-
- Our degrees
- Apply
- Entry requirements
- Fees and funding
- What is postgraduate study?
- Why Exeter?
- Interdisciplinary research
- Research excellence: Sciences
- Research excellence: Arts, humanities and social sciences
- Research with impact
- South West Doctoral Training Centre
- Directory of research activity
- Accommodation
- Locations
- Facilities and support
- Careers
- International students
- Postgraduate student life
- Our students
- Videos
- Visiting us
- Contact us
- Order a prospectus
- Disclaimer
Interdisciplinary research
Interdisciplinary research
South West Doctoral Training Centre to change the landscape of social science
The Universities of Bristol, Exeter and Bath have come together to form one of the UK’s largest centres of postgraduate research training for social scientists in fields ranging from economics and human geography to interdisciplinary studies in security, conflict, justice, health and wellbeing.
Together, the three universities educate over 5,000 masters and 1,600 doctoral students in the social sciences. The new centre draws on the established research excellence of the partners, including the expertise of more than 750 social science research staff. This represents one of the largest groupings of social scientists in the UK.
The Economic and Social Research Council has granted Doctoral Training Centre status to the collaboration. The South West Doctoral Training Centre (SWDTC) has been accredited to offer a hub of world-class social sciences research. As one of only 21 centres in the UK, the SWDTC is part of a national network that trains a new generation of social scientists.
The SWDTC offers research training in a comprehensive range of disciplines, including in the priority areas of economics and quantitative methodology. The SWDTC also expands social science training options beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries with innovative multidisciplinary programmes to encourage students to address important challenges in today’s society through their research. Themes tackled include lifestyle behaviours and public health, energy and sustainability, global development and security.
Close liaison with partners in the commercial, public and third sector, through placements and joint supervision, are central to the SWDTC as these experiences prepare students for careers in the global economy and promote knowledge exchange. The collaboration builds on the Great Western Research project that has united the three universities and a range of other partners over the last four years in offering doctoral training to over 130 students.
Research training pathways and postgraduate funding
The SWDTC delivers a number of research training pathways and has been allocated 41 studentships per annum in total across the three partner universities. Further details of the pathways and studentships currently available can be found on our SWDTC ESRC studentships webpage.
