ESRC Funded Studentships in Politics

The Department of Politics at the University of Liverpool invites applications to the Politics Pathway of the North West Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership (NWSSDTP). These ESRC-funded studentships are available for a three-and-a-half-year PhD (+3.5) or a four-and-a-half-year MA+PhD (1+3.5).

Studentships are available on a pro-rata basis for part-time students and are open to both UK and international applicants.

Any Politics topic is eligible, subject to supervisory capacity. The ESRC particularly encourages applications related to the following priority areas: Advanced Quantitative Methods, Data Skills, and Interdisciplinary research which crosses into other research council remits. Additionally, applicants who identify as Black British or Asian British, and those from a Global Majority background (British or International), are strongly encouraged to apply.

The NWSSDTP is a partnership between the Universities of Liverpool, Manchester, Lancaster, and Keele funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, to support postgraduate studentships and training in the social sciences. The NWSSDTP is one of the largest DTPs in the ESRC network. All PGRs benefit from a world-class research environment, exceptional supervision, extensive links with non-HEI partners and bespoke training provision through our flagship training scheme Methods North West.

The NWSSDTP’s fully funded ESRC studentships cover:

• payment of tuition fees for the duration of the studentship at the Home tuition fee rate (£5,006 in 2025/26);
• an annual maintenance stipend (full-time: £20,780, part-time: £10,390 in 2025/26);
• reimbursement of research, training and conference attendance expenses via the Research Training Support Grant;
• opportunities to apply for additional funding for fieldwork and overseas institutional visits, and to cover expenses related to the mandatory 3-month research placement;
• an additional Disabled Student Allowance (DSA) to support reasonable adjustments where appropriate.

Application Process:

This is a 2-step process. You must first be accepted into the University of Liverpool Politics PhD Programme. Only then will you be invited to apply for the ESRC funding through the NWSSDTP.

The deadline for the NWSSDTP funding application is 2nd February 2026 for the October 2026 programme start.

We strongly recommend you send your proposal and transcript to the Politics Director of Postgraduate Research first, to ensure potential supervisors are available. Contact: hlc-pgr@liverpool.ac.uk.

Details for the Programme application for Politics can be found here:

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/degrees/politics/

Details for the ESRC NWSSDTP funding can be found here:

https://nwssdtp.ac.uk/how-to-apply/