PhD scholarships

There are several scholarship and funding options available to PhD candidates interested in studying at the School of English, both from the University of Sheffield and from external funding bodies.

The process of applying for funding begins with finding a prospective supervisor to inquire about their interest in supervising your project. Academic staff list their supervision interests in the Research Group section of their webpage on the School of English website.

Before you can apply for funding you must apply to study for a PhD at the University of Sheffield, which you can do here.

Please direct general questions about applying to study for a PhD in the School of English to englishpgr@sheffield.ac.uk

PhD scholarships and funding

AHRC White Rose College of the Arts & Humanities Scholarships

Deadline: Please see WROCAH website, usually in mid-late January each year.

The White Rose College of the Arts & Humanities (WRoCAH) is a Doctoral Training Partnership of the Universities of Leeds, Sheffield and York. It is responsible for the distribution of AHRC-funded doctoral studentships for these universities and for the coordination of a doctoral training programme. WRoCAH has around 45 AHRC studentships that will be awarded through open competitions.

Guidance and support are available for students intending to apply for WRoCAH funding to study with us: details here.

Who can apply: You must be a new PhD student and have applied to the PhD programme for to commence study the following October by the time you apply for funding, or be within the first year (or equivalent if part-time) of your PhD. Please note that you can only apply for a studentship at one of the WRoCAH universities.

Award Details: More information on the award details and eligibility criteria are available through the WRoCAH website. 

Guidance notes: WRoCAH applicant guidance notes are available on the WROCAH website. You should read the guidance notes carefully before beginning your application, paying particular attention to the Grade Descriptors as these are the criteria by which all applications are assessed.

Applying: You are advised to follow the process detailed here so as to access School of English support with your application. It is important to note that you must first have applied to a PhD programme before you apply to WRoCAH for funding. After you have applied for a PhD place, you can then apply for funding following the process set out on the WRoCAH website. You will be able to save and return to your application and can make amendments up until the deadline. You must indicate when the final version of your application has been submitted and this must be done before the deadline for your application to be considered. 

University Scholarships

Information about University of Sheffield scholarships is provided here.

Other Funding Bodies

Many charities, foundations and trusts provide funding for postgraduate study, from small grants to full scholarships. Some are in specific subject areas while others have more general eligibility criteria. Please see our external funding page for a list of funding bodies and search sites which may help you to find other scholarships.

PhD Project Funding

PhD projects are available throughout the year, many of which are funded. Currently available projects are advertised in the PhD projects directory.

Postgraduate Doctoral Loan Scheme

Government loans have been available for postgraduate students studying doctoral level courses. Loans are non-means tested i.e. your incoming will not effect the amount that you receive and are available to students studying either part-time or full-time. Funding PhD study through a student loan is a big commitment and we would strongly recommend talking about this option with your proposed supervisor.

International Students

Rewards are available for all University of Sheffield graduates. Students must be self-funding and classified as overseas for fee purposes. Find out more here.