Our doctoral programme combines independent research by our students, expert supervision, and careful oversight through regular milestone assessments. Doctoral students are initially admitted to Probationary Research Student (PRS) status and will have their worked assessed at the end of Years One (“Transfer of Status”) and Two (“Confirmation of Status”) of their programme by two assessors who read a draft chapter of the thesis and discuss it with the students. This process allows students to discuss their work with scholars other than the supervisor and allows them to benefit from other perspectives on their work. Students typically submit their DPhil thesis after 3-4 years of study, which often includes time spent researching abroad, whether in Europe or further afield.

 

As a Faculty, we place great value on the professional and academic development of our doctoral students. We will work with you in developing the skills you will need to transition to academic and non-academic careers. As well as participating in training and development programmes organised by the University’s Career Services and the Humanities Division’s Research Development Programme, the Faculty has also developed its own lifecycle-specific training programme for doctoral students. This covers topics such research methodologies and techniques, managing research projects, editing and publishing, and public engagement with research. We also offer a mentored Graduate Lecture Scheme and teacher training qualifications, and the Faculty works with the Royal Literary Fund to provide writing workshops with a professional writer-in-residence scheme. In combination with the Humanities Division, the Faculty also offers regular training in Digital Humanities, public engagement, knowledge transfer, and entrepreneurship. Recent graduates have progressed to national and international postdoctoral fellowships and to careers in academia worldwide, while others have chosen to work in areas teaching, journalism, law, publishing and the civil service.