EPSRC puts £250m into Doctoral training centres
1 min read
Described as the biggest ever investment in training scientists and engineers, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council has allocated £250million to create 44 training centres across the UK.
Planned to generate more than 2000 PhD students, the centres will tackle some of the biggest problems currently facing Britain, including climate change, energy, the ageing population and high tech crime.
Science minister Lord Drayson said: “This is an exciting, innovative approach to training young researchers and will help build a better future for Britain.
According to the EPSRC, the Centres for Doctoral Training are a bold new approach to training PhD students, creating communities of researchers working on current and future challenges. Of the 44 centres, 17 will be industrial training centres that will equip students with the business skills they need to turn pioneering ideas into products and services, boosting their impact on the UK’s economy.
Professor Dave Delpy, pictured, EPSRC chief executive, said: “Centres for Doctoral Training expand our existing training portfolio, focus on priority themes for the UK, emerging and multidisciplinary research and greater collaboration with business.”
The multidisciplinary centres will bring together diverse areas of expertise to train engineers and scientists with the skills, knowledge and confidence to tackle evolving issues. They also create new working cultures, build relationships between teams in universities and forge lasting links with industry.
Students in these centres will receive a formal programme of taught coursework to develop and enhance their technical interdisciplinary knowledge and broaden their skills. Alongside this, they will undertake a challenging and original research project at PhD level.
