Scottish ESRC Doctoral Training Centre DTC 2011 -

The University of Edinburgh is training the next generation of social scientists through a doctoral training centre funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. This matters because the UK needs skilled researchers who can tackle complex social and economic challenges—from inequality and public health to education policy and sustainable growth. Without sustained investment in postgraduate training, the pipeline of experts who produce the evidence that governments, charities, and businesses rely on would shrink. If this training succeeds, it will produce dozens of PhD graduates equipped to conduct rigorous, policy-relevant research. These researchers will go on to work in universities, think tanks, government departments, and the private sector, shaping decisions that affect how public money is spent, how services are delivered, and how society functions. The centre also strengthens Scotland’s research infrastructure by creating a critical mass of expertise in one place. This is a training grant, not a single research project. Its impact is indirect but fundamental: it sustains the human capital that makes all other social science research possible.