Funding for postgraduate research
Our Department is committed to providing a range of funding opportunities to our postgraduate research students.
There are several funding streams that you can take advantage of when you come to study a PhD with us, including bursaries, scholarships and the University's flagship funding scheme for outstanding doctoral candidates.
Explore your options below.
Doctoral Loans
The UK government has confirmed that doctoral loans will be available for those studying PhDs (and equivalent doctoral programmes) from 2024/25.
The loan will be for a maximum of £29,930 over the duration of the course.
UK nationals, who are ordinarily resident in England, aged 59 or under, who are not already receiving funding via a UK Research Council, will be eligible. The government is currently considering making EU students eligible.
The loans will be available for all types of doctoral study (eg PhD, as well as all professional doctorates such as DBA, EdD), at all UK universities.
A summary of the main features of the loan is available on FindaPhD.com.
Faculty PhD Studentships
The Faculty of Science and Engineering has historically made up to a further ten PhD studentships (also known as Dean's Awards) in previous years, although this is not normally announced until around February time.
These awards are open to all nationalities and research areas within the Faculty. The awards have been allocated to outstanding applicants seeking PhD training opportunities, based on the academic track record of applicants and evidence of research potential.
Global Doctoral Research Network (GOLDEN) Partnerships
The University of Manchester has collaborations with a number of international partners. As an extension of this joint research, we are developing dual-award PhD programmes to allow postgraduate research students access to world-class facilities, expertise and field environments. Visit the University website for more information about the Dual-awards via the Global Doctoral Research Network.
Postgraduate loans (PGL) for taught and research master’s students
Introduced by the Department of Education, these postgraduate loans support up to £10,000 per student for the purpose of master's study. A PGL for master's study will be a contribution towards the cost of studies ie it will be at the student's discretion to use the loan towards tuition fees, maintenance cost or other costs. It is non-means tested and is paid directly to the student.
Further information can be found on the Student Finance England website.
President's Doctoral Scholar Award
The President’s Doctoral Scholar (PDS) award is the University’s flagship funding initiative, and is strongly supported by the University's President and Vice Chancellor, Professor Duncan Ivison.
The scheme offers elite postgraduate research studentships each year and is open to students of all nationalities and across all research areas.
Successful PDS award candidates can receive funding for their doctoral studies, as well as an additional £1,000 enhancement to their stipend. PDS award-holders are students of the highest calibre, who have the commitment and desire to work on challenging research projects in world-leading research environments.