A*STAR Research Attachment Programme (ARAP)

A*STAR Research Attachment Programme (ARAP)

You spend 1 to 2 years doing research at an A*STAR institute in Singapore during your PhD. You get a monthly stipend (a living-cost allowance) plus a housing allowance, a one-time flight grant, a one-time settling-in allowance and an IT allowance. Medical insurance, visa costs and a conference allowance are also covered. An older brochure listed the stipend as S$2,500 per month (about 1,700 EUR) and the flight grant as S$1,500 (about 1,020 EUR). The amounts are reviewed from time to time, so confirm the current figures with your university office or A*STAR. You work under two supervisors at once: one from your home university and one A*STAR researcher. The programme is run by A*STAR, Singapore's national research agency, which operates around 20 institutes in biomedical sciences, physical sciences, engineering and infocomm. Your PhD tuition at your home university is not paid.

Who can apply

• Level: You are a PhD student. If you are on an integrated MSc-PhD programme, you can only join once you reach the PhD phase.
• Where you study: You study at one of the four active partner universities in the UK: Manchester, University College London (UCL), Surrey or Warwick. Students at other universities can apply through the separate ARAP-Individual route.
• First degree: You hold a bachelor's degree with at least a Second Class (Upper) Honours or equivalent.
• Research record: You have a solid track record in research and strong reference reports.
• Nationality: Open to any nationality.
• English: You need basic English, since it is the main working language in Singapore. No formal English test is required.
• The link: Your home supervisor and an A*STAR researcher must agree on a joint research project. You cannot apply on your own.

How to apply

You do not apply directly. Your home supervisor and an A*STAR researcher first agree on a joint project, and the A*STAR researcher submits the nomination by 1 June or 1 December each year. If you study at Manchester, UCL, Surrey or Warwick, contact your university's doctoral office to start the process.