Natural Environment Research Council GW4+ Doctoral Training Partnership (NERC GW4+)
Applications for September 2027 entry are now OPEN.
Details below provide guidance on the studentships for 2027 entry.
Information for Applicants
We are now accepting applications for PhD projects commencing Autumn 2026 covering the full breadth of Earth, Environmental and Life Sciences. Subject to funding arrangements, up to 24 fully funded studentships (across partner institutions) are available comprising:
- A stipend, which will start at £21,805 p.a. for the academic year 2026/27, and expected to increase annually to reflect inflation.
- Your university tuition fees will be paid by us (£5,238 for 2026/27, expected to increase annually to reflect inflation).
- A Research Training Support Grant of £11,000 (plus contributions from a project partner on some projects) which is used for project costs such as lab and field work and attendance at an international conference.
- A further budget of £1,000 (which can be increased to £2,000 on application) to attend specialist training courses.
Some projects are which are co-developed with industrial, commercial and charity end-users of research and provide additional benefits, such as a paid internship outside the academic setting and an additional research budget.
Available projects, are listed below in the Projects and PhD studentships available at 51³Ô¹ÏºÚÁÏ section.
How to apply
Please follow instructions from the useful links section at the end of each individual project descriptions. If you require any assistance, please email gw4plus-dtp@bristol.ac.uk.
Application deadline: Thursday 7 January 2027 at 2359 GMT
Shortlisting will be completed between 9th January to 14th February 2027. Applicants invited to interview will be notified during w/c 15th February. Interviews will be scheduled between 1 - 5 March 2027.
For more information about the NERC GW4+ DPT please visit
If you are interested in applying, please take the time to read the guidance and draft answers for our NERC GW4+ DLTP Personal Statement Form for 2027 Entry that we ask you to complete as part of the application process. You will automatically be provided with this form by the Institution to whom you apply so no need to send a copy to the DTP as well. We just want you to familiarise yourself with the form as it will take at least a day to draft.
Download the GW4+ DLTP
The GW4+ Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP) consists of the GW4 Alliance of the world-class research-intensive Universities of , and and University plus five unique and prestigious Research Organisation partners: , , , the and . Drawing upon the resources of these institutions and our government, business and research partners, we provide a comprehensive and effective training programme for our PhD researchers which includes:
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In house training in transferable skills e.g. statistics, programming, presenting, communicating;
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Advanced training in specialised research skills required for specific projects (using individual training budget);
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Training in academic writing and publishing, creative thinking and research networking;
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Resilience and well-being;
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Multi-disciplinary training events and conferences aimed at developing scientific collaboration;
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Public engagement and outreach to the next generation of scientists
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Full careers development programme, including the opportunity to undertake paid internships of up to 3 months in science policy making, science consultancy, conservation, technology, business, exploration and research both in the UK and overseas.
Our comprehensive and effective training and careers development programme is designed to prepare our PhD researchers to take on future leadership roles in science, technology, business and policy making.
We welcome applications from students in relevant plus those with degrees in physics, engineering, mathematics, statistics and computer programming. Detailed candidate requirements and a supervisor contact email are provided on the project descriptions. Please email the supervisor if you have any questions about your suitability for the project you are interested in.
Applicants should have obtained, or be about to obtain, a first-or upper second-class UK Honours degree, or the equivalent qualifications gained outside the UK. If you have a 2:2 undergraduate degree classification, we can consider other experience, expertise or talent relevant to the research process alongside your degree, for example a master’s degree or experience gained in the workplace. You will have an opportunity to describe this in more detail in your application.
All applicants would need to meet our English language requirements by the start of the project
To be classed as a ‘home’ student you must meet certain nationality and residency criteria which are complex and dependent on your individual circumstances. The rules cannot be adequately detailed here but your fee status will be determined by postgraduate administration teams after you have applied based on the information in your application.
Important: if you are classed as an ‘international’ student at application stage, you will only be eligible to be considered for a small quota of studentships (between 4 and 6 places this year).
Purely as a general guide, the following are likely to have ‘home’ fee status:
- UK nationals (subject to meeting residency requirements), or
- Those with settled status, or
- Those with pre-settled status (subject to meeting residency requirements), or
- Those with indefinite leave to remain or enter
We recommend that you consult the following guides for more information:
Those not meeting the nationality and residency requirements to be treated as a ‘home’ student may apply for a limited number of full studentships for international students. Although international students are usually charged a higher tuition fee rate than ‘home’ students, those international students offered a NERC GW4+ Doctoral Training Partnership full studentship starting in 2027 will have their fees covered by the studentship (the University will cover any difference between the Home and International fee for this scheme).
International applicants need to be aware that you will have to cover the cost of your student visa, healthcare surcharge and other costs of moving to the UK to do a PhD from your own funds
Our Postgraduate Funding webpage provides links to further information.