PhD Studentship in Law and/or Criminology

Supervisors:  To be determined depending on the candidate

Project Overview:   

We are currently inviting applications for a funded PhD studentship in any area of law and/or criminology. The School of Law prides itself on providing an inclusive, vibrant, and supportive research environment for our thriving community of doctoral researchers. We have three active research centres in the School:

• Law, Justice and Society
• Global Law at Reading
• The Centre for Commercial Law and Financial Regulation

Eligibility: 

Only high-quality candidates with strong research proposals in an area where we have supervisory capacity/support will be considered. Selection criteria are:

1. Academic excellence of the applicant. The panel will look for evidence of the candidate's research ability as indicated by, for instance, qualifications and relevant experience/publications.
2. Quality of the research proposal (including methodological relevance and innovation, original contribution to knowledge, fit with the School, project feasibility, etc.).
3. Applicants must have an offer of a place to study for a PhD at the School of Law for a September 2026 start (or later in the 2026/27 academic year, as agreed).
4. Candidates must not hold any other scholarship supporting the proposed PhD research.

Funding Details:   

• 3-year award (or equivalent for part-time students)
• Funding covers full Home tuition fees plus UKRI stipend (£20,780 for 2025/26). The funding covers tuition fees at Home rate ONLY and International students will need to cover the difference between Home and International fees.
• Research training allowance (£500/subject to application)

How to apply:  

Applicants must follow a two-step process.

Step 1:

Apply for a PhD position by 12 noon Monday 12^th January 2026. Earlier applications are strongly encouraged. To apply, click the 'Apply' button above and create your account, and use the link sent by email to start the application process. During the application process please select PhD in Law.

*Important notes*

• 1) Please quote the reference ‘DRC26-003’ in the ‘Scholarships applied for’ box which appears within the Funding Section of your online application.
• 2) If the application system prompts you to submit a research proposal, please paste in the project title and move on to the next step in the application.

Step 2:

Applicants need to send the following by 12 noon Monday 2^nd February 2026 by email to phdstudentship@reading.ac.uk;

• (a) A fully referenced research proposal (maximum 1000 words excluding references and project title). The proposal must articulate clear, analytical research questions. It should indicate clearly how the research will advance the field, and why it is feasible and timely. The originality and significance of the research will be key selection criteria, so these must be emphasised and made apparent for non-specialists.
• (b) A two-page CV outlining the applicant’s qualifications, experience, and relevant publications/funding etc.

Notification of decisions by the end of March 2026.

Further Enquiries:  

For further details please contact Dr. Nora Honkala (Deputy Director of Postgraduate Research) – n.a.honkala@reading.ac.uk .

Please note that, where a candidate is successful in being awarded funding, this will be confirmed via a formal studentship award letter; this will be provided separately from any Offer of Admission and will be subject to standard checks for eligibility and other criteria. 

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