Applications for 2021 have now closed. Invitations to interview will be sent out after 14/01/2021.

Online interviews will take place during 25-27th January 2021.

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Cambridge MRC DTP funded (PhD) Studentships  

How to apply:

1) Take a look at the projects on offer and make contact with the lead supervisor for those projects that particularly interest you. Our prospective supervisors can often provide useful advice and information about the project. We also welcome your own project suggestion, as long as long it fits within one of the required research themes; Population and Systems Medicine, Infection and Immunity, Molecular and Cellular Science, Neuroscience and Mental Health; again you should get in touch with a prospective supervisor before applying.
These requests will be considered at the time of application, and should be made through the MRC DTP Administrator in the first instance, to check for suitability of project and to seek departmental authorisation. There is no need to provide a research proposal at application stage, this will be requested after initial offers have been made.

2) Before starting the application, please ensure you are eligible to apply for admission

Competition for admission to the University of Cambridge graduate programme is intense. We require our graduate entrants to have:

1. at least a 2.1 in an Honours degree from a UK University or equivalent standard from an Overseas University in a relevant subject.
2. two outstanding academic references, please see the Graduate Admissions pages below for more details (We advise that you request these well in advance of the application deadline)
3. The University requires a high level of proficiency in English. Full information on the requirements can viewed here.

For more details of the University’s academic requirements see the University’s Graduate Admissions pages.

3) You will need to apply through the University’s Applicant Portal.

Please search in the Course Directory for “MRC DTP” PhD studentships. The direct link to the required course is https://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/directory/cvcmpdmsc

As you complete your application, please note the following:

Please select two projects adding these in order of preference to the ‘Proposed research title(s)’ field, and ensuring you also list the project ID.
In the ‘Research Summary’ field provide a brief synopsis of why you have chosen your project/s. There is no need to repeat the project description, but feel free to use the space to describe your motivation for applying for the project(s) you have chosen.

Please provide the name of the Primary Supervisor for your first choice project in the ‘Research Supervisor’ field.

Funding section: When asked ‘Do you wish to apply for funding?’ please tick the box ‘Yes – I wish to apply for funding’. Further details on funding can be found here: https://www.postgraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/funding/how-apply-funding

Details/documents required for Funding Sections: It is not necessary to elaborate in the funding box, as MRC DTP applications will automatically be considered for joint funding with co-funders, such as Gates Cambridge and Cambridge Trust, after the initial studentship offers have been made.

Research Council Funding: By submitting your MRC DTP application, you will automatically be considered for MRC funding, so there is no need to enter any additional text here.

Separate Departmental Applications: Applicants are strongly advised that in addition to applying to a Research Council funding programme, that they also make a separate application for a place direct with the relevant Department  (also selecting ‘Yes’ to the funding question on the ‘How to apply for Funding’ page). By doing so you will automatically be considered for a place and funding via the Department should you not be awarded a Research Council funded place.

Please be aware that application attachments may vary by course (for example some will request a CV and/or research proposal); please provide all information requested by the course(s) for which you would like to be considered.

Funding: If you wish your departmental application to be considered for Cambridge Trust, or Gates Cambridge funding, then you will have to include a Gates statement, research proposal, and applicable references. Please refer to the relevant website for details of the requirements. https://www.cambridgetrust.org/scholarships/

https://www.gatescambridge.org/programme/the-scholarship/ 

Applications are automatically passed to other funders, if a candidate is not successful in obtaining Gates funding.

Application Fee and Fee Waiver Scheme:  There is a three for one offer on the application fee for courses within life sciences, so there will only be one application fee. Further details can be found here: https://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/application-process/how-do-i-apply/application-fee/fee-life-science-courses

Timeline:

A) Announcement: Projects for 2021 entry will be announced once applications go live on the 16th October 2020.

B) Deadlines:

The final deadline / closing date for applications is Thursday 3rd December 2020. All supporting documentation including references must be submitted by this date.

By completing your application by the above date, most of our DTP partners will also consider you for other PhD funding schemes (Cambridge Trust, etc).

C) Interviews:

It is anticipated that interviews will be held online the week of 25th January 2021.

D) Offers:

Offers will start to be communicated from early February 2021.

Finances:

UK students will be eligible for a full studentship, covering the costs of Home fees, and a stipend of £18,000 per annum for 3.5 years. Further information on how your fee status is determined can be found here: https://www.postgraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/finance/fees/what-my-fee-status

UKRI have confirmed that international students (EU and non-EU) will be eligible for all Research Council-funded postgraduate studentships from the start of the 2021/22 academic year. The text of the August 2020 public statement is here https://www.ukri.org/news/ukri-funded-postgraduate-programmes-to-open-to-international-students/

Cambridge MRC DTP will be able to offer a limited number of studentships to international students, and funding will cover both fees and a stipend to support living costs. These international studentship awards will be subject to eligibility, and also the availability of complementary funding (to provide the differential to the international fee rate); we expect there to be keen competition for these places.

Please note that EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefitting from Citizens’ Rights (under the EU Withdrawal Agreement, EEA EFTA Separation Agreement or Swiss Citizens’ Rights Agreement respectively), and Irish nationals living in the UK and Ireland (whose right to study and to access benefits and services will be preserved under the Common Travel Area arrangement), will continue to be treated as Home students for the purposes of Research Council funding.

Further details on entry requirements can be found here:https://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/application-process/entry-requirements

Please check the Frequently Asked Questions section, for answers to some common application queries.

For general enquiries not covered either by these FAQs, or by checking information on the Postgraduate Admissions website, please email mrcdtp@medschl.cam.ac.uk

Please note this page was updated on 04/12/2020, in conjunction with the current information from Cambridge University Admissions Office.