Guidance Forpathwayrepresentatives Regardingtheesrc Studentship Process 2017

Guidance forPathwayRepresentatives regardingtheESRC Studentship Process 2017

1.INTRODUCTION

Thepurposeofthisguidancedocumentistoexplain,asclearlyaspossible,theprocessthroughwhichESRCstudentshipswillbeawardedin2017.Thisguidancedocumentpertainstothreestudentshipcompetitions:

1.TheOpenCompetition

2.TheAdvancedQuantitativeMethods(AQM)Competition

3.The use of ESRC data-set (ESRC-DS) Competition

PleasenotethattheCollaborativeCompetitionandtheSkillsDevelopmentScotlandCompetitionhaveseparateguidance,containedin separatedocuments.

PleasealsonotethattheprocessdetailedbelowisentirelyseparatefromtheadmissionsprocessatyourUniversity.TheSGSSS-DTPhasnoroleinthatprocess.ApplicantsdonotneedtohavebeenformallyadmittedinordertobeconsideredforanESRCstudentship.However,shouldanapplicantbesuccessfulinsecuringanESRCstudentship,thefundingis,ofcourse,subjecttotheapplicantobtaininganunconditionalofferforentrytotheuniversity.

ThisguidancedocumentshouldbereadalongsidetheSGSSS-DTPguidanceforstudentsapplyingforanESRCstudentship.

2.THEPROCESS

ThissectiondetailstheprocessforPathways.TheGuidanceforStudentsdetailsspecificallywhatmaterialsanddocumentsarerequiredtoapplyforastudentship.PathwayRepresentativesshouldfamiliarisethemselveswillthisguidanceanddirectstudentstoit.

1.SGSSS-DTPrecognisesthattheinternalprocessofselectingapplicantstoputforwardforESRCstudentshipswillvaryacrossUniversities.Pleasenotethateachpathwayrepresentativecanputforwardupto6candidates1unlessotherwiseagreedwithinthepathway.SGSSS-DTPrecognisesthatsomesmallerpathwayshavesetsmallernumbers:insuchcasesthisshouldbedetermined bythe pathwaybeforeeachcompetition.

2.OnceyouhavedecidedwhichapplicantstoputforwardforESRCawards,you,aspathway representative, arerequiredtoemailalistofthosestudentsand theiremailaddressestotheSGSSSnolaterthan9 February.Representativesmaythenreleasetheportallinktotheirstudentstobeginregistration.PathwayRepresentativestoinformstudentsnolaterthan Friday10Februarythattheyarebeingputforward.

StudentsmustcompletetheirregistrationbetweenFriday 10 andMonday13February.Thefinaldeadlinebywhichapplicantsmusthavecompletedtheirregistrationis23:59Monday 13February.

3.Studentswillberequiredtoenterthenameoftheirprospectivesupervisorduringregistration.PleaseensureapplicantshaveidentifiedandcontactedaprospectivesupervisorBEFOREtheyregistertoapply.

4.AllstudentregistrationswillbeapprovedorrejectedbytheSGSSSofficebasedonthelistprovided byeachRepresentative. The namesof all studentregistrantswithanunconfirmedapplicationstatuswillbeforwardedbytheSGSSStotheirprospectivepathwayrepresentativesforconfirmationpriortotheirapplicationsacceptanceorrejection.

5.Atthispointtwoprocesseswillproceedinparallel asperbelow.

Applicants / Pathways
RegisteredapplicantswilluploadtheirapplicationdocumentstotheSGSSS-DTPStudentshipApplicationPortal.Thesedocumentsare:CurriculumVitae,ResearchProposal,Degreetranscripts,andSupervisor’sSupportingStatement.Applicantswishingtobeconsideredfor / PathwayConvenersshouldorganisetheprocessbywhichthepathwaywillrankapplicants.2Thisshouldbedoneaccordingtothecriteriaof25points(seeAnnexB).
ToconfirmtheAQM and ESRC-DS processforthisyear:

1PleasenotethisisamaximumnumberandtheSGSSS-DTPwouldurgepathwayrepresentativestoputforwardonlythebestapplicants.WealsoencourageyoutomakeitexplicittoEU-residentcandidatesthattheyareeligibletoreceivetheirfeesonly,aswehavefoundthatmanyhadnotrealizedthisuntiltheywereofferedthestudentship:anumbersubsequentlywithdrew.(ThisdoesnotapplytoEconomicsstudents.)

