PhD Economics / Programme details

Our five-year PhD programme consists of: 

• Two years of formal training;
• Three years of independent research (with the possibility of a 6th year, for writing up). 

The first year of the programme is equivalent to an MSc in Economics and candidates that have already gained a similar qualification at 2:1 level or above, can be considered for entry directly into the second year.  

In Year 2, you will take advanced PhD level courses and work on your research proposal, which will represent the basis of the subsequent three years of research.  

The programme structure aligns to that of top institutions in the US and the UK, providing you with rigorous advanced training and sufficient time for producing independent research, giving you a competitive edge in the job market.  

We admit around 8-10 PGRs per year, and five-year scholarships from the department/school are available. There is also the possibility to compete for ESRC funding. 

Find out more on our Economics PhD programme webpages.

When you become a postgraduate researcher, you'll join a diverse and vibrant community of doctoral students from nearly 100 different countries, all studying within the Faculty of Humanities.  

You'll be assigned to a specific research area that complements your research interests and have access to a variety of interdisciplinary research institutes. 

Our working environments are often spacious and open-plan, giving you plenty of opportunities to communicate with colleagues and staff within the School. You will have your own desk space as well as access to our fantastic range of libraries on campus. 

All of our academic supervisors are research active and will support you to work on challenging research problems and develop rigorous, creative and original research. 

You can expect to meet with your supervisor at least once a month to discuss progress on your project. 

You will have access to a large and diverse community of internationally recognised academic experts offering an environment that will stimulate intellectual debate and development. 

We provide additional financial support for a number of activities related to your PhD, including: 

• presenting at international conferences;
• attending workshops that provide relevant professional opportunities;
• conducting fieldwork in the UK and overseas;
• hands-on, paid teaching experience as a Graduate Teaching Assistant.  

Graduate Teaching Assistants are valued members of the teaching team. As such, we take pride in the opportunities provided for the professional development of graduate teaching assistants.  

Our training includes preparation for application to the Associate Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy. This brings a range of benefits:

• consolidates your personal development and emphasises your professional practice in HE;
• entitlement to use post-nominal letters – AFHEA;
• provides a valuable measure of success and is increasingly sought by employers across the education sector as a condition of appointment and promotion;
• recognised and valued by a growing number of international institutions. 

See the Associate Fellowship website for more information.