How to Apply – PhD Applicants with External Sponsorship or Self Funding
Guidance on how to apply with your own research proposal or for advertised PhD projects - applicants with external sponsorship or self-funding.
We have PhD students funded by a variety of international government schemes and industry as well as those who self-fund.
When Should I Apply?
Externally Sponsored Applicants - we recommend you apply at least a month in advance of your funding application deadline. Those applying for an advertised PhD project must meet the University Application deadline.
Self Funded Applicants - we welcome applications from self-funded PhD applicants with their own research proposal at any time of year. Those applying for an advertised PhD project must meet the University Application deadline.
How to Apply
1. You will need to meet the University's Postgraduate entry requirements.
Postgraduate Entry Requirements
2. Contact your proposed supervisor to discuss your research proposal or the advertised project you are interested in. Supervisors are based in one of our six Research Institutes
3. Submit an application for admission via the University's online application system - EUCLID. You need to select your research project or topic/institute from the list of research programmes.
How to Write a Research Proposal
Whether you are limited to one page (as part of a University application or enquiry form) or are required to produce something more substantial for an external funder, the rules about writing a good research proposal are the same: you want to stand out from the crowd and have the best chance of being selected.
Our guide highlights the "golden rules" and provides tips on how to write a good research application.
How to write a good research proposal (1.44 MB PDF)
We will contact you if we need any further information to be able to consider your application. Please regularly log in to your EUCLID account to check for any messages from us. If you applied for an advertised project and are shortlisted for a PhD place, we will invite you for interview in person or for a skype/telephone interview if you cannot attend in person.
Our initial set of interviews for advertised projects will be in February/March.
We do keep applications on hold while we allocate all our different funding for advertised projects, and so it is possible that you will not have a firm decision from us until May.
If you have graduated from the University of Edinburgh you may be eligible for a 10% discount on your fees
The University Registry provides information on tuition fees and funding
The University provides information on average living costs in Edinburgh
The University provides advice for prospective students on the impacts of Brexit.