Student |
2 March 2026 | Deadline for Student applications at 23:59 |
w/c 20 April 2026 | DTP Board confirms studentship awards for 2026 entry |
PLEASE NOTE: The following projects have now recruited students for 2023 entry.
- Jonathan Bartlett with Roche Products Ltd.: Methods for deterministic treatment effect estimates for clinical trials with missing data
- Adam Dennett with Transport East: Pathways to socially equitable net-zero cities and regions
- Nicola White with Rescape Innovation Ltd: Exploring the therapeutic benefits of virtual reality for people living with an incurable illness
James Cheshire with Movement Strategies, a GHD Company: What makes a place busy? Characterising the spatio-temporal elements of the ambient population using a range of data sources
Justin van Dijk with PDV: Lifestyles and geodemographic behaviours in inter-generational context
- Emma Howarth with Newham Learning: Exploring the use and impact of outdoor environments in East London Pupil Referral Units
- Gill Wyness with Education Policy Institute: The changing Level 3 qualifications market Assessing socio-spatial and economic impacts of large transport infrastructure
- Dr Jens Kandt with UK Department for Transport (DfT): Assessing socio-spatial and economic impacts of large transport infrastructure
Click here to see co-funded projects for the 2026 recruitment cycle.
Click here to see co-funded projects for the 2025 recruitment cycle.
Get in touch with the team.
Email: Ubel-dtp@ucl.ac.uk
Click here to see co-funded projects from the 2024 recruitment cycle.
Click here to see co-funded projects from the 2023 recruitment cycle.
The ESRC has introduced a new PhD model from 2024/25. The new standard model for an ESRC studentship is 3.5 years.
Instead of the traditional three years of funding for a full-time PhD, ESRC studentships will include an extra three months of time (and stipend) to allow extra time for training throughout the PhD.
In addition, it is expected that ESRC studentship holders should have the opportunity to
complete a high-quality placement in academia, policy, business or civil society organisations as
part of their training. Students who participate in a placement will receive an extra three months of time (and stipend). This extra funded time would be in addition to the time periods indicated below and apply to all routes (i.e. 1+3, +3, 2+3 and +4, 3.5 and 3.25)