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School of Politics and International Relations

Research Studentships

Please note: this page is for information only and studentships have different deadlines.

The School of Politics and International Relations invites applications for Doctoral Research Studentships open to UK and international students. Studentships will be awarded in March 2025 to the most outstanding candidates in the Humanities and Social Sciences applying for a full-time or part-time PhD programme starting in Autumn 2025. Applications will also be considered from students who are currently in the first year of a full-time PhD programme, or the first two years of a part-time programme.

In order to be considered for an award, applicants should have (or expect to have by the end of the 2024/25 academic year) a master’s degree or equivalent qualification in an appropriate field. Awards are tenable for up to three years, and cover tuition fees and a maintenance stipend at the UKRI London rate (rate for 2025/26 to be confirmed).

Queen Mary Humanities and Social Sciences Studentship

We encourage applications from UK candidates in BAME (Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic) groups who have been previously under-represented in this process.

To be eligible to apply for these studentships you must be UK permanent residents from a BAME background, and eligible to pay home student fees. You will automatically also be considered for our other studentships. Our goal is to recruit outstanding and diverse candidates across the full range of studentships.

How to apply

You should apply for your place at QMUL via the online portal by Wednesday 22 January 2025 (17:00 UK time). In all cases, earlier application is strongly advised.

On the online application form, you should indicate that you would like your application to be considered for the Principal's Studentship Competition. (You must be accepted onto your chosen PhD programme by 24 February 2025).

If you have already applied to QMUL to begin a PhD programme in Autumn 2025, you may revise the research proposal and statement of purpose that you previously submitted, to take account of our Guidance to Applicants. 

Before applying, please read our Guidance to Applicants [PDF 134KB], which will help you to complete your applications. The guidance is relevant to all applicants, regardless of subject area and type of Studentship.

If you wish to apply for the BAME studentships, you should specify this in the statement of purpose that will form part of your application.

SHF/HSS candidates also need to indicate that they wish to be considered for the award, and to state how they meet the eligibility criteria or are subject to exceptional circumstances. These declarations are excluded from the character limit for their statement of purpose.

If you have already applied to QMUL to begin a PhD programme in autumn 2025, you may revise the research proposal and statement of purpose that you previously submitted, to take account of our Guidance to Applicants. However, you are not required to do so. If you wish to submit revised documents, you should email them to the Director of Graduate Studies in the appropriate School, giving the ID number from your application.

If you have already begun a PhD programme at QMUL, you should email the Director of Graduate Studies in the appropriate School, giving your student ID number and supplying a research proposal and statement of purpose (length and contents as indicated in our Guidance to Applicants).

How your application will be assessed

Your application will be considered and ranked by a School selection panel. Selected applications will then be considered and ranked by the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.  If a candidate has already begun their PhD, selection panels will be looking for a research proposal that is concomitantly stronger than the proposal of someone yet to begin their thesis.

The School panel will evaluate applications on the basis of the following criteria and weightings:

  • Quality of proposal (50%) – i.e. the significance and originality of the proposed research; its underpinning ideas, aims, and research questions; the research design, methodology, and/or sources; the suitability of the proposal for doctoral research; opportunities for dissemination and potential impact; and any ethical considerations that the proposal may raise
  • Preparedness of applicant (25%) – i.e. previous academic achievements in relevant subject areas; any relevant professional/practitioner experience (particularly for applicants with non-standard academic trajectories); and relevant knowledge, skills, and/or training for the proposed research
  • Feasibility of project (25%) – i.e. the project’s likely completion within the timeframe; the identification of training needs; justification of fieldwork and study visits; and fit with the expertise and interests of the two named supervisors

The Faculty panel will then evaluate applications on the basis of the following criteria and weightings:

  • Quality of proposal (40%) – defined as above
  • Preparedness of applicant (20%) – defined as above
  • Feasibility of project (20%) – defined as above
  • School ranking (20%) or the additional points required in the Candidate Statement of Purpose for the SHF/QMUL HSS applicants (20%) – as explained in the specific guidance

At both School and Faculty levels, if two or more candidates are equally ranked, preference will be given to the candidate scoring more highly on the following criteria: quality of proposal; if still equal, preparedness of applicant; if still equal, feasibility of project.

