University of Glasgow's Lord Kelvin Adam Smith PhD International Scholarships, UK

Details of the scholarship

This year we are celebrating the 10th anniversary of the University of Glasgow's flagship Lord Kelvin Adam Smith (LKAS) PhD Scholarships. To date 100 fully funded interdisciplinary PhD projects have been created.

The LKAS PhD Scholarships offer the opportunity for outstanding research students to participate in some of the most exciting areas of interdisciplinary research carried out at the University.

This year priority will be given to projects which align with the 'Challenge Areas' of the Global Challenges Research Fund or strategic goals of the University .

Up to 4 years stipend at UK Research Council recommended rates - estimated to be £14,510 for 2017/18.
Open to home, EU and international students.
Annual research support budget of £3000.
Full fee waiver.

Introduction

The University of Glasgow “has truly exceptional expertise within each of its Colleges. Bringing our multidisciplinary talent together creates teams capable of tackling the most pressing challenges facing local and global society”. - Inspiring People – Changing The World 2015-2020 Since its inception, the scheme has created 100 research collaborations between staff with different research expertise crossing traditional discipline boundaries and creating new partnerships between Schools/Research Institutes and/or Colleges. Interdisciplinary research continues to be an important government and funder priority. It also features heavily in Lord Stern’s recent review of the REF.

One way that the University can demonstrate its support for interdisciplinary activities is through the LKAS scheme. The scheme will now focus on consolidating areas of cross disciplinary activity that can help to grow the next generation of researchers in important areas in which we also hope to attract investment. Project proposals should align with the strategic goals of the University to support excellence in research or research impact, or align with the aims of the Global Challenges Research Fund. Project proposals are sought that are motivated by addressing important, complex questions as opposed to rewarding interdisciplinarity for its own sake.

The scheme enables joint supervisors to recruit outstanding postgraduate students and gives the student an opportunity to be instrumental in the establishment of new research collaborations. Scholarship Value and Duration Each project will be funded up to 4 years and will cover a stipend at the Research Council recommended rates (estimated to be £14,254 in 2016/17). Each scholarship includes an annual consumables allowance of £3000 to contribute towards the running of the project, student travel and conference attendance. The Host College shall waive the student’s tuition fee in full whether this is at the Home/EU or International rate.

LKAS Scholarship Terms and Conditions

Status The scholarship is awarded to the candidate by the University. The University reserves the right to vary these terms and conditions as it deems appropriate. The University will not change the terms and conditions of the scholarship without providing due notice to applicants, current students, staff and other stakeholders, as appropriate. Should a student fail to meet the terms and conditions of the scholarship, the scholarship award may be withdrawn.

Student Eligibility

The scholarship award is offered to a candidate subject to the candidate meeting all the conditions required by the University for admission to doctoral study. Project leads should consider whether their selected candidate meets the entry requirements for their subject area. It may be necessary for the student to be hosted in the subject area of another member of the supervisory team. This may result in the scholarship being administered by another College. The scholarship is intended to support candidates of the highest calibre and as such may be offered to residents of any country provided that the candidate can obtain leave to remain in the UK for the purposes of full-time study. The scholarship is to be awarded for PhD study only, and cannot be used to support a Masters year followed by PhD study. A candidate should undertake any required research training during the first year of their PhD.

The scholarship is intended to support candidates who have not previously undertaken study at a doctoral level and as such cannot be awarded to a candidate already in possession of a Doctoral degree or equivalent. The scholarship is intended to support full-time study, based at the University of Glasgow campuses, notwithstanding any periods of study away from the campus as authorised by the relevant Graduate School. If a student does not accept the scholarship offer it will be offered to the next project/candidate on the shortlist subject to approval by the PGR Service. If a candidate withdraws within the first 3 months of the scholarship it will be at the discretion of the PGR Service whether the scholarship will be offered to another candidate.

Use of Funds

The scholarship must be used to support research study associated with the project for which the scholarship was awarded. It is principally to be used to cover research expenses occurred by the student and should not be used by the supervisory team or others to cover their own travel/accommodation or unrelated costs. For lab based projects the basis of allocation of shared lab expenses should be equitable and transparent. Periodic audits will be made on each student’s expenditure. The scholarship cannot be held concurrently with another award covering the same basic cost element (e.g. tuition fees, bench fees, consumables). The student may seek stipend/subsistence enhancements 9 from other funding sources and may apply for scholarships or bursaries for specific additional activity (e.g. travel). The student will supply the University with details of an account via financial registration in MyCampus, to which the scholarship funding should be paid. It is the student’s responsibility to notify the University of any changes to their bank details.

Selection Criteria and Process

Projects will be assessed on:

The alignment of the research question with University priorities or the Global Challenges Research Fund stated ‘Challenge Areas’.
Clear demonstration of how an interdisciplinary approach will contribute to the project.
The potential of the project to deliver new or support existing research impact.

The purpose of the LKAS scheme is to encourage interdisciplinary research within the University. Other schemes such as CASE/collaborative studentships are available to support collaborative projects with external partners. LKAS applications may include external partners where appropriate, however applicants should demonstrate that such expertise does not already exist within the University.

Bids may be for more than 1 scholarship for the same project to maximise impact, however the case for multiple scholarships must be exceptionally strong. 5 If a scholarship candidate has been involved in the development of the project proposal a brief statement to this effect should be included in the proposal. Where a candidate has been involved, and the proposal is successful in receiving an award, the scholarship should be awarded to that student, provided they meet the University’s required entrance standards and can meet the excellence criteria outlined in Appendix 1.

Bids each year are limited to 1 project per Lead Supervisor. Lead supervisors of current LKAS projects are ineligible to apply. Applicants must complete a LKAS Project Proposal Form and submit this in PDF format to the Lead Supervisor’s College Graduate School. The College of the Lead Supervisor will become the Host College for the scholarship if the application is successful.

Where a student has been recruited and the project is selected by the Graduate School to be forwarded to the Final Selection Committee, the Lead supervisor should submit the following documentation in a combined PDF to the PGR Service using the file ‘Candidate - Candidate Firstname Surname, Abbreviated Title, College - Lead Supervisor First Name Surname.pdf’’:

Student’s statement expressing their particular attributes and/or achievements and suitability to undertake the proposed project
Curriculum vitae
Degree transcripts in English (Undergraduate and Masters, if relevant)
Lead supervisor’s Statement of Support for the candidate
2 references in support of the student’s application
Evidence of English language proficiency if relevant

It should be made clear to supervisors and potential students that there is no guarantee of receiving funding and that they should also pursue other funding streams. Successful and unsuccessful applicants will be notified of the outcome of the Selection Committee by the PGR Service shortly after the selection meeting on 31 January 2017 (TBC).

For more information click "Further official information" below.

University of Glasgow's Lord Kelvin Adam Smith PhD International Scholarships, UK

Deadline:

November 14, 2017

Disciplines:

Any