2TheSGSSS-DTPrecognisesthatpathwayswillvaryintheirpracticesatthisstage.However,AnnexAcontainsbestpracticeguidanceandthisshouldbeconsultedbeforePathwayConvenorsestablishtheprocessbywhichthepathwayitselfwillassessandrankapplications.

By23:59Friday 17February2017allapplicantsputforwardbyPathwayRepresentativesshouldhavesubmittedfullapplicationstotheSGSSS-DTPStudentshipApplicationPortal.Applicantswillsubmitrefereecontactdetailsattheregistrationstage.TheSGSSS-DTPwillberesponsibleforensuringreferencesarereceivedandattachedtotherelevantapplicationsby17February.

PathwayRepresentativeswillbeissued,by24February,withlogindetailsfortheStudentshipApplicationPortalsothattheycanaccessapplicantdocumentsaheadoftheassessmentandrankingprocess.Pleasenote:Applicationsareavailabletodownloadaszipfilesfromtheportal,thismaynotbecompatiblewithtabletsorphones.

1.Pathwayswillmeettoassessandrankapplications.3Weexpectpathwaystobeclearonrankingofcandidateswith a maximum of 10 applications per pathwayforwardedtoSGSSS-DTPOpenCompetitionreviewersforcross-pathwayreviewandsubsequentallocationoftheOpenStudentships.AlistofcandidateswillbeavailableontheportalforthePathwayConvenortoenterintheirrankinginformation,scores,andcomments.Rankingsneedto beuploadedintothe portalnolaterthan9March 2017.Pleasenote, Pathwayswill berequiredtoallocateauniqueranktoeachapplication.

2.EachPathwayConvenormustinputthefollowinginformationtotheportalby9March2017:

Ranks,scores,awarddetails,andcommentsforallapplicationsfortheirpathway.Wheretwoormoreapplicantshavebeenrankedequally,pathwayconvenors,inconsultationwithpathwayrepsmustdecideonamerit-basedorderingof applicants.
Pleasespecifyinthecommentssectionforeachstudentwhethertheirapplicationistobe put forward for theOpenCompetition,theAQMCompetition, the ESRC - DS competition,orunsuccessful).

3SGSSS-DTP hasissuedamarkingframeworkinwhichthreecriteriaare assessedona1-10ora1-5scale.Thusallapplicantsshouldreceivea scoreoutof25.ThemarkingframeworkisattachedinAnnexB.

Pathwaysarerequestedtoprovideabrief(<100words)summaryinsupportofeachapplicationshortlistedforconsiderationin the OpenCompetition.Thesummarieswillbeusedtoguidethecross-pathwayreviewersandpanelmembersonthe significance of the applicationfrom asubject specificpointofview. Thesewriteupscanalsobeenteredintothe commentssectionforeachstudent.
PathwayConvenorsarealsoaskedtoemailadetailedoutlineoftheprocessthatwasfollowedbythepathwaytoassessandrankapplicationsto Thisshouldidentifyanyapplicantswho,forwhateverreason,weredeemedinappropriatebythepathwaytoholdanESRCstudentship.

8.TheSGSSS-DTPPortalwillkeepapplicantsinformedabouttheirpositioni.e.ranking.PLEASENOTE:ifanapplicanthasbeendeemedunsuccessfulfortheOpenCompetitionsatthisstage(i.e.,is not in the top ranked list in the Pathway),theywillbedirectedtocontacttheirpathwayrepresentativeshouldtheywishtorequestfeedback.

9.TheSGSSS-DTPwillruntheOpenCompetition.Thiswillincludeobtainingfurthercross-pathwayreferees’assessments,rankingandscoresforconsiderationbytheOpenCompetitionboards5

10.Onorbeforethe 25th April2017theSGSSS-DTPwillgivetheSupervisoryBoarddetailsofallproposedstudentshipstobeawarded throughtheOpenCompetition.

11.TheSupervisoryBoardwillmeetandratifythesestudentshipsin late April.TheSGSSS-DTPwillinformallsuccessfulapplicantsthattheyarebeingofferedESRCstudentshipsandalsounsuccessfulapplicants(includingthosewhowillbeonasmallreservelist)by15May2017.6

4PleaserefertoAnnexAforbestpracticeguidance.

5 DependingonthetotalnumberofapplicantssubmittedbypathwaystheSGSSS-DTPmayapplyaqualitythresholdtoreducethenumberofconsideredapplicationstoamanageablesize.

