PhD students
Funding opportunities for PhD candidates in the School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures.
Postgraduate study can be expensive, and the funding available is highly competitive.
Many scholarship schemes have early deadlines so, to increase your chances of being eligible for a range of scholarships and other awards, you are strongly encouraged to apply for your PhD before 16th December the year before you wish to start your PhD (e.g. December 2019 for a start date of September 2020).
What's available?
We're part of the Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities (SGSAH), a consortium of 10 universities funded by the AHRC to support postgraduate studentships and training in the Arts and Humanities in Scotland.
The application deadline for 2020 entry has now passed. The next deadline (for 2021 entry) is likely to be in November / December 2020.
We're part of the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (SGSSS), a consortium of 16 universities funded by the ESRC to support postgraduate studentships and training in the Social Sciences in Scotland. MSc + PhD studentships for 2020 are available for students of Arabic and Chinese language-based Area Studies at the University of Edinburgh.
This year's application deadline is Friday 10th January 2020 (though you have to apply for your programme by 10th December 2019).
This scheme funds a limited, and highly competitive, number of awards in Literatures, Languages and Cultures covering a combination of home/EU tuition fees and studentships (tuition fees + stipend) for a maximum of three years.
The next deadline is Monday 3rd February 2020.
Designed to attract high quality overseas research students in any field of study, these awards cover the difference between the tuition fee for a UK/EU postgraduate student and that chargeable to an overseas postgraduate student. Subject to satisfactory progress, the awards are tenable for up to three years.
Find out more about Edinburgh Global Research Scholarships on the University's webpages
This award of not more than £2,300 per annum is for PhD research in any romance literature, language or dialect. Preference may be given to those working in language studies. The next deadline is likely to be early May 2020.
Find out more about the John Orr Research Award on the University's webpages
The Carnegie Trust offers a number of scholarships each year to academically outstanding candidates who are intending to study on a PhD programme at any university in Scotland. These include scholarships supported by the Caledonian Research Foundation.
Find out more about Carnegie/Caledonian PhD Scholarships on the University's webpages
Designed to support the development of Japanese Studies in the UK, this scheme provides up to 30 postgraduate studentships annually, each worth £10,000. Candidates wishing to enrol on our Japanese Studies PhD programme are welcome to apply.
The next deadline is Sunday 1st March 2020.
Find out more about the Sasakawa Postgraduate Studentship Programme on the University's webpages
Supporting doctoral research in any area within Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies (IMES), this scheme provides for one scholarship covering PhD tuition fees for a maximum of three years. Candidates from all regions (UK/EU/international) are invited to apply, and the successful applicant must start their PhD in the 2020/21 academic year.
The next deadline is Friday 14th February 2020.
Find out more and apply online for our PhD Scholarship in Islamic & Middle Eastern Studies
What else is out there?
The University publishes details of other funding sources that may be of interest, including UK Government Loans and studentships sponsored by external organisations.
Find out about UK Government loans and other funding sources on the University's webpages