University of Oxford - Nicholas Kurti Memorial Prize

Nicholas Kurti Memorial Prize

You will receive the one-off prize of about 470 EUR (400 GBP) for outstanding research achievements in the third year of your PhD in Physics. This prize is awarded once a year by the Department of Physics at the University of Oxford. It honours Nicholas Kurti, a physicist renowned for his research into low-temperature physics at the Clarendon Laboratory in Oxford.

Who can apply

• Level: You are a doctoral student (DPhil) at the University of Oxford.
• Field: Her specialism is solid-state physics, a branch of physics that deals with solids and other dense forms of matter.
• Study year: You are in the third year of your PhD.
• Nationality: Applicants of all nationalities are welcome to apply, provided they are students at Oxford and meet the criteria.
• Achievement: Your research is truly outstanding.

How to apply

You do not need to apply, and there is no application deadline. The ‘Solid-State Physics’ working group selects the winner internally, so you do not need to submit anything yourself.

How realistic are your chances?

It is a highly selective internal award. Only third-year PhD students in condensed matter physics at the University of Oxford are considered, so the pool of eligible candidates is very small. The award is presented each year to one person for outstanding research achievements; it is therefore more a mark of recognition than something one can actively strive for. If your work ranks among the best in your year group, you have a genuine chance.