FAQs

  • What does LAHP fund?

    LAHP funds fees and stipends at the ‘Home’ rate. This is £4,786 fees and £21,237 stipend as of 2024/25, rates for 2025/26 will be confirmed in early 2025. The Home/Overseas fees difference is covered via separate awards or a fee waiver, by our partner institutions.

    LAHP can award up to 30% of its studentships (including stipend) to ‘International’ (including EU) students (Please refer to ‘Can international students apply for LAHP funding?). Initial funding is for up to three years’ full-time study or six years’ part-time study. Students may apply for an extension of up to six months based on research needs. Students can also apply for funding to support research and training; impact, engagement and entrepreneurship; and student-led activities.

  • What does LAHP provide beyond studentship funding?

    LAHP supports funded students through its training programme, which includes:

    • Language courses
    • Introductions to archives and collections
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Communication skills, including public engagement and public speaking
    • Writing retreats
    • Resilience and coping with stress
    • Academic and non-academic career development
    • Lectures and workshops on relevant topics

    LAHP supports funded students financially to allow them to engage in fieldwork and to attend conferences, and to take up training that is not provided in the LAHP training programme.

  • Can I apply for LAHP funding as a distance-learning student?

    An important element of the work of LAHP is the provision of training and cohort development events. These are normally provided in London venues, often with our non-HEI cultural partners, including museums. Involvement with London is a key theme of LAHP’s activities. For these reasons we require LAHP students to be based in London, and do not offer funding to distance-learning students.

  • Can I apply for a LAHP studentship without a Masters degree?

    LAHP welcomes applications from those who have completed a relevant Masters degree, those who are in the final year of their Masters degree, and those who have relevant professional and/or practitioner experience equivalent to a Masters degree.

  • Do I require an offer from a LAHP partner before applying for LAHP funding?

    No, but you must have submitted an application for a place on your chosen PhD programme and have selected your potential supervisor/supervisors. You MUST have applied for your place of study at your chosen institution before the application deadline of 31 January 2025. (Please note application deadlines for individual institutions might be different. Please check directly with your own institution.)

    Students must be in receipt of an offer on their chosen PhD programme by the end of February 2025.

  • Can I apply for funding if I am a current PhD student?

    If you have already commenced doctoral study, you may apply for funding for the remainder of your study, providing that, at the start of the AHRC award (1st October 2025), you will have at least 50% of the period of study remaining (excluding the writing-up period).

  • Can I apply for LAHP funding with more than one LAHP partner?

    You may only submit ONE application to LAHP for a studentship.  Although you may apply to more than one partner institution for research study, you must decide which of your chosen PhD programmes you will name on your LAHP application. The first named supervisor on your LAHP application must be from this partner institution. As part of the application, we will ask for these details and also the name of your proposed supervisor. You may wish to consider joint supervision between LAHP partners (see below).

  • Can I apply for LAHP funding if one of my supervisors is outside the LAHP partnership?

    Yes, but you must be registered for your PhD at one of LAHP’s partner HEIs and your main supervisor must be employed there: King’s College London, London School of Economics and Political Science, Queen Mary University London, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Royal College of Art, Royal College of Music, School of Advanced Study or University College London. Second supervisors may be drawn from other academic organisations and cultural and business institutions, and in some instances may be based in other universities. However, this must be in line with the academic regulations regarding supervision at your home institution.

  • What supervisory arrangements does LAHP offer? Can I have a first supervisor in one institution and a second in another?

    LAHP supports a number of supervisory arrangements, including first + second supervisor or joint supervision within a single HEI / subject area or across different HEIs / subject areas. It is important that the supervisory team are well-suited to support the proposed research. Please discuss the supervisory arrangements with your prospective first-named supervisor at an early stage as you develop your application.

  • What do I need to do to ensure that my first named supervisor submits the ‘Supervisor statement’ by 5pm on 31 January 2025?

    Your application will be incomplete unless it includes the ‘Supervisor statement’ from your first named supervisor. Please let your first named supervisor know that you will be notifying them via the online application portal. This notification will include a link for your supervisor to submit their statement as part of your application to LAHP. You will not be able to submit your application without the Supervisor statement. The deadline for the complete application is 5pm on Friday, 31 January 2025.

