Doctoral training at York

York Graduate Research School partnerships

Each year we award over £7m of studentships through UK Research and Innovation. We work with DFAs and DLAs, including the White Rose College of the Arts and Humanities, the White Rose Social Sciences Doctoral Training Partnership, and the EPSRC CDT in Fusion Energy Science and Technology.

Through membership of one of York’s funded DFAs or DLAs, postgraduate researchers benefit from being part of a wider research community and have a chance to grow a broad range of skills through professional development opportunities. 

Benefits of undertaking a doctoral programme through a DFA or DLA

• Full payment of tuition fees.
• UKRI level stipend for three to four years (dependent on the particular DFA/DLA).
• Access to funding to support research costs, eg fieldwork and conference attendance.
• Networking opportunities and cohort-building activities.
• Programme of professional development and research skills training.
• Gathering experience which can be used in a range of careers both inside and outside of academia.

Who is eligible for DFAs or DLAs?

Each DFA and DLA have different eligibility criteria which are available on their websites.

Some studentships are open to international applicants and York has committed to covering the difference between the home fee rate and the international fee rate for international candidates who receive a studentship from a UKRI-funded DFA or DLA.

Current doctoral training opportunities

These DFAs and DLAs offer postgraduate research studentships at the University of York:

• AHRC Doctoral Landscape Awards in the Arts and Humanities - The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funds outstanding original research across the arts and humanities.
• Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity - understanding the causes and consequences of biodiversity gains and losses, and inform and influence how society responds.
• Bio-Boost Industry Doctoral Landscape Award - The Bio-Boost Industry Doctoral Landscape Award will train a generation of ‘industry and government ready’ scientists that will harness the power of waste water treatment (WWT).
• Centre for Doctoral Training in Autonomous Robotic Systems for Laboratory Experiments - revolutionising experimental laboratory techniques with autonomous robots.
• Centre for Doctoral Training in Sustainable Materials for Net Zero - developing sustainable materials that are abundant, non-toxic and recyclable.
• ECOSOLUTIONS - a cutting-edge, transdisciplinary initiative, combining science, policy, and societal engagement to transform chemicals policy and management.
• ESPRC CDT in Chemical Synthesis for a Healthy Planet (CSHP) -  developing a sustainable, innovative chemistry culture that equips students to address major emerging and future global challenges in human health, energy and materials, and food security.
• The EPSRC CDT in Process Industries: Net Zero (PINZ) - a collaboration between the Process Intensification Group at Newcastle University and the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence at the University of York.
• EPSRC CDT in Fusion Power - empowers our students to become exceptional fusion scientists and engineers through world-class training and a thriving collaborative community.
  
• EPSRC Mobility Doctoral Training Partnership in Leadership and Excellence in Circular, Resource-efficient, Sustainable Manufacturing - sciences research looking at how business can transform their current practices to better (re)utilise resources to sustain our chemicals, materials and energy needs.
• MRC Discovery Medicine North Doctoral Training Partnership - training researchers to tackle the major health problems facing the population.
  
• NERC Adapting to the Challenges of a Changing Environment Doctoral Training Partnership - providing doctoral training in the biological components of environmental research in a multidisciplinary environment.
• Plant BioDesign Doctoral Training Programme - Plant BioDesign will train the next generation of scientists to design and engineer plants that tackle global challenges in food security, clean growth, and environmental sustainability.
• White Rose BBSRC Doctoral Training Partnership in Mechanistic Biology - training bio-scientists to innovate to address global challenges, such as the impact of climate change, a healthier old age, sustainable food production, land use and energy production.
  
• The White Rose Social Sciences Doctoral Training Partnership - a regional consortium of seven universities with social science research excellence.
• UKRI AI CDT in Lifelong Safety Assurance of AI-enabled Autonomous Systems (SAINTS) - the UK’s first multidisciplinary PhD programme focused solely on the safety of artificial intelligence.
• Yorkshire Environmental Sciences Doctoral Training Network (YES-DTN) - training the next generation of environmental scientists to tackle the global environmental science questions of the future.

UK Research Councils

Research Councils are funded by the Government and invest billions in academic research each year. The seven Research Councils allocate scholarships/studentships to selected universities and departments, rather than to students directly. You can read more on the UKRI website.