PhD Humanitarianism and Conflict Response / Overview

Year of entry: 2024

Degree awarded
Doctor of Philosophy
Duration
3 years full-time, 7 years part-time
Entry requirements
  • Bachelor's (Honours) degree at 2:1 or above (or overseas equivalent); and 
  • Master's degree in a relevant subject – with an overall average of 65% or above, a minimum mark of 65% in your dissertation and no mark below 55% (or overseas equivalent) 
  • Any strong relevant professional experience will be considered on a case by case basis.

Full entry requirements

How to apply

Apply online  

Please ensure you include all  required supporting documents  at the time of submission, as incomplete applications may not be considered. 

Application Deadlines 

For consideration in internal funding competitions, you must submit your completed application by  12 January 2024. 

If you are applying for or have secured external funding (for example, from an employer or government) or are self–funding, you must submit your application before the below deadlines to be considered. You will not be able to apply after these dates have passed. 

  • For September 2024 entry:  30 June 2024 
  • For January 2025 entry:  30 September 2024 

Programme options

Full-time Part-time Full-time distance learning Part-time distance learning
PhD Y Y N N

Programme description

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The Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute

Our PhD in Humanitarianism and Conflict Response is inspired by the need to conduct rigorous, in-depth research and analysis on the impact and outcomes of contemporary and historical crises.

It is driven by a desire to inform and support policy and practice, to optimise joint working between partner organisations, and to foster increased understanding and debate within the field of humanitarianism and global health.

The PhD is a three-year course of study (or six years of part-time study) in which you prepare a thesis under the guidance of two supervisors with specialist expertise.

Your progress is monitored at regular meetings of your research panel (two supervisors plus a reviewer who is independent of the supervisory team), which also provides guidance on research training and career development.

We welcome applications from students wishing to study in the interdisciplinary research areas of global health, disaster response and humanitarian aid.

As a postgraduate researcher in HCRI, you will join an active and accessible research community. Our interests are varied in terms of disciplines, geographies, time periods, and topics.

We also encourage researchers to connect with other departments across the University.

Integrated with our research goals, the HCRI PhD programme offers a flexible approach to the provision of teaching, to identify and challenge current assumptions about issues such as aid, conflict response and governance.

It aims to prepare the next generation of crisis response researchers and practitioners, while also seeking to understand the experiences of people affected by crises, to engage with their perspectives and help make their voices heard.

This PhD therefore reflects the need for structured forms of professional development and reflective thinking that can function effectively across multiple academic and non-academic contexts. 

It will introduce students to a range of dynamic and challenging concepts and methods with which to reflect critically and constructively on their professional context and experience.

The aim of the programme is to produce students who are critical, independent researchers, and you are from the outset encouraged to disseminate your work at seminars and conferences and by publishing in high-quality forums.

The programme culminates in the submission of an 80,000-word dissertation (or alternative format) that makes an original contribution to knowledge.

Open days

Find out what it's like to study at Manchester by visiting us on one of our  open days.

Fees

For entry in the academic year beginning September 2024, the tuition fees are as follows:

  • PhD (full-time)
    UK students (per annum): £7,000
    International, including EU, students (per annum): £21,500
  • PhD (part-time)
    UK students (per annum): £3,500

Further information for EU students can be found on our dedicated EU page.

Please note for the majority of projects where experimentation requires further resource: higher fee bands (where quoted) will be charged rather than the base rate for supervision, administration and computational costs. The fees quoted above will be fully inclusive and, therefore, you will not be required to pay any additional bench fees or administration costs.

All fees for entry will be subject to yearly review and incremental rises per annum are also likely over the duration of the course for UK/EU students (fees are typically fixed for International students, for the course duration at the year of entry). For general fees information please visit: postgraduate fees . Always contact the department if you are unsure which fee applies to your project.

Scholarships/sponsorships

There are a range of scholarships, studentships and awards to support both UK and overseas postgraduate researchers, details of which can be found via the links below.

To apply University of Manchester funding, you must indicate in your application the competitions for which you wish to be considered. The deadline for most internal competitions, including AHRC NWCDTP and School of Arts, Languages and Cultures studentships is 12 January 2024. 

All external funding competitions have a specified deadline for submitting the funding application form and a separate (earlier) deadline for submitting the online programme application form, both of which will be stated in the funding competition details below.  

For more information about funding, visit our funding page to browse for scholarships, studentships and awards you may be eligible for.

Contact details

School/Faculty
School of Arts, Languages and Cultures
Contact name
Humanities Doctoral Academy Admissions
Email
Website
https://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/
School/Faculty

See: About us

Programmes in related subject areas

Use the links below to view lists of programmes in related subject areas.

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