Postgraduate research funding opportunities

Project search

You can search for projects under physical sciences or social sciences:

The School of GeoSciences will offer 3 studentships in 2026. Details and timelines will be updated in October 2025.

In order to attract the best and brightest PhD students, the University seeks to offer not only unparalleled research facilities and superb supervision, but also to provide development opportunities which will support our research students as they progress beyond their PhD, through an exciting scholarship scheme.

The School of GeoSciences will offer 3 Edinburgh Doctoral College Scholarships (EDCS) for students starting their PhD programme in the academic year 2025/26.

Deadlines

The scholarship application form is now open, please carefully read the following guidance. You will not be considered for this scholarship if you do not complete both Step 1 and Step 2:

Step 1 (Programme application): Thursday 6 February 2025 at 23:59 (GMT)

Step 2 (Scholarships portal application): Monday 17 February 2025 at 23:59 (GMT)

Before applying

Contact a potential PhD supervisor at the School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh as soon as possible to discuss your proposal. Also check the scholarship information and guidance on the University of Edinburgh Scholarships and Student Funding page here.

Application Process

There is a two-stage application process and both stages must be completed in order for applicants to be considered for these studentships.

Step 1 - submit a PhD application for a September or October 2025 start date

Deadline: Thursday 6 February 2025 at 23:59 (GMT)

Applications must be made through our University Degree Finder:

Important:

• Applications that are not supported by a supervisor will not be considered.
• You are required to upload a Research proposal of no more than 3 pages and 1 page of references. Note that the font should be at least 11 point and margins should be at least 2cm.
• In the ‘Research proposal’ upload field of the PhD application form, you should upload a single document combining your Research proposal and a 2-page CV.
• Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Please read our general application guidance web page: Application Guidance 

Not eligible to apply:

• candidates applying to start at a different time
• continuing PhD students
• supervisor-led projects are not eligible

Only student-led proposals will be considered. 

Both students with Home or International Fee Status are eligible to apply.  The studentships cover fees in both cases, and include 3.5 years of stipend at UKRI rate and a £3,000 Research Training and Support Grant. Immigration and relocation expenses are not included in the scholarships and will need to be covered by the candidates.

Step 2 - submit a scholarship application

Deadline: Monday 17 February 2025 at 23:59 (GMT)

The scholarship application portal is now open. The scholarship application form will become accessible via your EUCLID Applicant Hub after you submit your PhD application and receive your login credentials (UUN and EASE password). Please note it can take five working days (or more during peak admissions times) for all system checks to be completed and for applicants to receive credentials and then be allowed to access the scholarship application portal. Therefore, you are advised to complete your PhD application well in advance of the deadline. 

You will find guidance on the following University page: Applying for a scholarship as a Postgraduate Applicant 

Application statement:

As part of your scholarship application, you will be asked to provide an application statement, which should highlight your research journey:

• How you overcame personal challenges and how they prepared you for the project.
• How do you see yourself contributing to the PhD community in the School?
• 300-500 words

The selection panel will shortlist candidates using the SGSSS scoring framework to assess applications.  Interviews will be held online around mid April 2025. 

Unsuccessful applicants will be notified via their Applicant Hub at the end of April 2025. 

You will need to submit a programme application and a scholarship application in order for us to be able to consider you for these scholarships. Due to the complexities of submitting two separate applications, it is advisable that you familiarise yourselves with the relevant guidance and address any issues with us well in advance of the application deadlines.

Contact Information

For more information or assistance on the programme application process, please contact the School of GeoSciences PGR Office -pgrsupport.geos@ed.ac.uk

If you have any queries about your scholarship application, please contact the 'Scholarships and Student Funding Services' team -scholarships@ed.ac.uk

If you experience technical difficulties when using the 'Scholarship application' software, please contact the Student Systems team -studentsystems@ed.ac.uk 

Important links

Edinburgh Doctoral College Scholarships 

The University of Edinburgh is a member institution of the Scotland-wide Graduate School of Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership (SGSSS DTP), which is funded and accredited by the Social and Economic Research Council (ESRC). The DTP provides world-class postgraduate research and training in the social sciences across a wide range of disciplines, known as “Units of Assessment”.

Deadlines

Before applying

Contact and seek advice from the relevant Unit of Assessment Lead and a potential PhD supervisor at the Institute of Geography, School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh as soon as possible to discuss your proposal and your interest in the ESRC awards. 

We also recommend that you check the scholarship information and ESRC eligibility criteria here and view all of the helpful applicant information videos on the SGSSS website here. You must also register to the SGSSS Apply system.

Please take the time to go through the application template, guidance and marking framework - applicants who do not contact supervisors to discuss their applications prior to applying will be rejected. 

Application process

There is an initial two stage application process and both stages must be completed in order to be considered for the student-led SGSSS open competition in the School of GeoSciences. 

