DTP 2020-2021 University of Glasgow

The EPSRC DTP funding received by the University of Glasgow is used to support exceptional students across the EPSRC remit in the Colleges of Science and Engineering and Medical and Veterinary and Life Sciences. Academic staff are encouraged to apply to work with students in areas of research strength (for example, electronics and nanoscale engineering and medical technologies), and internally emerging strengths (for 2019-2023, we see this as data science and international development aligned with EPSRC priorities).

Our DTP students are undertaking world-changing research. Throughout their degree, their enthusiasm and ideas contribute to a vibrant research culture at the University (through, for example, contributing to key committees, supervising and mentoring more junior students) and also reach far beyond, to a wide range of stakeholders. Their research also contributes to a number of REF Impact Case Studies (see below).
Our extensive training programme is developed in collaboration with our industrial strategic advisory board and equips students to engage with external stakeholders, explore potential routes to impact and develop skills and networks to maximise the likelihood of research impact. All students undertake a training needs analysis to allow them to tailor their development plan and, in recent years, students have undertaken industry and science communication-themed placements and activities, in addition to accredited leadership and project management training.

DTP studentships (and the application process for staff) are advertised on the University webpages and also through professional bodies and academic email lists. (https://www.gla.ac.uk/scholarships/epsrcscholarship/#/) . We also use social media to promote studentship and doctoral prize positions, highlighting disciplines and key themes in order to ensure as wide a reach as possible.

Academic staff propose projects (and sometimes highlight exceptional students) to PGR conveners. Applications are then ranked by an internal panel of academics and priority is given to early career researchers and academic staff who have been awarded an EPSRC grant or could demonstrate strategic reasons for being given a studentship. Students are recruited using EPSRC guidelines and undergo a rigorous interview before appointment. The funding enables academics to grow their research groups and undertake research that strengthen their track records, enabling them to apply for additional research funding from EPSRC and other sources.

The DTP is specifically used to support early career researchers (for example, in Chemistry each new ECR is guaranteed two studentships over two years. This approach has given many ECRs an excellent platform to build their academic careers. Many have used this resource for successful EPSRC grant applications, to build industrial collaborations and publish high impact papers.

The award is also used to support Early-Career Researchers to transition to research independence through i) EPSRC Doctoral Prize Fellows (four have been recruited thus far) who have contributed to the research environment (through research impact, outputs, public engagement and supervision) and ii) vacation scholars. The commitment to ECRs means they are given an excellent platform to build their academic careers, establish new industrial collaborations and publish high quality papers.