Brunel Public Policy

The Public Policy unit of Brunel University (BPP) is partnering with the Open Innovation Team at Whitehall (OIT), to launch a novel and exciting new “Brunel Public Policy” PhD studentship opportunity. This is a 4-year funded PhD studentship, with an integrated 12 months of placement with OIT. This placement may be implemented as one 12-month placement or two shorter ones.

1. This 4-year funded studentship covers home student fees, a living cost stipend at the UKRI rate, and expenses for research training and dissemination.
2. The studentship is open to any PhD topic, and the OIT placement(s) is unlikely to be directly related to the subject matter of the PhD, but instead provides the student with a chance to build skills in policy engagement.
3. The Open Innovation Team is a cross-government team of civil servants who work with academics to generate analysis and ideas for policy. OIT help other officials work with evidence and expertise, and help academics understand how they can work more effectively with government. OIT works on a wide range of policies, including health, justice, education, housing, foreign policy, digital transformation and many others.
4. During the OIT placement(s), the student should expect to make significant contributions to the policy work the team carries out, by bringing together academic experts and policymakers to work through policy problems, assessing and synthesising expert evidence and research, presenting this for policymaking audiences, and planning and delivering events.
5. The OIT will invest in the development of the student on placement with them, ensuring that they gain skills and experiences that they can apply in academia or the next stage of their career, whether that is in the public, private or third sector.

Eligibility

This studentship is only open to those students eligible for home fees, and the OIT placement will be subject to security clearance.

How to apply

To apply for this studentship, please submit the following documents by 31^st January 2024 after reading the full guidance linked below:

1. 1-page personal statement, making the case why you would benefit from the integrated policy placement. From this statement, we want to see your understanding and motivation for making the link between evidence and policy and how this ties in with your research or career aspirations
2. PhD research proposal countersigned by the proposed PhD supervisor – maximum 2 pages. Note that you should reach out to potential PhD supervisors at least 2 weeks before the studentship application deadline.
3. CV maximum 2 pages
4. Proof of qualifications

We expect to hold interviews in March 2024 for a 1^st October 2024 start date.

Full details of the studentship and application guidance [pdf]