Offers will be made to successful candidates in late March 2025, to be accepted or declined within one week.

The studentships cover all tuition fees, and provide a grant for living expenses at UK Research Council rates for London (to be confirmed for the academic year 2025-26).

Queen Mary University of London Collaborative Studentship with Citizens UK on Housing Access and Digital Transitions 

The following Collaborative Studentship will commence in September 2025: 

Project Title: Housing Access and Digital Transitions: A Participatory Study with first-time home seekers in Tower Hamlets 

Collaborative Partner: Citizens UK  

Queen Mary Department: School of Politics and International Relations 

Lead Supervisor: Dr Rachel Humphris, r.humphris@qmul.ac.uk (co-supervised by Dr Elizabeth Storer, School of Geography) 

Project description: 

This studentship aims to investigate the relationship between digital technologies and housing access in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is anticipated to involve a participatory methodology with migrants who have recently settled in Tower Hamlets. Through this collaborative and co-designed approach, the project will explore the lived experience of emergent digital infrastructures. The study's purpose is to explore how digital technologies shape housing access, particularly for migrants seeking housing for the first time, and to understand the information sources and decision-making processes involved. 

The project has three main objectives: 

  • Develop a new methodology combining community organizing with digital welfare studies.  
  • Provide empirical data on the role of digital technologies in housing access for migrants seeking housing. 
  • Contribute insights on digital technologies to inform local authority data practices. 

The research is timely, as European welfare states are increasingly adopting digital solutions due to rising demand, budget cuts, and post-pandemic recovery. While digitalization promises efficiency, it also risks exacerbating biases, transparency, and privacy issues. The study will focus on how these effects are visible in migrants' housing experiences. It will explore the challenges migrants face in accessing safe housing through digital platforms and how technology mediates their interactions with the welfare state. 

The study contributes to three scholarly areas. First, it extends migration studies by addressing the digital consequences of the "welfare-migration nexus," where migration regimes connect various local, national, and international levels to control borders, mobility, and welfare rights. Second, in housing studies, it unsettles the assumption that all those who access housing are citizens. Lastly, for digital welfare scholarship it adds the lived experiences of marginalized groups interacting with digital technologies, highlighting both empowering and constraining aspects. 

The methodology for the study is based on community organizing principles used by Citizens UK (CUK), translated into academic research practices. CUK has deep community ties, decades of expertise in community organising and a track record of advocacy and policy impact. The PhD student will spend nine months working with CUK, conducting interviews, ethnographic research, and participatory methodologies to follow the housing experiences of migrants in Tower Hamlets including participant observations at digital outreach events and training sessions. 

Length of Studentship: 

The studentship will commence in September 2025, for a duration of 3.5 years.  

The LISS ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership Collaborative Studentships cover full fees and an annual stipend. The stipend per year for 2024/25 entry was £21,237.  

Candidate Requirements: 

Candidates must already have completed a Masters degree in a related subject (e.g., Anthropology, Human Geography, Sociology, Public Policy, Political Science). It is also possible for the duration of the studentship to be extended so that a candidate can complete an MRes. It is desirable that candidates have some experience in community organising, working in community organisations or knowledge of one of Tower Hamlet’s community languages.  

How to apply: 

To apply for this Collaborative Studentship, you should make an application via MRes/PhD Political Science (https://www.qmul.ac.uk/postgraduate/research/subjects/politics.html). You should clearly cite the Collaborative Studentship project title and outline your suitability for the Studentship within your application.  

Full details of admissions requirements are set out here.

Please note that you do not need to submit a full-length research proposal for this studentship. Rather, please submit a 500 word ‘Statement of Interest’ in the project that outlines your previous academic, practical, lived and/or linguistic experience.   

Deadline for applications:  28 February 2025 

Interviews: 12 March 2025 

Enquiries regarding the application process should directed to Fatima Hanif, spir-phdstudents@qmul.ac.uk   

Contact us

Specific academic queries can be addressed to the following staff members:

General enquiries about making a formal application can be addressed to the Programme Administrator by emailing spir-phdstudents@qmul.ac.uk.

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