PhD Studentships in Transformative Humanities

We are delighted to announce the competition for up to eleven PhD Studentships in Transformative Humanities, supported by our AHRC Doctoral Landscape Award and the Faculties of Arts & Humanities and Social Sciences. This scheme will support outstanding candidates beginning a PhD programme in October 2027 on projects related to the themes of our Transformative Humanities framework.

The application deadline for this scheme is noon (UK time) on 15 January 2027.

Each award will offer a tuition fee waiver, a stipend for 3.5 years (full time) or 7 years (part time) at the level set by UKRI, additional funding opportunities, and access to training and placement resources.

Eligibility. Only PhD students accepted to Durham University with a supervisory team lead by Arts & Humanities or Social Sciences will be considered for this scheme. The competition is open to both home and overseas students: up to nine awards are open to home students and will cover tuition fees at home level; up to two awards are open to overseas students and will cover tuition fees at overseas level. In line with the cross-disciplinary nature of the scheme, supervision must include collaboration across at least two departments.

Application Process. It is recommended that applicants contact potential supervisor(s) to discuss their project before applying. Applications can be submitted via the application link which will be available on this page in October.

• Applications should be submitted to the PhD programme of the lead supervisor's department through our online application system.
• In the funding section, under 'Scholarship details,'  please indicate that you intend to be considered for this scheme by typing 'Transformative Humanities' ; if you intend to be considered for other schemes, please list any other schemes too.
• The application deadline for this scheme is noon (UK time) on 15 January 2027.

As part of the application, applicants are asked to submit:

• a research proposal (max. 1,000 words including footnotes, but excluding bibliography, if any) that clearly defines research questions and context, the intended approach and methods, the relevance of the project to transformative humanities, and the fit with Durham University.
• a CV (max. two pages)
• an equal opportunities monitoring form, which can be accessed via this link or by scanning this QR code:

Please note - you will receive a code after submission of the equal opportunities monitoring form. Please retain this code as proof of submission.

• the contact details of two referees. The online application site will provide information on the submission of reference letters.

Please find below the link to our upcoming  information and Q&A session which is being held on 10 November 2026 at 11am (UK Time) online via Teams.

Transformative Humanities PhD Studentship Information Session 2026

Successful applicants will be notified in March 2027.

For any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office at artsandhumanities.pgrteam@durham.ac.uk.

China Scholarships Council

Closing date: 15th January 2027

These important scholarships are available thanks to a partnership with the China Scholarships Council. The scholarships are open to applicants who are citizens and permanent residents of mainland China (excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) wishing to study for a PhD at Durham. Further information about scholarships from the China Scholarships Council is available here.

Global Grand Challenges Studentships

The application deadline for this scheme is 17:00 (UK time) on 8 February 2027.

Durham University is delighted to launch The Global Grand Challenges Studentships (Hunt-Raymond GGC Studentships) which are designed to support excellent early career researchers wishing to pursue doctoral research and training in areas aligned to a highlighted Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)

This call is for research aligned to ‘SDG4: Quality Education’ for projects that aim to address issues associated with ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all.

Eligibility

• 1st or 2:1 undergraduate degree, or relevant comparable experience;
• A strong academic record and research potential;
• A research proposal for a high-quality and manageable PhD project that can be completed within the funded period of 3.5 years, with potential impact in the areas of SDG4: Quality Education;
• Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary proposals and supervision are encouraged;
• International applicants must meet the University's entry requirements (e.g. IELTS requirements) with the potential for an 'unconditional academic offer' by the deadline.

You are not eligible to apply if you meet one of the following:

• are currently a registered doctoral student;
• are in receipt of/or expecting to be in receipt of any other funding, e.g., from a national government, research council or charity;
• are expecting to be in full-time work during the term of the studentship, if your studentship application is successful.

This is a student-led competition, and the student is encouraged to develop their proposal in collaboration with an identified academic supervisor. Note that this is not a supervisor-led competition (e.g. a supervisor should not submit the same proposal across multiple students and the student should represent a perfect match for the proposed research based on their prior training/experience).

As part of the application, applicants are asked to submit:

• A 1,000-word research proposal, outlining the proposed research question, methodology, potential impact and potential ethical considerations;
• Current CV (max 2 pages);
• Two references; one may be a Durham reference and the other reference must be provided by a referee who is independent of Durham University;
• Transcripts of previous qualifications

Further information can be found here - Global Grand Challenges Studentships - Durham University