Stage 1 – Programme Application

Submit an application including academic transcripts, SGSSS application template, CV and referee details to the PhD Human Geography and Environment Sciences programme (see link below) by  Thursday 20 November 2025 at 23:59. Please ensure that you clearly state your interest in the ESRC funding in your application.

Apply for a Human Geography and Environmental Sciences PhD 

You can find a detailed step-by-step guide to applying for a research degree below

PhD Application process – School of GeoSciences

Please review the relevant guidelines for information that should be included in your research proposal.

Additional guidelines for SGSSS DTP applicants

If you are applying for the SGSSS funding, please include the following information into your research proposal; specific requirements outlined below should be met. Please upload this information in the “Research Proposal” field of your EUCLID application.

1. Academic Statement:

• Outline your research journey: provide a summary of why you are ready to undertake a PhD now and how you will flourish as a result of PhD funding. You might include how you overcame personal challenges, achievements, experiences, etc (400 words max).
• Outline how you see yourself contributing to the PhD community and how you will support diversity and inclusion (250 words max).

2. Research proposal:

• The research proposal must be a detailed description of the intended research topic. It should include an overview, including research question(s) and the overall aim of your project, the context of the research, i.e. where it is situated within the relevant literature(s), methodology and an indication of ethical issues associated with the proposal. The main body of the research proposal (excluding the bibliography) must not exceed 1,500 words.

3. Bibliography:

• Include references referred to in the research proposal (Harvard style).

4. Provisional timetable:

• Provide an indicative timetable for your research, which should fit for 3 years for a full-time PhD.

5. Pathway:

• State which SGSSS challenge-led pathway fits to your research most closely. You can provide up to 3 options. If you think your research does not fit into any of the pathways, state this as well.

Note: 

• Depending on applicant experience, the award can be offered as MSc plus PhD (1+3.5). For further guidance contact the relevant Unit of Assessment lead.

Stage 2 - (SGSSS funding application)

All applicants must also submit a complete funding application to include academic transcripts, CV and referee details to the SGSSS via the Apply system by  Monday 24 November 2025 at 17:00.For any issues with the system, please contact SGSSS at team@sgsss.ac.uk.

You will need to submit a programme application and a funding application in order for us to be able to consider you for these scholarships. Due to the complexities of submitting two separate applications to two different systems, it is advisable that you familiarise yourselves with the relevant application guidance and address any issues with us well in advance of the application deadlines.

Online Information Sessions

Contact information

Important links:

SGSSS funding application guidance

Scottish Graduate School of Social Science studentships

The School of Geosciences leads the NERC funded E5 DTP, bringing together 33 partners including 7 University of Edinburgh schools, National Capabilities, Centres of Excellence and external partners in the policy, industry and society sectors. The City of Edinburgh and its surrounding areas have one of the highest concentrations of NERC-remit in the United Kingdom. It is home to the University of Edinburgh as well as the offices of large independent research organisations and partners including the UK Centre for Hydrology and Ecology, the British Geological Society, Scotland’s Rural College, the National Museum of Scotland, and Forest Research. In our list of available projects, you will find a wide range of research topics, and we also welcome self-proposed PhD topics that build upon our wide partnership. 

The E5 DTP offers a fully funded four-year studentship, which provides a stipend (set at UKRI rate), tuition fees and research costs of £3450. Students will also undertake a three-month Professional Internship Placement (PIP) of their choice, funded by E5.

Application deadline: 14^th December 2025, Midnight GMT

Before applying: 

Explore a wide range of supervisor-led projects across diverse research theme, or propose your own project idea with the student-led route. We strongly recommend contacting your prospective supervisor to discuss the project before you submit an application.  This will enable you to learn more about their research, and confirm that it’s a good fit for your interests and experience. 

Submitting your application:

Once you have chosen the project that you are interested in and want to apply, click ‘apply for this project’ on your chosen project listing.  This will take you through to our application portal and you will be guided to provide your email address to create an account.  

In the application portal, you can: 

• Upload your documents
• Provide referee details
• Update and track the status of your application until the deadline. 

You can submit one application only (either supervisor led or student led). 

Interview dates: 

In person- Edinburgh, Kings Buildings campus: 23^rd & 24^th February 2026

Online (for applicants outside of the UK) – 25^th February 2026

All candidates will be notified of their written application outcome by 16^th February 2026. 

For more information, see our website, or join us at one of our online Information and Q & A sessions:

• Thursday 30th October 2025: 15.00-16.00 hrs. GMT - Register here
• Thursday 20th November 2025: 15.30 - 16.30 hrs. GMT - Register here (look for Earth, Environmental and Ecological Sciences)

Other opportunities

The University Scholarships and Students Funding Services provide a handy Scholarship Search tool and further information on funding opportunities for prospective postgraduate students.

• Search tool
• Funding and fees

Postgraduate loans

A Postgraduate Doctoral Loan can help with course fees and living costs while you study a postgraduate course. There are different options available for students from different parts of the UK.

• UK funding and other financial support