Falmouth Doctoral Studentships

Whether responding to a doctoral project brief or submitting an idea of your own, you could be eligible to compete for a limited number of fully-funded Falmouth Doctoral Studentships as part of your research degree application.

Since 2017 Falmouth University has provided doctoral studentships, and subject to available funding we will be offering them in 2025.

These studentships represent an exciting opportunity to become part of a community of multi-disciplinary researchers committed to shaping solutions for societal change through research, innovation, technology, creativity and the arts.​

Studentships comprise tuition fees at Home rates and a stipend of approximately £19,237 per year (set according to UKRI indicative level), tenable for a period of three academic years. Please visit the UKRI website for the most up-to-date figures.​

EU and international students are both welcome to apply. We also welcome applications for part-time studentships, and these comprise tuition fees and a pro-rata stipend for a six-year period.

Expressions of Interest (EoI) by 29 November 2024 (by 17:00 GMT) (it is not compulsory to submit an EOI, but it's a mechanism for obtaining feedback on your proposal ahead of submitting a full application).

Full Research Degree applications by 31 January 2025 (by 17:00 GMT) (online application form available on our How to apply for a Research Degree page).

Application deadlines for September 2026 entry: will be confirmed in Autumn 2025.

Expectations of Falmouth Doctoral Studentship candidates

Falmouth Doctoral Studentships form an essential component for the delivery of the University's 2030 strategy. As such, the alignment of funded doctoral projects to the strategy as a whole and to the priorities of Research & Knowledge Exchange department is essential. In addition to the successful completion of the funded doctoral programme, students funded through the Falmouth Doctoral Studentship will also be expected to make an active contribution to the University's Research & Knowledge Exchange community.

Falmouth Doctoral Studentship students would normally be expected to live within commuting distance of the University, to maintain a presence on the University's campuses and to make every effort to take a full and active role in their membership of the University's Research & Knowledge Exchange community. This would normally include but not be limited to:

• Full participation in the Research Student Development Programme events and symposia as outlined in the UAL and Falmouth Research Degrees Handbooks
• An active role in student-led events
• Full participation in wider Falmouth University Research & Knowledge Exchange events, including workshops and workgroups, seminars, and training and development activities
• A willingness to represent the University in internally hosted and external events

Studentships will be awarded on the basis of overall project idea, proposal and application quality, as well as strength of alignment with our Research & Knowledge Exchange department.
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The following criteria will be taken into account when awarding studentships and places on our postgraduate research programme:​

• The quality, innovation and viability of your project proposal​.
• The alignment of your project proposal with Falmouth University's research strategy.
• The potential for your proposed research to have tangible positive impacts​.
• The contribution you are able to make to the Falmouth research community and your host department, in terms of both research and teaching​.
• The strength of your professional and academic profile, as demonstrated through previous study and/or professional experience​.

We recommend you consider and address each of these points in your expression of interest and formal application when applying for a research degree at Falmouth. Full details of applicant criteria and project requirements can be found on our How to Apply page.

The application process for funded studentships is built in to the formal research degree application.

You can apply to the opportunities listed on the doctoral projects page, each of which is aligned to our Research & Knowledge Exchange strategy, or you can propose your own research project idea. If applying with an original research idea, it too must align with one or more of our research programmes to be eligible for studentship consideration.​
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There are three steps to the application process: pre-application prep, Expression of Interest submission and formal application submission, which includes the opportunity to apply for a Falmouth doctoral studentship.