Midlands Graduate School

Midlands Graduate School - Doctoral Training Partnership

Applications for this year have closed.

About Midlands Graduate School

小湿妹视频 is a partner of the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)-funded Midlands Graduate School Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP). Through this DTP, our vision is to ensure there is a talent pipeline of highly trained and globally competitive social science researchers.

First established in 2016 and re-accredited in 2023, the Midlands Graduate School (MGS) DTP is led by Warwick University and includes 小湿妹视频 alongside Aston, Birmingham, Leicester, Loughborough, Nottingham and Nottingham Trent Universities.

What is a Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP)?

Doctoral Training Partnerships offer high-quality and coherent postgraduate training covering the full range of the social sciences and areas of interdisciplinary research. The Midlands Graduate School DTP awards around 65 highly prestigious ESRC-funded doctoral scholarships to successful applicants annually.

About the funder

ESRC is one of a number of , each with a different range of research priorities. ESRC is committed to developing globally competitive social science researchers who are able to operate in interdisciplinary, collaborative and challenge-led environments across a range of sectors, and who are drawn from diverse backgrounds and experiences. The ESRC achieves this by enabling Doctoral Training Partnerships to allocate funding for doctoral study.

Specialist areas

Here at 小湿妹视频 we have a number of significant research strengths in the social sciences, with all of our MGS PGRs aligned to one main pathway from these five:

Health and Wellbeing
Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology
Cross-disciplinary Methodologies and Advanced Data Analysis
Sustainable Development, Net Zero and Climate Resilience
Living in a Digital Society

Enabling our postgraduate researchers to reach their full potential

小湿妹视频 is committed to supporting all of our postgraduate researchers to reach their full potential. We really value the significant contribution that postgraduate researchers make to our University, both to the research culture and to the development of knowledge in our key areas of expertise. PhD students contribute to the span of research events we host and our range of publications.

Being part of the MGS DTP however opens up a wealth of training, development opportunities and networking opportunities across our university consortium partners, creating a truly vibrant research culture in which to flourish.

At 小湿妹视频, our MGS PGRs are an integral part of the Research and Innovation Institute for the Social Sciences with numerous opportunities to join staff and other doctoral students in attending Research Institute events such as seminars and symposia. Being part of a DTP means being belonging to a large cohort of MGS funded PhD researchers across the consortium, with opportunities to attend events and meet fellow scholars at any of the eight participating universities.

Training and Development

Midlands Graduate School Specialist Training 小湿妹视频

The specialist courses below have been developed by 小湿妹视频 for all MGS students. To book on to any of the training opportunies below, please contact researcherdevelopment@dmu.ac.uk

Interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity in research: Synthesising disciplines for innovative research projects
Course Convenor: Professor Brown

Contact to register for the course: researcherdevelopment@dmu.ac.uk
Contact for more information about the content: brown@dmu.ac.uk

Dates and Mode of Delivery:
- Day 1: Friday 5th December 2025
- Day 2: Friday 12th December 2025
Course available to:

Priority will be given to ESRC funded PhD students within the Midlands Graduate School. Other PhD students and staff at 小湿妹视频 may enrol. Others by agreement.

Course Description:

This course will discuss the key features of interdisciplinary research, its history, and its current status in the UK and internationally. It will also examine funding and publishing opportunities for interdisciplinary research.

We will consider essential principles for successful interdisciplinarity in both team-based and sole researcher projects, including how to incorporate interdisciplinarity into PhD research at all stages:
- Conceptualisation
- Methods
- Analysis and interpretation
- Writing up
The course will be delivered by the convenor, drawing on his experience with UKRI-funded interdisciplinary projects that bring together arts and health sciences. Guest presenters will include researchers from creative disciplines, social sciences, engineering, computing, and information sciences. Presenters will represent a range of experiences 鈥� from recent PhD graduates to seasoned researchers.

Assignment / Activity Details:

This is a non credit-bearing course. You will be asked to consolidate your learning by:
- Considering how to foster interdisciplinarity in your PhD project
- Reflecting on how the course shapes your approach to interdisciplinarity
- Delivering a short presentation to the group about the role of inter- or trans-disciplinary work in your research
Learning Outcomes:

After participating in this course, students will be able to:
- Appreciate the value of interdisciplinary approaches to research design
- Understand how different approaches can be applied to create interdisciplinary projects
- Recognise how the notion of "research" may differ across disciplines and subject areas
- Apply interdisciplinary approaches to their own research topic or problem
Equality, diversity and inclusion in research: Practical techniques
Course Convenor: Professor Brown

Contact to register for the course: researcherdevelopment@dmu.ac.uk
Contact for more information about the content: brown@dmu.ac.uk

Dates and Mode of Delivery:
- Day 1: Friday 6th March 2026
- Day 2: Friday 13th March 2026
Course available to:

Priority will be given to ESRC funded PhD students within the Midlands Graduate School. Other PhD students and staff at 小湿妹视频; others by agreement.

