The London Interdisciplinary Social Science DTP

The London Interdisciplinary Social Science DTP funds postgraduate training across multiple universities, supporting doctoral students in social science research. This matters because the UK needs a steady pipeline of skilled researchers who can tackle complex social challenges—from inequality and public health to economic change and digital transformation. Without coordinated training infrastructure, individual universities struggle to provide the breadth of expertise and cross-disciplinary collaboration that modern social science demands. The DTP model addresses this gap by pooling resources, supervision, and training across institutions. If successful, this programme will produce a generation of social scientists equipped to work across traditional disciplinary boundaries. Their research could influence policy on housing, education, labour markets, or community cohesion—areas that quietly shape everyday life but rarely make headlines. The training itself also strengthens the UK’s research capacity, ensuring that public investment in social science yields rigorous, relevant findings. This is primarily a capacity-building and training initiative rather than a single research project. Its impact will be measured in the careers and discoveries of the students it supports, not in a specific technological or policy outcome.