All information below is provided to help you with the most common queries.You can find the full guidance booklet 2018/19 in the useful links section on this page.
If you have any question that isn't below, please ask either the DTC Programme Manager, Alison Tebbutt or Sam Collins.
The CDT is headed by Professor Dame Wendy Hall, and managed by Director Dr Mark Weal and Deputy Director Professor Susan Halford.
The Centre’s administration is co-ordinated by Alison Tebbutt and Sam Collins.
A wide range of academic staff from across the University are involved in teaching and supervising CDT students.
https://www.southampton.ac.uk/wsi/education/teaching-supervising-staff.page
When you start your PhD following the 'MSc year', your PhD progression will depend on the faculty that your primary supervisor belongs to. This will become your home faculty.
Most of the information you will need can be found in your Faculty's handbook, most other things can be addressed by your faculty's PGR Office.
Links to Faculty Handbooks can be found here.
Links to your Faculty Student Offices can be found here.
Research Training Support Grant (RTSG)
If you are being funded by a CDT studentship, from Year 2 you will have access to a CDT Research
Training and Support Grant to fund expenses directly related to PhD activities, such as attendance
at conferences and training, books and equipment. The ECS Finance team will send you a designated
RTSG Finance subproject code. The total amount is £3,650 over three years. The RTSG can be used up
to the point you submit your thesis or until the
DTC/CDT grant ends.
If you are in receipt of funding from other sources, you may receive RTSG funds at rates set by
your home Faculty or your funding organisation.
You must seek approval from your supervisor for all RTSG expenditure to ensure that the RTSG is the
correct source of funding for the expenditure and is being utilised appropriately. It is important
to get agreement in advance. For example, if you are planning to submit a conference paper, make
sure your supervisors are happy for you to use your RTSG funds to attend before you submit the
paper.
Disability Support Allowance
Please contact the University’s Enabling Services team for guidance about how to claim DSA if you
are eligible for additional funding to support your needs.
Acknowledgement of funding
All CDT students are required to acknowledge the funding and support for their work from CDT and
UKRI Digital Economy theme, for example in publications, presentations and posters.
• Written acknowledgement
When referring to research funded under the Digital Economy Theme it is unnecessary to mention or
recognise any individual council. As a written acknowledgement, use one of the following
statements:
o Funded by the Digital Economy programme, as part of UK Research and Innovation.
o This work was funded by the Digital Economy programme, led by the Engineering and Physical
Sciences Research Council on behalf of UK Research and Innovation.
Should you need to refer to specific grant details these are:
- if you started your studies between 2009 and 2013: DTC Grant number EP/G036926/1
University Finance processes
The University can make purchases on your behalf, or you can make a payment yourself and reclaim the expenditure. All expenses must be claimed back with full receipts in accordance with the University policy on Expenses and Benefits Procedures Manual.
See the Finance intranet (log-in required) for guidance about:
Purchasing frequently claimed items
Expenses for staff (includes PGR students)
Expenses for students
Getting off to a good start
This is your PhD and you should be proactive in managing it's progress. It may therefore help to devise a Supervision Plan in one of your first or second supervisions with your new supervisors.
Creating this plan is not obligatory, and you should discuss with your supervisor the best way of managing supervisions, but the following may be helpful in getting off on the right foot and agreeing a set of mutual expectations.
◦Example Supervision Plan
◦Blank Supervision Plan
PGR Tracker will ask you to complete 'Assessment of academic needs'. This should also be completed in one of your early supervisions.
Keeping track of supervisions
You should discuss with your supervisor / check your Faculty Handbook for procedures regarding keeping records of your supervisions and when and what to upload to PGR Tracker in the first instance. If there are no formal requirements, you can use or adapt the template below, which you should complete for every supervision:
◦Example Supervision Meeting Record
◦Blank Supervision Meeting Record
PGR Tracker
Filling in PGR Tracker is obligatory. PGR Tracker will automatically email you asking for updates / reminding you of upcoming deadlines. Sometimes it can be a bit 'over zelaous' requesting your upgrade document shorly after you have begun your first year for example. Check with your PGR Office / Supervisor about timings or if you think PGR Tracker is asking you for inappropriate things - e.g. asking you to upload your final thesis in your first year.
Resolving problems
If your problem relates to your PhD work, you should contact one of your supervisors in the first instance - good communication with your supervisor is usually the most effective way of resolving issues. If you cannot get hold of them, or you have not been able to resolve the issue with your supervisor, you should contact one of the following:
· Your Graduate School team
· A CDT member of staff
· Your academic department’s PGR Director (See your Faculty handbook)
· Your Faculty’s Director of Graduate Studies (See your Faculty handbook)
· Students’ Union Advice Centre
If your problem is of a health and wellbeing nature you should communicate with your supervisor if at all possible, otherwise there are a range of services that the University can offer via the Support and Wellbeing website.
The Student Service Centre (SSC) is a central point for initial support for a wide range of services including accommodation, financial support, health and wellbeing, visa and immigration and ID cards.
iSolutions provide help and support to students, staff and researchers regarding everything IT, from a Windows desktop to high performance computing
Enabling Services provides a wide variety of support for students who have disabilities, mental health conditions and/or specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia.
The Students’ Union is here to represent your voice at every level and is run completely by students.
The Advice Centre provides free, independent and confidential support to all students.
CDT Directors and Administration
| Professor Dame Wendy Hall | Principal Investigator | |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Mark Weal | Director | M.J.Weal@soton.ac.uk |
| Professor Susan Halford | Deputy Director | S.J.Halford@soton.ac.uk |
| Alison Tebbutt | Programme Manager | websciencecdt@soton.ac.uk /A.M.Tebbutt@soton.ac.uk |
| Samantha Collins | WSI / CDT Administrator | websciencecdt@soton.ac.uk / S.A.Collins@soton.ac.uk |
The CDT team are based in the Web Science Institute in Building 32, level 3, Rooms 3001 / 3057.
Faculty Student Office
For the academic administration of MSc Web Science / iPhD Year 1
| ECS Student Office | ecs-studentoffice@soton.ac.uk |
+44(0)23 8059 2909 Internal: Ext 22909 |
Building 59, Room 1201 |
|---|
Other Faculty Graduate Schools
The academic administration for iPhD Web Science Years 2 – 4 is managed by the students’ home Faculty Graduate School. Contact the relevant Student Office for postgraduate research:
https://www.southampton.ac.uk/studentservices/academic-life/school-offices.page?
CDT Finance and funding
The administration of CDT studentships and funding, including the RTSG, for all CDT-funded students, regardless of home Faculty, is managed by the ECS Finance team.
| ECS Finance Team | Jennie Hepburn | J.R.Hepburn@soton.ac.uk | Building 60, Room 1 |
|---|