Course Description:

This course will discuss the key aspects of designing, implementing and disseminating research which embodies Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) principles. It will examine the ethical, social justice, and methodological benefits of EDI-informed approaches, including the importance of normalising diversity.

The course will identify techniques across the research lifecycle:
- Planning & Design: reflecting on positionality, designing inclusive research questions
- Implementation: using accessible language, ensuring diverse participation
- Dissemination: inclusive communication and engagement strategies
We will examine challenges of enabling projects to address EDI issues, considering both protected characteristics under the UK Equality Act and other emerging dimensions of diversity (e.g., ethnicity, age, disability).

Additional topics include:
- Political context of EDI initiatives, including international perspectives
- Incorporating EDI into PhD projects (conceptualisation, methods, analysis, writing)
- Funding and publishing opportunities for EDI research
- Impact of EDI on researchers themselves, including reasonable adjustments
The course is delivered by the convenor, with guest presenters from creative disciplines and social sciences. It sits alongside (but does not require) the specialist training course Promoting Equality in Social Research.

Assignment / Activity Details:

This is a non credit-bearing course. You will be asked to consolidate your learning by:
- Considering how to foster greater EDI involvement in your PhD project
- Reflecting on how the course shapes your approach to EDI
- Delivering a short presentation to the group about the role of EDI in your research
Learning Outcomes:

After participating in this course, students will be able to:
- Appreciate the value of EDI in improving research design, implementation, and dissemination
- Reflect on their own positionality and its implications for their research
- Apply a broad range of techniques to foreground EDI across the research lifecycle
- Understand how the notion of "research" itself may differ across diverse communities
- Apply a nuanced and critical approach to EDI within their own research topic or problem
- Appreciate barriers to, and facilitators of, inclusive and equitable research practice
Co-design, co-production and participatory research
Course Convenors: Professor Nicky Hudson and Dr Caroline Law

Contact to register for the course: researcherdevelopment@dmu.ac.uk
Contact for more information about the content: claw@dmu.ac.uk

Dates and Mode of Delivery:
- Day 1: Wednesday 18th March 2026 鈥� in person at 小湿妹视频, Leicester (room to be confirmed)
- Day 2: Wednesday 25th March 2026 鈥� online
Course available to:

This introductory course is aimed at PhD students in the social sciences. MGS PhD students and other PhD students at 小湿妹视频 will be prioritised. PhD students in other disciplinary areas at 小湿妹视频 and/or staff are welcome to attend if they feel it will benefit them. Others by agreement.

Course Description:

Over recent years, participatory approaches have become well established in academic research: researchers at all career stages are increasingly expected to include end-users and other stakeholders in the research process. This course will introduce how research can effectively include and involve people from outside the research community at every stage of a project 鈥� conceptualisation, design, running, and outcomes 鈥� through co-production, co-design, and participatory methods.

The course will cover:
- Ways stakeholders (including experts-by-experience and end-users) can be involved in PhD/research processes
- Definitions and approaches within participatory research, including co-design and co-production
- Benefits of participatory approaches
- Challenges and dilemmas relating to resources, power, inclusivity, and accessibility
Real life examples of research using participatory methods will be presented. The course will combine teaching from the convenors and invited speakers with interactive group discussions, activities, and application of the principles to participants鈥� own topics.

Assignment / Activity Details:

Participants are expected to attend both days and fully engage in group discussions and activities. On Day 1, an activity will be set applying participatory principles to their own research area, which will be presented on Day 2.

Learning Outcomes:

By the end of the course, participants will:
- Understand how stakeholder participation has become established in social research agendas
- Appreciate the rationale for, and benefits of, participatory approaches
- Recognise challenges and dilemmas of participatory research, including those relating to resources and power
- Differentiate between models of participatory research (co-design, co-production) and understand current debates
- Understand how participatory approaches have been applied in selected real-life research studies
- Apply participatory methods to aspects of their own study design
Conceptual issues and research strategies for equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) and decolonisation
Course Convenor: Dr Scott Yates

Contact to register for the course: researcherdevelopment@dmu.ac.uk
Contact for more information about the content: syates@dmu.ac.uk

Dates and Mode of Delivery:
- Day 1: Friday 17th April 2026 鈥� in person at 小湿妹视频, Leicester (room TBC)
- Day 2: Friday 24th April 2026 鈥� online
Module available to:
- Midlands Graduate School students
- 小湿妹视频 PhD students
- 小湿妹视频 staff
- Others by agreement
Module Description:

This module will introduce students to key theories and conceptual issues behind the principles of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and Decolonisation, and why these matter in contemporary research. It will lead students in an exploration of how these ideas have fostered critiques of traditional research and how they inform alternative critical research strategies.

