Academic Excellence Awards
Congratulations on securing an Academic Excellence award!
At Loughborough, we want to celebrate and support the very best of our students to continue in their academic endeavour. We are therefore offering you the opportunity to complete a fully funded PhD when you have successfully completed your undergraduate degree.
What is a PhD?
PhDs are a great way to enhance your career prospects. If you are passionate about a particular area of study, then a PhD offers you the opportunity to build on your knowledge and become an expert in the field. You will spend your time carrying out research that makes a significant original contribution to existing knowledge in the subject.
A standard full-time PhD at Loughborough takes 3 years.
What will the studentship cover?
The studentship will cover your tuition fees and provides a tax-free stipend currently at £21,805 per annum, for a period of 3 years. Note that the stipend level is expected to increase annually in line with the UKRI benchmark.
I will be graduating from my UG degree after July 2027
Your Academic Excellence Award offer will be available to you when you graduate. This scheme runs annually, and the Doctoral College will contact you in your final year to confirm details of how to apply and let you know of any deadlines to be aware of.
I have already graduated or will be graduating from my UG degree in July 2027
If you are interested in starting a PhD in the next academic year (October 2027, February 2028 or July 2028), you will need to formally apply for a PhD.
In the first instance, you should inform the School in which you're interested to start your PhD programme and tell them that you are an Academic Excellence Award holder. We recommend you speak to the School's Director of Doctoral Programmes (DDP).
You need to find a suitable project and supervisors to support your study. There are a number of routes into PhD study. You can either apply for a PhD project which is already defined and advertised on the Online Prospectus, or you can write your own proposal and find suitable supervisors (see the routes below).
Note that funded opportunities are advertised throughout the year but there will be a larger number expected January - March.
These advertised positions are open competition, which means you will need to be the best candidate for the project to receive an offer.
There are no restrictions on when you need to secure an offer by.
End of route 1
Ensure that you apply by 15 March 2027, ahead of starting in the 2027/28 academic year (October, February or July).
If you are the right candidate for the advertised project, an offer will be issued to you by the end of April.
End of route 2
Submit your own research proposal
You may decide to write your own research proposal.
Inform the School’s DDP that you intend to submit your own research proposal and that you are an Academic Excellence Award holder.
You should receive an offer of study by the end of April.
End of route 3
What are the Conditions of the funding offer?
All applicants must:
- Hold or expect to hold a minimum 2.1 UG degree (note that some PhD programmes also require you to hold a Masters degree)
- Hold two supportive references (including one from your highest academic qualification)
- Have identified a suitable research project (where applicable)
- Have two supportive supervisors in place
- Perform well in an interview.
In meeting the requirements above, a studentship will be made available to you providing you have applied no later than 15 March 2027 prior to your start date in the next academic year. Applications made after this date will still be considered for an offer, but the University cannot guarantee that funding will still be available for the intended year of entry, and you may need to defer to the following academic year.
Note that the March deadline only applies to projects that do not already have funding attached. If you apply for a funded opportunity (See Route 1 above), you must apply by the advert’s closing deadline.
If, following your UG degree you wish to complete a Masters, or decide to defer your PhD for 12 months, then applying for a PhD via route 2 or 3 must be completed by mid-March 2028 (deadline to be confirmed).
Is the offer of a funded studentship open-ended?
Your offer of guaranteed funding is limited to you applying for your PhD studies within 15 months of you graduating from your degree. This means that if you graduate in July 2027 and decide to pursue route 2 or 3 into PhD study, you must start your studies no later than October 2028. If you decide to return to study a PhD in the future, you will still be eligible to apply to study for a PhD, but you will not be able to retrospectively avail your offer of a fully funded studentship.