    Please notify your supervisor in good time in advance of this deadline so that they can submit the statement via the online application portal.

  • Is LAHP funding available for joint doctorates?

    LAHP funding may be available for approved joint doctorates with a LAHP partner and external institutions. This is on the condition you meet the AHRC eligibility criteria, and that the external institution provides the same levels of support and resources as a UK institution. The ‘home’ institution for the doctorate must be one of the LAHP partners and to be eligible for funding you must be registered at either a LAHP partner as the home institution.

  • Is LAHP funding available for MPhilStud or MRes qualifications?

    LAHP funding is not available for Master’s level studies. This includes MPhilStud study or MRes programmes.

  • What shall I indicate for the Study Application ID on the online application?

    In this section you should indicate the student number you received from the HEI where you are applying for a place on a PhD programme.

  • Can I amend my application once submitted?

    No, but you can withdraw your application and resubmit it to make changes as long as the final application is submitted before the deadline (5pm on Friday,31 January 2025).

  • Can late applications be accepted?

    No. Please ensure that you allow sufficient time (i) to prepare your application; (ii) for your first named supervisor to complete the Supervisor statement; and (iii) for you to submit the complete application via the online portal before the deadline.

  • Are applicants who have completed a PhD eligible to apply for funding towards a second one?

    When a candidate has already completed a PhD, they may be eligible to apply for LAHP funding towards a second PhD. However, as with all applicants, the candidate would need to make a strong case in their application as to why they want to undertake a further PhD and would need to compete in open competition against all other candidates. Previous AHRC funding or a non-AHRC PhD may be taken into consideration in their assessment in terms of prioritisation.

  • What classifies as practice-led or practice-based research?

    Where the LAHP application form refers to Practice-led research, it also covers Practice-based research. Definitions of these are given below, taken from Linda Candy, Practice Based Research: A Guide (2006): https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257944497_Practice_Based_Research_A_Guide

    Practice-based Research is an original investigation undertaken in order to gain new knowledge partly by means of practice and the outcomes of that practice. In a doctoral thesis, claims of originality and contribution to knowledge may be demonstrated through creative outcomes in the form of designs, music, digital media, performances and exhibitions. Whilst the significance and context of the claims are described in words, a full understanding can only be obtained with direct reference to the outcomes.

    Practice-led Research is concerned with the nature of practice and leads to new knowledge that has operational significance for that practice. (E.g. a dancer or carpenter could inquire into the metaphorical agency of a certain aspect of choreography/carpentry, or the psychological and therapeutic potential of those skills.) In a doctoral thesis, the results of practice-led research may be fully described in text form without the inclusion of a creative work. The primary focus of the research is to advance knowledge about practice, or to advance knowledge within practice. Such research includes practice as an integral part of its method and often falls within the general area of action research.

  • Where can I go for alternative or additional sources of funding?

    For additional sources of funding available outside of LAHP please consult your HEI and/or refer to the Alternative Guide to Postgraduate Funding here.

    Currently all LAHP HEIs other than the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (RSCCD) subscribe to this guide.

FAQs for Supervisors

  • How can I submit my supporting statement for an applicant?

    To complete your supervisor statement, the following actions need to be carried out:

    • The student needs to invite you to complete the supervisor statement on the application portal. The instructions on how students can do this are made clear on the portal.
    • You will then receive an email which will give you the option to clarify whether you are happy to provide a supervisor statement, and if so, you will then be prompted to register an account (If an account has already been registered then you will simply be prompted to log-in).
    • Once registered, you will then be able to provide the statement in the ‘My applications’ section of the portal under the option for ‘supervisor statement’
    • It is important that you ensure that they submit your contribution by selecting the option to ‘Finish Contribution’, otherwise the student will not be able to complete and submit their application.

    Please ensure that you submit the supporting statement by the deadline on the 31st January 2025, at 5pm as late applications will not be considered.

  • How can I access the portal?

    The portal can either be accessed through the link that you will receive when the student invites you to complete the supervisor statement, or alternatively, you can access the portal using the following link: https://lahp.flexigrant.com/

Further questions? Please contact us at info.lahp@london.ac.uk

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