PhD funding opportunities for 2026 entry

This webpage has been updated on 7 October 2025. Check again from time to time for updates.

The School of Modern Languages and Cultures (SMLC) at the University of Warwick is pleased to invite applications for doctoral study commencing in October 2026. We will be looking for outstanding applicants with an excellent academic curriculum, and a well-developed research proposal that is a good fit with our areas of expertise.

Please get in touch early to identify potential supervisors and to prepare a robust application.

• For more information on prerequisites and how apply for a place of study (admission), please see here.
• To search for relevant research expertise among our staff, see here. The School Director of Graduate Studies (Prof. Ingrid De Smet) and PGR admission advisors (see below) will also be pleased to advise on this.

The main funding opportunities for 2026 entry are advertised on the website of Warwick’s Doctoral College. Please note the early deadlines.

We do our best to advise applicants on the (dual) process of applying for admission and funding; however, the advice below is intended to supplement, but does not replace, any scheme-specific guidance provided by the relevant funder. It is the applicant's responsibility to familiarise themselves with the original guidance and criteria and to meet any relevant deadlines.

The SMLC will nominate a number of first-rate applications for the following funding opportunities, for which there is now a single funding application process:

• Chancellor’s Scholarships: open to both national and international students, in any discipline. Interdisciplinary projects are permitted.
• Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) Scholarships: open to applicants applying with projects with the AHRC's research remit.
• Doctoral Access Scholarships – Sanctuary: open to applicants who meet the specified criteria re asylum in the UK or who are supported by the Council for At-Risk Academics (CARA).
• Doctoral Access Scholarships – Pathway: open to applicants who self-identify as Black or as of Black heritage.
• University of Warwick/China Scholarship Council (CSC) scholarships: open to holders of a People's Republic of China passport (other criteria apply).
• Monash Warwick Alliance Scholarships (Warwick): applicants must apply for an eligible, joint MWA course. All PhD programmes in our School have a MWA 'variant', so make sure you pick the correct course code. You will need to have one or more supervisors at both universities.

We are also happy to discuss applicants who have other relevant funding options, or want to pursue self-funded study.

About the SMLC

The School of Modern Languages and Cultures at Warwick offers its graduate students a vibrant research culture and community, with around 45 students currently enrolled on PhD and MA by Research programmes in the School, alongside a cohort of taught Master’s students and a fluctuating number of postdoctoral research fellows.

Postgraduate researchers play a vital role in our research community, together with postdoctoral researchers and academic staff of national and international renown. In the 2021REF exercise (a national research evaluation) 82% of our research outputs and 100% of our research environment were judged to be ‘world-leading or internationally excellent.

Our research expertise ranges from the Early Modern period to the present. We study Modern Languages (French, German, Italian, Iberian languages, and Chinese) in a broad intellectual, global and transcultural context, covering literature; cultural, social and intellectual history; film; politics and society; philosophy; and translation studies. To search for a potential supervisor in the School by specialism, click here. (Please note that not all colleagues may be available as supervisors or have capacity to take on new students.)

Individual staff and their specialisms can be viewed here.

Applicants who interested in doctoral study in Modern Languages (French Studies, German Studies, Hispanic Studies, Italian Studies, Translation and Transcultural Studies) at Warwick are invited to get in touch with us via the SMLC Office, or contact:

• the School Director of Graduate Studies, Professor Ingrid De Smet

PhD admissions advisors for each of our programmes:

• French: Prof. Ingrid De Smet
• German: Dr James Hodkinson
• Hispanic Studies: Dr Tom Whittaker
• Italian: Prof. Jenny Burns
• Translation & Transcultural Studies: Dr Caroline Summers

• an academic CV (detailing your academic curriculum to date, including undergraduate and master's results, and any other relevant training)
• an indication of possible supervisors (where known)

• a draft proposal (c. 2 pages) (not AI-generated)