AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (CDP) Studentship

Title: Compound climate hazards and the future of vegetation management on built heritage in England (with English Heritage and in association with St Cross College).

Start date: 1st October 2025

Eligibility: Students eligible for home or overseas fees.

Application Deadline: 12 noon on 9th May 2025
Interviews will take place on Tuesday 20th May or Wednesday 21st May 2025.

The University of Oxford and English Heritage are pleased to announce the availability of a fully funded Collaborative doctoral studentship from October 2025 under the AHRC's Collaborative Doctoral Partnerships (CDP) scheme.

The project will investigate how compound hazards affect the growth and management of vegetation at heritage sites across England using numerical modelling and case studies, with results aiding the development of practical guidelines for managing vegetation at ruined sites. This project will be jointly supervised by Prof. Heather Viles (University of Oxford), Dr Paul Lankester (English Heritage), and Dr Jenny Richards (University of Oxford) and the student will be expected to spend time at both the University of Oxford and English Heritage, as well as becoming part of the wider cohort of CDP funded students across the UK.

• The studentship can be studied either full or part-time.
• We encourage applications from a diverse range of people, from different backgrounds and career stages.
• Students should have a Masters Degree in a relevant subject or can demonstrate relevant equivalent experience.

The studentship is open to both home and international applicants.

Project Overview

Compound climate hazards (such as the combination of temperature and rainfall changes and extreme events) pose serious risks for England’s built heritage. In particular, compound hazards will affect vegetation growth – some species of which are known to cause deterioration, while other forms of vegetation provide protection. This project aims to understand how such compound hazards will affect the growth and management of vegetation across the National Heritage Collection, with a focus on ruined sites. The project will combine a numerical modelling approach (to provide a generalised picture of risk across the whole Collection) with a case study-based approach (to provide a more detailed assessment of how compound hazards will affect the nature and impacts of vegetation at varied sites across a range of locations).

Research objectives include:

1. To understand the key vegetation types found at built heritage sites in England and whether they are deteriorative, benign or protective;
2. To explore how compound climate hazards in future will affect the distribution of these vegetation types across the national built heritage collection in England, and what impacts this will have on deterioration risks;
3. To determine how the challenges and opportunities of compound climate hazards and vegetation can best be anticipated and adapted to through pro-active sustainable management.

Details of Award

CDP doctoral training grants fund full-time studentships for 48 months (4 years) or part-time equivalent up to a maximum of 8 years.

The award pays tuition fees up to the value of the full-time home fee. Research Councils UK Indicative Fee Level for 2024/2025 is £5,006. Students with an 'overseas' fee status are welcome to apply and will be required to reside in the UK until completion of the PhD.

The award pays an annual stipend for all students, both home and international students. This stipend is tax free, and is the equivalent of an annual salary, enabling the student to pay living costs. The UKRI Minimum Doctoral Stipend for 2024/2025 is £20,780 plus an allowance of £1000/year as the partner organisation (English Heritage) is based in London, but the University is outside of London. There is also a CDP maintenance payment of £600 per year.

Further details can be found on the UKRI website.

The successful candidate is eligible to receive an additional travel and related expenses grant during the course of the project courtesy of HBMCE worth up to £1000 per year for 4 years.

The successful candidate will be encouraged to participate in professional development events and activities organised for all Collaborative Doctoral Partnership students who are registered with different universities and studying with cultural and heritage organisations across the UK. These activities are organised by a coordination team based at the V&A and are designed to provide CDP researchers with the knowledge, networks and skills to thrive in their future careers.

This research studentship is one allocated to the University of Oxford by the AHRC. The successful student will be expected to spend time carrying out research and gaining relevant experience with the partner at English Heritage sites across the country as part of the studentship.

The student will be a member of St Cross College.

Eligibility

• This studentship is open to both Home and International applicants.
• Further guidance can be found here based on revisions to Training Grant Terms and Conditions for projects starting in October 2025 - Policy statement: review of the training grant conditions – UKRI.
• International students are eligible to receive the full award for maintenance as are home students and the department will cover any difference in fees between home and overseas rates.
• We want to encourage the widest range of potential students to study for a CDP studentship and are committed to welcoming students from different backgrounds to apply. We particularly welcome applications from people of Global Majority backgrounds as they are currently underrepresented at this level in this area.
• Applicants should ideally have or expect to receive a relevant Masters-level qualification in a relevant subject: Geography, Environmental Science, Heritage Science, Data Science, Archaeology, Climate Science or Ecology or be able to demonstrate equivalent experience in a professional setting such as Geography, Heritage Science, Data Science, Archaeology, Climate Science or Ecology.
• Applicants must be able to demonstrate an interest in the natural and historic environment and potential and enthusiasm for developing skills more widely in related areas. Applicants should also be able to demonstrate an aptitude for using computational methods.
• Applicants selected for interview will be given clear guidance around what to expect at interview, with interview questions shared in advance.
• Applicants can request reasonable adjustments if required (e.g. opportunities to: speak with project supervisors at HEI and CDP Award Holder about the project and the process, speak with contacts within the HEI and/or CDP Award Holder regarding institutional support systems (e.g. neurodiversity, racial diversity and LGBTQIA+ networks, mental health support, support for carers), visit the relevant building and room prior to interview, as well as on-site guidance (demonstrating accessible routes and/or familiarity with building layouts for example), and speak with active CDP students to ask questions regarding student experience as part of the CDP scheme.
• As a collaborative award, students will be expected to spend time at both the University and English Heritage.

NB. All applicants must meet UKRI terms and conditions for funding. See: https://www.ukri.org/funding/information-for-award-holders/grant-terms-and-conditions/