MRC DTP/CASE: How to apply

Applying to this programme is a two-stage process

Stage 1

During stage one we will ask you to submit a form consisting of:

• Title, name, contact details, nationality and fee status
• Selection of your preferred project choice
• Motivation for applying to the programme
• Your academic qualifications
• Relevant professional or voluntary experience
• Relevant publications you have contributed to

Successful candidates will be notified by Friday 9^th February and will be invited to make a full application to the programme, where you will also be given an interview date in Spring.  We will only request references if you progress to stage two, but we would recommend having this ready as well as evidence of how you meet the English language requirements

Please note: If you are applying for a Lancaster based project, The University of Lancaster English language requirements apply instead. If you are unsure whether you meet the Lancaster English language requirements, please discuss this with pgadmissions@lancaster.ac.uk. 

Recruitment is conducted to ensure Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and in this first stage, any personal identifiable information will be removed from the application before it reaches the assessment panel.

Deadline for stage one applications: 23:59 (GMT) on Sunday 21st January 2024

Stage 2

You will be informed of the outcome of your Stage 1 application by Friday 9^th February 2024, and if successful in this initial stage, you will be invited to submit a full application to the programme by Friday 8^th March 2024.

Deadline for stage two: 13:00 (GMT) on Friday 8^th March 2024

Shortlisting complete by: 25th March 2024

Interviews by: Date TBC - April 2024

If you have not previously applied for an LSTM programme then you will first need to register with MyLSTM

If you have any questions, please contact pgr@lstmed.ac.uk. Please bear in mind that the team receives a high volume of queries, therefore please ensure that you submit any questions or highlight any issues with your application as far in advance of the deadline for submission as possible. The team will also be unavailable between 20^th December 2023 – 2^nd January 2024.

Before submitting, you should review your draft application and ensure that any relevant supporting documentation is attached where appropriate. It is your responsibility to ensure that relevant documents are included.

Please note: LSTM can make an offer of funding for a successful candidate, but a final Confirmation of Place is required in order to take up that funding on a LSTM or Lancaster PhD programme.

If you are applying for a Lancaster based project, a Confirmation of Place letter is required from Lancaster once they have reviewed the English language, qualification, and visa requirements. If you are unsure whether you will meet any of these requirements for a Lancaster based PhD programme, please speak to pgadmissions@lancaster.ac.uk.

Please read this guide when making an application to the programme

1.Welcome

Please let us know how you heard about the programme.

2.Personal Details

Please provide your name exactly in the format that it appears in your passport. If you have ever held any other names previously then please indicate them here.

You should also complete all fields related to contact details, country and nationality.

Under the ‘Passport’ section, you must ensure that you provide all details (passport number, country of issues, expiry date) and a scanned copy of your passport photo page. To upload a copy of your passport, select ‘Choose file’ and select from your computer.

3.Address Details

Although most of our correspondence will be with you by email, we may, on occasion, be required to send something via post.

Please provide details of your permanent home address, which is the address where you usually live.

If you prefer correspondence to be sent to a different address, then please also complete the Correspondence Address section.

4.Study & Research

Please use this page to indicate which projects you intend to be considered for. You may select up to three projects from the list provided, and must select at least one to proceed with submission of your application. You should select your project preferences  based on the more comprehensive project details that are available on the PhD Opportunities page. Your project preferences only indicate an expression of interest and does not secure a particular project to your application or admission.

If you are successful in reaching the interview stage, the admissions team will contact you to confirm your preferred ranking of projects, where an updated list of projects will be provided.

5. Academic Qualifications

It is the policy of the DTP to consider only applicants that hold at least a first class or high upper second-class Honours degree, or a degree of comparable standard awarded from outside the UK. A Masters degree (at merit or distinction preferable) is also welcomed, but not a pre-requisite. We encourage applications from candidates of a wide range of academic disciplines, including but not limited to; medicinal chemistry, molecular and vector biology, parasitology, entomology, pharmacology, clinical specialties, epidemiology, statistics, health informatics, mathematics, economics, social and management science.

