PhD, postgraduate and early career
George Osborne has predicted that 22 new Centres for Doctoral Training will “inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers”.
National group would be the UK’s first to target help for minority ethnic doctoral students
Academics discuss how supervisors shaped their teaching
Early career researchers to be represented on university committees
Scheme to be run jointly with Higher Education Funding Council for England
Poor theses often betray inexpert supervision, say external examiners David Alexander and Ian Davis
Academics who complete their PhDs during a recession are significantly more productive in the long-term than those who do so during a boom, research suggests.
Employers unaware of how doctorates have broadened to prepare postgraduates for work
Long hours, job insecurity and need for mentoring noted in global survey of young scientists
Research councils may have to ‘rethink’ requirements because of cuts to lower-level courses
Taught postgraduate courses are facing a “perfect storm” caused by drops in student numbers and a fall in institution income
£10 million scheme set up to counteract disincentivisation of undergraduate debt for potential researchers
Early career life scientists have teaching and administrative burden lifted
Skills, reputation and peer networks can be built online even when stuck in the lab
Research scientists would prefer to align work with own values, study reveals
Brian Martin suggests how junior researchers can fight against the well-kept secret of academic exploitation
Research council hopes to claw back cash to fund centres that missed out during initial bidding process
Idea of borrowing to study is ‘totally alien’ to some students, so take-up may be low
Ideology and myopia threatens the future of some of the UK’s best humanities departments, warns Louis Goddard
Industry and funders still back blue-skies thinking, doctoral conference hears
More than £25 million has been awarded by England’s funding council to 20 pilot projects designed to support postgraduate students.
A further 10 UK universities have gained an award that recognises commitment to developing the careers of researchers.
Council pushes government to provide additional funding in light of abundance of high quality bids to run centres for doctoral training
Research council reveals details of its scheme for PhD provision
The 1994 Group has urged the government to introduce a postgraduate loan system to combat a 12 per cent drop in student numbers over three years.
Seventy-five institutions have been awarded funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s new PhD funding scheme.
About three quarters of taught postgraduate students are happy with the teaching and learning on their course, a new national survey says.
Development programmes can make for speedier submission of theses, research suggests
The rise of the taught master’s course has come with a troubling shift in focus towards ‘employability’
Fewer than half of those new to research can expect long-term academic careers
Early career academics seeking to do interdisciplinary work need more information and mentors, says Southampton’s Smurf group
Four out of five postgraduate research students are happy with their university experience, a new study has suggested.
Glyndŵr University is to offer half-price postgraduate degree courses to British students in what it called an attempt to “stop knowledge and skills leaving home soil”.
But scholars question motives behind restriction of project studentships
StudentFunder aims to become ‘one-stop shop’ for those in need
#ECRchat looks to offer global advice
Data on what each UK university will charge next year show how the cost of study can vary wildly
Two thirds of UK undergraduates do not believe a postgraduate degree is worth the cost, a survey of more than 1,100 students has found
The proportion of PhD students in England expected to obtain degrees has risen slightly, but at some institutions around a fifth may never qualify.
But NUS says commercial loans are not the answer to ‘crisis’
There are some important dos and don’ts to bear in mind when choosing someone to oversee your doctoral thesis, advises Tara Brabazon
Clear, engaging and jargon-free: years of research explained in 180 seconds
The government has announced a fund worth up to £125 million to support disadvantaged students into further study, as a new report reveals postgraduate numbers fell last year.
Groups of universities could raise funding for postgraduate student loans by issuing bonds, a report by the thinktank CentreForum has suggested.
Postgraduates recount ill-treatment by academics as well as bosses
More than 350 people, including several academics, have signed a petition protesting against the University of Leeds’ treatment of an international postgraduate student
Survey finds median wages and employment rates are holding steady
Blog posts reveal a lack of ‘socio-academic’ confidence among doctoral students paying their own way
Fewer than ten graduates each from Black Caribbean and Bangladeshi minority groups make the transition to a research degree each academic year, a study has found.
The viva, the final hurdle to gaining a PhD, is labour-intensive, not conducted to any national standard and is dreaded by students who fear an examiner will capriciously halt their career. Is it still fit for purpose? asks Elizabeth Gibney
Many doctoral candidates do not make clear their work’s scholarly contribution
Doctoral training centre model poses international challenge for institutions
Arts and humanities PhD graduates from the US are more employable than their UK counterparts, a conference on doctoral education has heard.
V-c aims for more international and postgraduate action
The University of Oxford is set to review its policy on postgraduate admissions after a college reached a settlement with an applicant who claimed it discriminated against poorer students.
A fellowship award for postgraduate students at 10 universities will encourage them to develop thinking that will promote a more “circular economy” – a school of thought that aims to increase the amount of financial and physical waste that is converted into resources.
Government loans may not be the answer, Hefce director argues. Elizabeth Gibney reports
