South East Doctoral Training Arc (SEDarc) studentship

The SEDarc Doctoral Training Partnership, funded by the ESRC is a centre of excellence in social science postgraduate research training, and is a partnership between the Universities of Kent, Kingston, Reading, Royal Holloway, Surrey, and Sussex. At the University of Surrey, SEDarc offers ESRC studentships to high-quality research students wishing to study business and management; hospitality, leisure, and tourism; economics; linguistics; politics and international relations; psychology; sociology; or related multidisciplinary topics.

Within these subject areas, SEDarc funds projects in five thematic areas:

• Living Sustainably: Climate change, Net Zero, green & circular economies, biodiversity & conservation, ecosystem services, energy, good and resource security, environmental risks, resilience & justice, environmental understanding, education & behaviour change, group norms, managing population movements linked to environmental change, conservation across age and cultures.
• Healthy Thriving Communities: Health & social care; wellbeing; health inequalities, public policy, services & goods; poverty; equality, diversity & inclusion; place, identity & citizenship; voluntarism; transport & mobility; neighbourhood dynamics; housing & homelessness; families, childhood & youth; ageing; schools, education trajectories & effective interventions; intergroup interactions; migration.
• Inclusive Economics Growth: Mechanisms, regulatory frameworks & policies that promote inclusive growth; macro-economic (in)stability; taxation & fiscal policies; global, regional, place-based & demographic inequalities; education & skills; lifelong learning; labour market outcomes; fair work & pay gaps; sustainability & legitimacy of growth strategies; economics decision making.
• Secure, Effective, & Trusted Institutions: Shifting geopolitical orders & the role of institutions; future international trade frameworks; operation, effect & legitimacy of democratic institutions; effective legal frameworks & systems for ensuring justice; human rights; forced displacement; modern slavery; peacebuilding & conflict resolution; diversifying leadership.
• Transformative Technologies for Society: Societal shaping & outcomes of AI, robotics & VR/immersive media; socio-economics aspects of transformative technologies, including face recognition, computer vision & natural language processing; digital technologies in education, (mental) health, and justice; societal engagements with cybersecurity; fintech & livelihood strategies; technological change & future of work; digital divides and digital inclusion.

A professional placement of three months (if full-time) forms a key element of studentships funded by SEDarc. Placement partners can be from public, private, or academic sectors. There are 40 placement partners, however students are also encouraged to source their own placement so that it best serves their career goals. Applications will need to indicate potential placement partners.

Studentships will be awarded on the basis of the academic excellence of both the candidate and the research proposal. This is an extremely competitive process and only very high calibre candidates will be successful.

Open to home and international candidates. Please see guidance on residency requirements outlined in the UK Research and Innovation's (UKRI) Terms and Conditions of Research Council Training Grants.

English language requirements

Please see course entry requirements on the relevant PhD programme page.