6Theentireprocessislaidout inAnnexCintableform.

ELIGIBILITYANDENHANCEDSTIPENDS

SGSSSremindspathwaysthattheresidencycriteriamustbemetinorderforastudenttoreceivethefullstudentshipincludingstipend.7

TheonlyexceptiontothisisintheEconomicspathway. Ifuncertainastowhetherastudentmeetsthecriteria,pleasecontactSGSSSbeforeproceeding.

EnhancedstipendswillbepaidtostudentssuccessfulintheAQMCompetitionand up to 3 EconomicsstudentssuccessfulintheOpenCompetition.Duetotheadditionalfinancialcommitmentthatthiswouldrequire,Economicsstudentsfundedthroughcompetitions(i.e.,Collaborative,ESRC DSetc.)will notreceive thisadditionalfunding.

Studentsapplyingfora+3studentshipmustmeettheminimumESRCtraining requirements. If a studentdoesnotmeetthese requirementsbutthe pathwaystill wishes toconsiderhim/hertheymaychoosetoappointona1+3basis.

Studentseligible for a1+3award,wishing tostudy ininstitutionswithoutanESRCaccreditedMaster’sprogram,maychoosetocompletetheirMastersinanotheraccreditedinstitution(within SGSSS-DTC)beforecompletingtheirPhDprogramattheirchoseninstitution.

3.CROSS-INSTITUTIONALSUPERVISION

TheSGSSS-DTPwishestoencouragepathways,supervisorsandapplicantstoconsidersupervisoryarrangementsacrossthe16institutionsoftheSGSSS,ifappropriatetotheparticularstudentprojectandwiththesupportofbothproposedsupervisors.Thiswillusuallybewithinpathwaysbutacrossinstitutions,butwedonotwishtoruleoutcross-pathway supervisionifthisisclearly intheinterestsofthestudentproject. WethereforeaskPathwayRepresentativestoletstudentsknowthatwhiletheirmainsupervisormustbeatarecognisedSGSSS-DTPpathwayinstitutionasecondsupervisormaybeattachedtotheprojectfromasecondinstitutioneitherwithorwithoutpathwayrecognition.InsuchcasesweaskthePathwayRepresentativetoinformtheSGSSS-AdminTeambefore17February2017sothattheDirectoratecanfollowupwiththeapplicant,proposedsupervisorsandHEIinstitutionalrepresentativesontheSupervisoryBoardtoensurethatacross-institutionalarrangementissupportedandabletobewell-managedbyallinvolved.Theseapplicantsmustgainasupervisorletterofsupportfrombothsupervisorswhichshouldrefertotheexplicitbenefitoftheproposedcross-institutionalarrangements.

Weareawarethatsomeresearchproposalswillbesituatedontheedgeof socialscienceand other disciplinesandarethus planningtoliaisewithother Doctoral Training Units.While wewelcomesuch applicationstheyshouldbeappropriatelytailoredforeachGraduateSchool withthelinkagesbetweendisciplinesmadeclear.Studentsshouldindicate iftheyareapplyingtoother Doctoral Training Unitswhenregisteringtheirapplication.

7 Thesecriteriaareavailablehere:

Annex A:

BestPracticefor AssessmentandSelectionandNew Marking Scheme

ApplicantsforESRCstudentshipswiththeSGSSS-DTParerequiredtosubmitastandard setofapplicationmaterialsasfollows:

Abstractofproposedresearchproject;
CurriculumVitae;
ResearchProposal(applicantsmustdownloadthetemplatefromtheSGSSS-DTPwebsite, completetheirproposal andsave/uploaditasPDF);
Degreetranscripts(andtranslated,ifnotoriginallyinEnglish)–provisionaltranscriptsaresufficientif theapplicanthasyetto completehis/herdegree;
Supportingstatementfromtheprospectivesupervisor–pleasenotethatitispossiblefortheproposedsupervisortoalsobeoneofthereferees.Howeverthesupervisorstatementmustbeaseparatedocumentfromthereferenceletter.Ifacross-institutionalsupervisionarrangementisbeingproposedthenaletterfromEACHproposed supervisorisrequired.
Detailsoftwoacademicreferees;
Detailsofanyoverseasfieldworkanddifficultlanguagetrainingtheapplicantproposestoundertakeduringhis/herresearch;and
Details of any collaborationtheapplicantproposes toundertakeduringhis/herresearch.

