Trinity College Dublin - Trinity Research Doctorate Awards

Trinity Research Doctorate Awards

You get 25,000 EUR per year for 4 years of full-time PhD study at Trinity College Dublin, plus full coverage of your tuition fees at either the EU or non-EU rate. Projects under the AIB Trinity Climate Hub climate theme also get up to 7,000 EUR per year for research costs. The awards come from the Office of the Dean of Graduate Studies and are open to all subjects across arts, humanities, social sciences, STEM and health sciences. You still pay small charges yourself, such as student levies and the residence-permit (IRP) fee, and there is no extra money for research or travel outside the climate theme.

Who can apply

These awards fund new PhD students. How you enter depends on the strand you apply through:

• Degree: You start a new full-time PhD at Trinity in 2026-27. You cannot apply if you are already part-way through a PhD.
• Field of study: All subjects are open. Some team-based awards run under set themes such as culture and inclusive societies, lifecourse wellbeing, AI, and sustainable land use.
• Nationality: Both EU and non-EU students can apply. The award covers either fee rate.
• How you get in: For supervisor-led (PI) awards, an academic supervisor applies with or for you. For School-based awards, each School picks one student, so you contact the School directly. For team-based awards, groups of professors apply and recruit the funded students.
• Student of Sanctuary route: You can apply directly if you live in Ireland and are in its international protection system (asylum seeker, temporary protection, refugee status or humanitarian leave), once you already hold an offer of admission to the PhD register at Trinity with a named supervisor.

How to apply

You apply online through Trinity's forms, with a separate form for each strand. Deadlines for the supervisor-led and team-based awards fall in January and February 2026. The Student of Sanctuary award is open from 17 January to 30 April 2026. School-based awards have no central deadline, so you approach your School directly. Shortlisted Student of Sanctuary applicants may be invited to an interview, with results in early June 2026.