Postgraduate Prospectus

Funding your studies | www.essex.ac.uk
How do I pay?
For taught courses, most of our students
meet the costs of studying through a
combination of personal savings, family
savings, loans and part-time employment.
Many postgraduates find employment
alongside their studies and the Careers
Centre at our Colchester Campus and the
JobShop at our Southend Campus are
good places to look for part-time work.
If you are an international student, you
should check whether your government
provides loans for international study at
taught or research level.
Sources of financial
support
The following pages outline just some
of the funding options available to you.
Funding for postgraduate study is highly
competitive so it is important that you fully
research the options available to you. The
tuition fee loans, maintenance grants and
student loans for UK undergraduates do
not apply to postgraduates, so our students
usually explore a wide range of options
to fund further studies. It is important that
you do not begin your postgraduate studies
without making sure you have enough
money to cover all your academic fees
and living expenses.
University of Essex Scholarships
Our Scholarships support talented
postgraduates from the UK, the EU and
overseas, particularly PhD students, to
study with us. Scholarships are awarded
annually by our departments, schools
and centres. Awards are for up to three
years and designed for those who would
be unable to take up a place without them.
You can submit an application once
you have an offer of study. For further
details please visit: www.essex.ac.uk/
studentfinance/pg/university_support/
scholarships.aspx.
Sources of financial
support for UK and
EU students
Research council funding
If you are from the UK or EU, then you
may consider applying for a studentship
from one of our seven research councils,
each of which fund a different area of
postgraduate study. Please be aware
that the application process is extremely
competitive and applications always
outnumber the awards available. Individual
research councils are listed below; please
consult our website at: www.essex.ac.uk/
studentfinance/pg/government_support/
research.aspx for more details and
application procedures.
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences
Research Council (BBSRC)
www.bbsrc.ac.uk
Engineering and Physical Sciences
Research Council (EPSRC)
www.epsrc.ac.uk
Medical Research Council (MRC)
www.mrc.ac.uk
Natural Environment Research
Council (NERC)
www.nerc.ac.uk
Economic and Social Research
Council (ESRC)
www.esrc.ac.uk
Arts and Humanities Research
Council (AHRC)
www.ahrc.ac.uk
Science and Technology Facilities
Council (STFC)
www.scitech.ac.uk
Economic and Social Research Council
Doctoral Training Centre Scholarships
We have become one of just 21
ESRC-accredited Doctoral Training
Centres found in the UK, following a highly
competitive selection process. This honour
cements our long standing reputation
as a world class centre for social science
research. Our ESRC Doctoral Training
Centre means we can offer fully funded
ESRC studentships across over 20 doctoral
pathways. You can submit an application
once you have an offer of study with us.
For more information, see:
www.essex.ac.uk/dtc.
Our ESRC DTC studentships encourage
research into a range of social science
and related areas, including:
n criminology and socio-legal research;
n economic and social research;
n economics and econometrics;
n environmental governance;
n finance;
n health and organisational research;
n human rights;
n language and linguistics;
n management and accounting;
n political economy;
n politics and international relations;
n psychoanalytic studies; and
n sociology and social change.
The Essex Silberrad Scholarships
These scholarships are awarded to
research students classified as Home/EU
fee status at the point of admission, who
already hold an Essex degree (either
undergraduate or postgraduate). They are
awarded per annum and the amount will
cover all your tuition fees and approximately
50 per cent of average living costs per year
of study. Details are at: www.essex.ac.uk/
studentfinance/pg/university_support.
Professional and Career Development
Loans (PCDLs)
For information on financial assistance
to support your learning, visit:
www.direct.gov.uk/adultlearning or
telephone: +44 (0)800 100900.
NHS funding
There is support for tuition fees and
bursaries for living costs if you are on
our postgraduate pre-registration health
professional training courses offered by
our School of Health and Human Sciences
(page 114). Eligible courses are MSc
Nursing (Adult), MSc Nursing (Mental
Health), MSc Occupational Therapy,
MSc Physiotherapy and MSc Speech
30 | Postgraduate Prospectus 2012