DTP Bid Led by Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine

The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine will lead a consortium to train the next generation of doctoral researchers through a Medical Research Council-funded partnership. This grant addresses a structural gap in the UK research system: how to sustain a pipeline of skilled scientists capable of tackling complex health challenges, particularly those affecting low- and middle-income countries. Without dedicated training infrastructure, early-career researchers lack the funding stability, cross-institutional collaboration, and supervisory networks needed to develop expertise in areas such as infectious disease control, health systems strengthening, and global health security. If successful, this Doctoral Training Partnership will produce cohorts of PhD graduates equipped to work across academia, policy, and practice. The impact is primarily on the research workforce itself—ensuring that the UK retains and develops talent in fields where public health threats emerge and evolve. This is not fundamental science with immediate practical applications; it is an investment in the people who will conduct that science. Similar training partnerships have historically built the capacity behind breakthroughs in malaria vaccines, antimicrobial resistance surveillance, and neglected tropical disease elimination.