Centres for Doctoral Training

The EPSRC & NERC Centres for Doctoral Training (CDT) train future leaders for industry and research and thus provide a different type of doctoral training experience to a conventional PhD. While the CDT experience retains the depth, rigour and focus of a conventional PhD, it also provides a broader training experience. The CDTs' multi-disciplinary research teams work closely with industry to develop and train future engineers with technical interdisciplinary skills and an understanding of how to make cities productive, sustainable, resilient and healthy places for people to live.

The Centres are committed to developing the new generation of highly-skilled professionals needed to meet the challenges facing the infrastructure, energy, transport and sustainability sectors, training people to be effective at cross-disciplinary team working and who appreciate how their research relates to major sustainable engineering challenges.

CDTs provide an innovative and flexible, cohort-based training programme with an ethos of responsible innovation and equality, diversity and inclusion (ED&I) at its core. 

UKCRIC’s CDT Network Programme is a key pillar of our activity, with an emphasis upon co-creating and building equal partner relationships between CDTs and between CDTs and UKCRIC. Working closely with each CDT, UKCRIC co-creates a programme of skills events designed to benefit the whole programme by connecting CDTs, engaging with PGRs and providing opportunities to meet and share knowledge and experiences with a wide community of researchers.

UKCRIC’s CDT Network Programme offers:

• A subscription to the UKCRIC Doctoral Skills Network (DSN) for all CDT PGRs (separate sign up required)
• Access to UKCRIC’s CDT Manager Support Network (separate sign up required)
• Joint CDT events hosted at UKCRIC facilities including tours, academic talks, cohort building and skills training
• Online and in-person skills events and CDT conferences
• Facilities access for research purposes
• Curation and amplification of relevant skills events and opportunities on the UKCRIC DSN webpage, in the DSN newsletter and via social media
• Support shaping and organising skills events and opportunities

What UKCRIC’s CDT Network Skills Programme asks of participating CDTs:

• Active participation in the co-creation of the Skills Programme
• Each CDT organises and hosts at least one online event per year that is open to the UKCRIC DSN
• Each CDT organises and hosts at least one in-person event per year that is made available to the UKCRIC DSN either free or at a reduced-rate

There is no additional fee to become part of the UKCRIC CDT Network Skills Programme or to subscribe to the UKCRIC Doctoral Skills Network, these are added value offerings for institutional membership of UKCRIC. The Programme benefits from access to UKCRIC’s Operations team (including UKCRIC’s dedicated Skills Manager) and Executive Board Skills and Training Lead.

The vision of UKCRIC is to create, operate and coordinate a national and international multidisciplinary portfolio of research programmes in a partnership between government, industry, and academia to construct and execute a set of research and education programmes that sustainably address the nation’s infrastructure and urban system needs. By working together, we can provide the UK with the tools and knowledge to transform its infrastructure and built environment so they are fit for the 21^st century.

CDTs in UKCRIC Institutions