Eligibility Criteria for 2026 Collaboratory Research Hub PhD Studentships

Monday 06 October 2025

This studentship scheme is open to all permanent UK residents who meet our minimum eligibility criteria detailed below. These criteria apply to all PhD projects advertised by the Collaboratory Research Hub, regardless of the individual project’s host university. Applications which do not meet our minimum eligibility requirements will be rejected.

General Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to be considered for a Collaboratory Research Hub PhD Studentship, you must meet the following requirements. 

• You must be available to begin study from 01 April 2026.
• Successful applicants must attend mandatory induction events on the following dates:
  • Nottingham & Nottinghamshire candidates: Monday 13 and Tuesday 14 April 2026
  • Leicester, Leicestershire & Rutland candidates: Monday 13 and Wednesday 15 April 2026
• You must live in the UK as your country of permanent residence.
• You must qualify for UK Home Fee status (For example, you must be a permanent UK resident, an EU citizen with UK settled status, or similar). Due to funding restrictions, this studentship scheme is NOT open to those who would be classed as international students, for the purpose of tuition fees. Applications from those whose primary residence is not the UK will not be considered.
  • More detailed guidance about who qualifies for UK Home Fee status can be found on the UK Council for International Student Affairs website.
  • If you are unsure whether or not you qualify for UK Home Fee status, please contact us at collaboratory@universitiesfornottingham.ac.uk to ask for a fee assessment form.
• You must not be enrolled on any other higher education degree by the 01 April 2026. All higher education degree programmes must have been completed with final results issued before this date.
• You must not be a current doctoral level candidate, nor already hold a PhD or other doctoral degree, including any degree awarding the title of Doctor (i.e., Doctor of Medicine).
• You must not be a current formal employee of either Nottingham Trent University, the University of Nottingham, De Montfort University, the University of Leicester, or Loughborough University, working in a research or research supporting/adjacent role. Those working for the universities in roles not affiliated with research, such as general administration, estates, catering, etc., may still apply.
• We cannot consider applications from those who wish to conduct a PhD at distance/remotely. Due to the mandatory training requirements and significant community engagement focus of the Collaboratory programme, in-person engagement with the programme is essential.
• We cannot consider applications from those who wish to conduct a PhD on a part-time basis.
• You can only submit one application relating to one project from the list of available Collaboratory Research Hub PhD projects for Cohort 2026. Applications which name multiple projects, or a project that is not from the list of available 2026 projects, will be rejected.
• You must submit a full and complete application by 11:59pm on Sunday 30 November 2025. Any incomplete applications or applications received after the deadline will not be considered.
• Only for projects with an extended deadline, complete applications must be submitted by 11:59pm on Sunday 04 January 2026.
• All supporting documents for your application, including qualification certificates and transcripts, evidence for achievements, Professional Equivalency Portfolio documents, etc., must be sent by email to collaboratory@universitiesfornottingham.ac.uk, and must be received no later than 10:00am on Monday 01 December 2025. Applications lacking necessary supporting documents will not be considered.
• Only for projects with an extended deadline, supporting documents must be received no later than 10:00am on Monday 05 January 2026.

Minimum Qualifications for Entry

There are 2 choices of application route, depending on which minimum qualifications you hold. The minimum qualifications for entry for Collaboratory PhD studentships are as follows:

• Applicants must hold at least an upper 2nd class (2.1) undergraduate degree or equivalent degree, or a 2nd class (2.2) undergraduate degree with a masters degree.
• If you do not meet these minimum qualifications for entry, you can still apply but must do so via the Application by Professional Equivalency route.

If you meet or exceed the minimum qualifications for entry, you MUST apply via the Application by Standard Admission route. Applications that meet or exceed the minimum qualifications for entry that are submitted as Applications by Professional Equivalency will be rejected.

Application Routes

Applicants may apply for a Collaboratory Research Hub PhD Studentship through either one of two application routes:

Route 1: Application by Standard Admission

Those who meet the minimum qualifications for entry, as detailed below, must apply by Application by Standard Admission. In the online application form, you must to provide details and submit evidence of your qualifications.

Route 2: Application by Professional Equivalency

Those who do not meet the minimum qualifications for entry must apply the Application by Professional Equivalency. In the online application form, while you are still able to list any relevant qualifications, you must submit, by email, a Portfolio of Professional Equivalence with your application, in line with the requirements detailed below.

Portfolio of Professional Equivalence

If you do not meet the minimum standard qualifications for entry criteria, you must apply by Route 2: Application by Professional Equivalency. To do this, you must submit a portfolio of evidence which effectively demonstrates that you have the professional skills and experience equivalent to that of the minimum qualification criteria above. Your professional equivalency portfolio must include the following:

• At least one example of an extended* piece of analytical, academic or technical writing. This could be a professional report, briefing document, formal review, etc., that clearly demonstrates your ability to produce larger pieces of written work to a high standard, and you ability to comprehensively handle more complex information. (*If this piece of writing is less than 5,000 words, we recommend applicants upload additional examples.)
• A professional CV which demonstrates substantial experience in a relevant sector(s). Please remove personal information, including profile photos and date of birth from your CV
• A cover letter (maximum x1, A4 page) which demonstrates how and to what extent you meet the core and project specific competencies outlined in the PhD project advert.

If you do not meet the minimum qualifications for entry standard and fail to submit professional equivalency portfolio documents, your application will not be considered. If you meet the minimum qualifications for entry (and therefore must make an Application by Standard Admissions), and submit professional equivalence documents, your application will not be considered.

Supporting Documents

If your application includes details of formal qualifications and formal achievements which you hold, you must provide supporting documents to evidence these. For formal qualifications, you must provide a copy of your degree certificate and transcript. For formal achievements (i.e., honorary titles or awards, professional commendations, etc,), suitable evidence must be provided.

All supporting evidence MUST be submitted by email to collaboratory@universitiesfornottingham.ac.uk with your full name in the subject line, after you have submitted your complete application. A member of the Collaboratory team will acknowledge receipt of your supporting documents within 3 working days. All supporting evidence emails must be received no later than 10:00am on Monday 01 December 2025 or your application will be considered incomplete.

It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that their documents have been submitted. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

References

Collaboratory does not take references into account as part of its assessment process. References will be contacted to validate your information and experience once awarding decisions have been made after interview. To facilitate this, each applicant is required to provide the 2 supporting references.

• If you are making an Application by Standard Admission, you must provide 1 academic reference (a previous academic supervisor, degree tutor, etc.) and 1 professional reference (a previous employer, current line-manager, a professional colleague, etc.).
• If you are making an Application by Professional Equivalency, you must provide 2 professional references.

All applicants will be required to provide the names and contact details of two referees on their application form.

NOTE: It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure their referees complete and return their referee questionnaires. Collaboratory will not chase individual referees.

English Language Requirements

If English is not your first language, you must have an appropriate grade or score in an approved examination in English language (such as International English Language Testing System (IELTS). You will be deemed to have an acceptable English language qualification if you have any of the following: 

• Successfully completed the whole of your secondary education up to and including the equivalent of year 12 (including a GCSE-equivalent English language qualification) in one of the countries on the Home Office’s list of recognised countries. 
• Demonstrated that you have successfully completed a recognised UK Higher Education degree. 
• Have a completed IELTS score 6.0 with no less than 5.5 in any element at the time of application. IELTS reports must not be more than 2 years old.
• Have a CELE (Centre for English Language Education) pre-sessional course final assessment of “Pass” at the time of application.

In addition to the Home Office’s list, we can also accept degrees from other selected English-speaking countries and institutions as evidence of English proficiency.