DTA - University of St Andrews

This grant funds doctoral training partnerships, not a specific research project — it supports the next generation of scientists and engineers through postgraduate education. The problem this addresses is straightforward: the UK needs a steady pipeline of skilled researchers to keep its science and engineering sectors competitive. Without sustained investment in training, the country risks losing its capacity to innovate in fields ranging from quantum computing to clean energy. This grant provides the infrastructure — supervision, lab access, and course funding — that turns graduates into independent researchers. The impact is indirect but foundational. Every EPSRC-funded PhD student trained through this partnership will go on to work on specific problems: more efficient solar cells, faster computer chips, stronger aircraft materials, or better medical imaging. The grant does not solve any of those problems directly. Instead, it creates the people who will. This is fundamentally a capacity-building investment. It is not curiosity-driven science — it is the mechanism that makes curiosity-driven science possible. Without training grants like this one, the UK’s research base would gradually shrink as senior researchers retire with no one to replace them.