Where an applicant does not meet the Honours degree requirement (e.g they hold a lower second class Honours degree), they may be eligible to apply if they also hold a Master’s degree with an awarded distinction in an area relevant to the MRC DTP. To be considered for this exemption, the qualification must be awarded at time of application and candidates must provide an award certificate and transcript for both qualifications. Unfortunately, we are not unable to consider Masters qualifications that have not yet been awarded for this purpose.

Please provide full details of any relevant academic qualifications that you hold or expect to be awarded and upload both award certificate and transcript. You can do this selecting ‘Choose file’ under ‘Associated Certificate or Transcript’. In order to add your documentation efficiently please upload both your certificate and transcript as either a single merged/scanned document, or please save your certificate and transcript to an individual folder on your computer (i.e. named ‘BSc degree;), zip the folder, and attach this as a single file. Instructions on zipping folders can be found here.

Please don’t attempt to upload multiple documents to a single Academic Qualification record as this will result in errors with your application.

6. Professional Qualifications

Feel free to any details of any relevant professional or other qualifications that you hold and, where applicable, upload any documentation relevant to the qualification.

7. Experience/Employment

You do not need to add details of individual employment experiences you have here for the purpose of your DTP application. Instead:

Under ‘Position Held’ you should input ‘Curriculum Vitae’. Under Associated Evidence you should upload a copy of your Curriculum Vitae/Resume by clicking ‘Select File’.

8. English Language

In order to ensure that candidates are equipped with the skills to successfully pursue studies effectively and are able to participate in all aspects of academic life, you must provide evidence that you meet LSTM’s minimum English Language Requirements . Please provide relevant documentary evidence where required.

9. Personal Statement

This section gives you the opportunity to explain:

• Why you have chosen to apply to this programme
• Why you want to study at LSTM/Lancaster University
• What you hope to gain from your studies
• How this programme fits with your career plans
• What skills and experiences you would bring to the DTP community
• What long-term benefits you would envisage (both personally, and in relation to the objectives of the DTP programme) if you were to be accepted.

You should form your response in relation to the DTP primarily, but may also discuss how you feel you are suited to the particular project(s) you have selected too.

You are able to upload a personal statement to this section rather than complete the provided fields, and it is preferred that you use the upload facility. If you upload a personal statement you must ensure that you structure and provide response to each of the questions above.

10. Fees and Funding

Please select ‘MRC Doctoral Training Partnership’ from the drop-down menu.

11. References

Please provide the names and contact details of 2 suitable referees who have indicated that they are willing to provide a reference for you. Suitable referees are senior academic and/or professional persons who are currently or have recently been responsible for supervising you and must also have an institutional/organisational email address which you should provide (i.e. not gmail/Hotmail etc.) Friends and family are not acceptable. If you upload details of a referee that contains a non-institutional email address, the reference may not be considered.

Please ensure that you select ‘Add Another Referee’ in order to add details of a second referee before submitting your application.

When applying to the MRC DTP/CASE programme you are not required to upload reference letters as the details that you provide will be used to contact the referee directly. If you do have any references to hand which you feel meet requirements and are dated within 2 years you are able to upload these.

At least 1 reference must be received by the application deadline. If you are invited to interview, a second reference must be received by the date of your interview.

12. Visa and Immigration

Please select the relevant option from the drop-down menu when/if presented.

13. Equal Opportunities

Please complete as fully as possible.

Your data will not be disclosed for any other purposes outside of LSTM’s Student Data Privacy Statement

14. Submit Application

You can save and return to your application if you do not intend to complete it in one sitting by clicking the ‘Keep as Draft’ button and selecting ‘Save as Draft’.

If you have provided all of the mandatory information of the application, attached all required documentation, and are happy for your application to be reviewed you should click the ‘Confirmed Submission’ button and then select ‘Submit’.

Please ensure that you have attached all required documentation to your application before you select submit in order to be considered for shortlisting. You will be unable to review attachments after submission.

Ensure that you have:

• Uploaded or submitted details of all available academic qualification documentation
• Uploaded a Curriculum Vitae/Resume
• Uploaded a personal statement
• Uploaded or arranged submission of two references
• Uploaded evidence that you meet LSTM’s English Language Requirements

Until you have selected ‘Submit’ your application will remain in ‘Draft’ format and will not be reviewed.