A doctoral training programme studentship takes care of your PhD funding so you can focus on your doctoral degree in the subject area that inspires you. We offer built-in training and development to help you prepare for a career in research or beyond academia.
Our programmes forge new paths of inquiry across a range of themes. Some of these include engineering, dementia research, AI for sustainability and quantum technology.
Funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and other external partners, they can also be referred to as:
The benefits of choosing a doctoral training programme usually includes:
At Southampton, we've received £62m in funding for more than 760 studentships since 2023. We're also one of 50 UK universities to be awarded an Arts and Humanities Research Council Doctoral Landscape Award.
In the 2025 Postgraduate Research Experience Survey we achieved 87% overall satisfaction among our postgraduate researchers.
We work with high-quality training centres and partners. Our current funded programmes include:
The DTC for Lewy body dementia accelerates discoveries and translating them into real-world healthcare improvements through research into the cause, cure, care and prevention of Lewy body dementia.
Funded by the Alzheimer’s Society.
Supporting the development of talented researchers in the arts and humanities disciplines. Learn more about the AHRC DLA.
Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).
The ESRC South Coast DTP helps social scientists meet contemporary economic and social challenges, across themes including sustainability and resilience, health and wellbeing, population and policy, and data skills and methods.
Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
The Hub shapes the future of energy transfer technologies for defence and related sectors.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
The EPSRC DLA supports students through cross-disciplinary projects and industry collaborations across engineering, physical or mathematical sciences, aligned with cutting-edge research themes such as generative AI and quantum technologies.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
Specialist training and research across a range of projects in the field of quantum technology, from fundamental principles to application. Learn more about the projects and opportunities with the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in QTE.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
The MFC CDT examines Harnessing the power of mathematics to address the urgent issues presented by climate change. The research focuses on weather and climate modelling, data analysis, and novel mathematical approaches to environmental challenges.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
The Sustainable Sounds Futures CDT drives innovation in acoustics through research into new sound sources, perception of sound, machine learning for sound, and positive uses of sound.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
Supporting a safe, secure and prosperous UK by, this Centre for Training in CISDnS trains future research and innovation leaders across the multidisciplinary themes of digital, physical and biological systems engineering.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Ministry of Defence (MOD).
Promoting interdisciplinary investigations into resilience in the context of societal challenges stemming from environmental change, social inequities, political and cultural disparities, health and wellbeing, and technological evolution. Learn more about the studentship opportunities with this Leverhulme Doctoral Scholarship Programme.
Funded by the Leverhulme Trust.
Research with the MRC DTP BIOMED focuses on cancer, neurological, inflammatory and infectious diseases, anti-microbial resistance and global health.
Funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC).
The IGNITE DLA is developing the next generation of researchers to lead our responses to environmental challenges to meet the needs of business, government and society.
Funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC).
Helping prepare the world to respond to flooding, through research on themes such as flood interactions; monitoring; modelling and data analysis; and natural, adaptive and cultural management. Learn more about the FLOOD-CDT to find out how to make a difference in climate resilience.
Funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC).
The SustAI is a multidisciplinary programme equipping researchers with state-of-the-art AI technical skills. Research themes include AI and sustainable operations and circular economy; AI and transport and logistics; AI and sustainable energy and buildings; AI and the natural environment; and sustainable AI.
Funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
Training partners we've worked with in the past include:
Developing future leaders in biosciences, biotechnology, sustainable agriculture and food, renewable resources and integrated health. Visit the SoCoBio site to learn more about the unique opportunities.
Funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
MINDS equips researchers with the skills, assets and networking opportunities to innovate at the interface between AI and electronics.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
Learn about the CDT for Doctoral Training in Prosthetics and Orthotics interdisciplinary science and engineering research for health care needs.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
This Defence and Security Mobility DTP is for existing and future workers in the defence and security sector.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).