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AHRC: CHASE Doctoral Training Partnership

Birkbeck is a research intensive university and part of the Consortium for the Humanities and the Arts South-east England (CHASE) Doctoral Training Programme. Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), CHASE offers fully funded doctoral research studentships across the entire range of Birkbeck's arts and humanities research.

2025-26 entry competition

The CHASE DTP studentship recruitment competition for entry in 2025-26 is now open.

Important: We strongly encourage you to submit a programme application as soon as you can. The earlier you receive an offer of a place on your chosen PhD programme, the earlier you can begin to prepare your application for CHASE funding.

Funding provided

  • Studentships are available for full-time or part-time doctoral research. 
  • Successful students will be awarded a studentship which provides tuition fees paid in full and a tax-free stipend for living costs (£21,237 per annum for 2024-25). If you have a disability you may be entitled to a Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA) on top of your studentship. 
  • You will also have access to support funding to cover the costs of your research and professional development, whether that’s language training, field trips, placements or sharing your work at conferences, for example. You can also access specially designed training courses to help you develop your research skills, and undertake placement projects with partner organisations.

Eligibility criteria

  • Applicants must be able to meet the entry criteria for their chosen PhD programme. Both Home and International students are eligible to apply for AHRC CHASE funding, but Stuart Hall Foundation applicants must be eligible for Home fees. Please note: a maximum of 30% of studentships can be awarded to international students each year.

Stuart Hall Foundation CHASE AHRC studentships

  • CHASE is is working in partnership with the Stuart Hall Foundation (SHF) to support at least two studentships a year for Home candidates from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic to undertake doctoral research in arts and humanities. Applicants with an interest in the work and legacy of Stuart Hall are particularly encouraged. All applicants will also be entered into the general studentship competition.
  • As well as the usual benefits of a CHASE studentship, recipients of this award will benefit from working with SHF to develop their career and research profile. They will enjoy privileged access to the work of the Foundation be able to engage with and contribute to its resources and networks, including the annual gathering of Stuart Hall Foundation Scholars and Fellows. 
  • This is a positive action initiative under the Equality Act 2010.

Application webinars

CHASE will host a number of webinars with essential guidance on how to make a strong application for these studentships. Dates will be announced on the studentship application webpage, but currently include the following session:

  • 25 October: Applicant webinar (prospective Stuart Hall Foundation studentship applicants)
  • 1 November: Applicant webinar (main studentship cometition)

Application process

In order to be considered for CHASE funding at Birkbeck, you need to meet two requirements:

  1. Submit an application for entry to an MPhil/PhD programme and be offered a place to study for a PhD here at Birkbeck.
  2. Submit an online CHASE application form to be considered by our Birkbeck CHASE recruitment and selection process.

It is important that you read the following instructions about the application process.

Step 1. Apply for an MPhil/PhD programme

  • Deadline: Monday 6 January 2025.
  • You should contact the school in which you wish to study as soon as possible to discuss the application process with them - contact details are available below.
  • You will find advice on how to apply for a PhD programme, including finding a supervisor and writing a research proposal, on our online PhD programme pages.
  • Please note: When you submit your programme application, please state that you intend to apply for CHASE funding at the top of your research proposal.

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

Faculty of business and Law

  • CHASE studentship funding is available for PhD programmes in the following school:
  • Administrative Contact: For details about faculty deadlines and administrative queries about submitting a CHASE studentship application please contact the PGR Support Manager: .

Step 2: Submit an application for CHASE funding

  • Deadline: Midday on Monday 27 January 2025.
  • In order for your CHASE application to be considered, you need to complete an online CHASE application form.
  • The school where your chosen PhD programme is based will need to send you a code in order for you to access the CHASE online portal - access will be provided once you have been offered a place on an MPhil/PhD programme.
  • Your online CHASE application form will be the basis for shortlisting at Stages 1 to 3 outlined in the following section.
  • CHASE applications will be assessed on the basis of your research proposal (50%), your preparedness for research (25%) and the suitability of research environment (25%). Competitive applications need to be strong in all these areas and the panel will expect to see evidence of this from candidates, referees and potential supervisors in each application. 
  • Prospective students - CHASE Doctoral Training Partnership is available on the CHASE website providing details of what must be included in your application and the selection criteria for CHASE applicants; it is essential that you read these guidelines carefully.
  • The preparedness for research section includes an optional widening participation statement which candidates can use to provide context on aspects of their preparedness and on their motivation to undertake doctoral study. Assessors will consider information provided in the widening participation statement alongside other answers in the preparedness for research section. CHASE invite widening participation statements from candidates who are from any under-represented groups, including people with disabilities, ethnic minorities (especially Black British), lower income families and mature students.

How your CHASE application will be considered at Birkbeck

CHASE DTP studentships are awarded on a competitive basis and we can nominate a limited number of candidates to be considered by CHASE for entry in Autumn 2025. For the 2024-25 competition each CHASE partner was allowed to put forward a maximum of 17 nominees.

The internal selection process will conclude with a College-wide panel who will identify the strongest 17 nominees to go forward to the final AHRC CHASE DTP selection panels.

CHASE competition outcomes

It is expected that CHASE will notify successful candidates of outcomes by the end of May 2025.