Examples will be drawn from research into race and ethnicity, disability, sexuality, gender, and processes of minoritisation.

The history of positionality and reflexivity will also be explored, alongside their theoretical and practical contexts, enabling students to reflect on how their research is shaped by their own background, assumptions, and framings of knowledge.

Students may wish to study this course alongside another two-day specialist course where these concepts are applied in practice: Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in Research: Practical Techniques.

Learning Outcomes:
- Understand the key conceptual issues underpinning EDI, Decolonisation and positionality in research
- Understand the range of responses and theories that attempt to address EDI and Decolonisation in research in practice
- Critically consider how EDI and Decolonisation can inform their research
- Incorporate strategies to address oppression and injustice in their fields of research
Assignment / Activity Details:

This is not an assessed module, but students will be encouraged to engage with materials through in-class activities and discussions to embed the learning and demonstrate engagement.
Creative participatory research methodologies
Course Convenor: Professor Raghu Raghavan

Contact to register for the course: researcherdevelopment@dmu.ac.uk
Contact for more information about the content: rraghavan@dmu.ac.uk

Dates and Mode of Delivery:
- Dates and mode of delivery to be confirmed
Module available to:

Priority will be given to ESRC funded PhD students within the Midlands Graduate School. Other PhD students and staff at 小湿妹视频 are also welcome to enrol. Others by agreement.

Course Description:

This module will explore the theory and applications of creative arts-based participatory research methodologies in social science research. Creative arts-based methodologies involve integrating artistic practices as a way to explore, understand, and represent social phenomena.

These methodologies offer an alternative to traditional qualitative approaches by providing richer, more nuanced insights into individual and community experiences, identities and societal issues.

Topics covered include:
- Narrative storytelling
- Visual arts (photography, drawing and painting)
- Photovoice
- Applied and community theatre
- Film and video
- Digital storytelling
The module will critically explore the application of creative arts-based methodologies in real-world research and their impact on policy and practice.

Assignment Details:

This is a non credit bearing course, but participants will be asked to consolidate their learning by taking part in an activity designed to foster their understanding of integrating creative artistic practices into research, including their own projects if appropriate.

Learning Outcomes:

This course will enable participants to:
- Understand and apply the principles of creative arts-based research methodologies to social science research
- Critically evaluate the role of aesthetics, creativity, and artistic practice in co-creating knowledge
- Explore interdisciplinary approaches to research that blend creative arts-based methods with other academic fields
- Reflect on the ethical and theoretical issues that arise in the practice of creative arts-based research methodologies

General training

MGS PGRs have access to both 小湿妹视频 PGR and DTP-specific training, including

小湿妹视频 social science research methodology modules covering conceptual and general research skills
小湿妹视频's Researcher Development Programme which entails research training workshops on general and conceptual research skills related to knowledge and understanding, engagement and impact, methodology, research integrity and personal and professional development
MGS specialist training courses on a range of specialist topics, provided by any of the eight universities in the DTP
MGS development workshops and training courses on a range of topic chosen by students and universities e.g. outreach and public engagement; media training (including social media) and podcasting; grant writing.

Other development opportunities include:

3 month placement to develop and broaden transferable skills by undertaking work unconnected with the PhD project as part of "Research in Practice"
Participation in student-run networks such as the Gender Student Network, the Sensitive Research Network and the Mental Health Research Network, Sustainability Student Network and Parents and Carers Network
Participation in student-run networks such as the Gender Student Network, the Sensitive Research Network and the Mental Health Research Network, Sustainability Student Network and Parents and Carers Network
Participation, along with the full cohort of MGS funded students, in events organised by the MGS or ESRC such as the annual conference and residential event.

Funding and support

MGS scholarships provide funding to cover costs of fees, as well as an annual tax-free stipend, paid on a monthly basis to cover living expenses. As well as this, all of our PGRs receive a research training support grant to cover expenses associated with the research project. Our scholars also have access to a grant for overseas fieldwork, and for overseas institutional visits.

How to apply

Our funded MGS opportunities are advertised annually in late summer/early autumn on our funded opportunities page.
If you have any questions at all about this DTP, please contact Sally Ruane sruane@dmu.ac.uk

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