Whenpathwaysassessandrankapplicants fornominationforESRCOpenCompetitiontheSGSSS-DTPasksthatatleastoneofthefollowingthreemechanismsbeused:

1.PathwayrepresentativesrankcandidatesfromotherUniversities–forexampleinPoliticsIR,StAndrewsandGlasgowassessandrankEdinburghcandidates,EdinburghandStAndrewsassessandrankGlasgow,andGlasgowandEdinburghassessandrankStAndrews,asabasicminimumstandard.Wherepossible,eachapplicantshouldbeassessedbyatleast2pathwayrepresentativesfrom2 differentUniversities.

2.An externalassessorranks applicants– pathwayssecure an externalassessorwhowillmanagetheassessmentandrankingprocess.

3.Pathwaysconductinterviewswithapplicants– thereisastrongexpectationthatinterviewswouldbeconductedviaSkypeorothermeansofvideo-conferencingasSGSSS-DTPdoesnothavethefundstoreimburseapplicantstravellingforinterview.

Thefollowingarenotpermitted:

1.Assessmentofincompleteapplications–allapplicationswillrunthroughtheonlineSGSSS-DTPStudentshipApplicationPortal,whichdoesnotallowforincompleteapplicationstobesubmitted.Thisistoensurethatallpathwaysare lookingatauniformsetofdocuments.

2.Academicsassessing/rankingapplicantsand/orvotingonapplicantsfromtheirhomeinstitution.8PleasenotethisruleappliesafterpathwayrepresentativeshaveputforwardapplicantsfromtheirUniversity.

8SGSSS-DTPappreciatesthatthiswillcauseaparticularissueforsingle-institutionpathways.However,therulewillbeappliedconsistentlyanditissuggestedthatsingle-institutionpathwaysuseanalternativemethodofassessment,suchasanexternalassessororinterviewsinwhichexternalacademicssitonthepanel.

AnnexB:

SGSSS-DTPOpenAwardMarkingFramework(2017-18)

Assessmentfor+3Awards(note:pathwaysmustbeconvincedthatthecandidatehasmetthetrainingrequirementsfortheir pathway)

CandidateRecord(OUTOF10) / Research Proposal(OUTOF 10) / SupervisionTraining(OUTOF5)
10 / TheequivalentofafirstclassdegreeAND/ORanalreadyachieveddistinctionatMasters levelORstrongandrelevantprofessionalexperience.
(Alloftheabovemustmeet theESRCtrainingrequirements.) / Twoexceptionalreferencesinwhichstudentisidentifiedasamongstverybestevertaught. / Anexcellentproposalscoringwellintermsofbothcogencyandoriginality.Allcomponents–overview,context,methodology,andimpact–willbewellthoughtout andclearlyexpressed. / As(9) butproposalisexceptionallygoodinallof itscomponents.
9 / As(8),butwithoneclearlyexceptionalreferenceinwhichstudentisidentifiedasamongstbestevertaught. / As(8) andproposalishighly original andinnovative,atthecuttingedgeofdevelopmentssubstantivelyandmethodologically.
8 / Twoverystrongreferencesinwhichstudentissingledoutasamongstthe bestofapeergrouporequivalent. / As(7) andproposalcontainsclearawarenessofthepotentialimpactof theresearch.
7 / Twostrongreferences inwhichstudentpotentialiscommunicatedwithclearexamples. / Awell-definedproposalwithresearchablequestions,appropriatelyidentifiedsources,anawarenessofthetheoreticalandempiricalbackgroundtotheresearchandanappropriatemethodology.
6 / Theequivalentofa2:1degreeAND/ORanalreadyachieved60+averageatMasterslevelORrelevantprofessionalexperience.
(Alloftheabovemustmeet theESRCtrainingrequirements.) / Bothreferencesofferglimpsesofstrongpotentialbutwith littlesubstanceandfew examples. / Agoodandpromisingproposalbutwithidentifiableweaknesses.Some,butnotall,componentsof theproposalwillbeproblematic,ill-expressed,orshow alackofknowledge. / Agoodproposalwithonly minorbutstillidentifiableweaknesses.Theresearchquestionwillbeclear,themethodologyappropriateandclearlypresented,andmostoftheappropriateliteratureidentified.
5 / Twominimallysatisfactoryreferenceswhichmakeitclearstudentiscapableofconductingresearchbutlittlemore. / Apromisingproposalthatsuffers fromseveralweaknesses.Themethodologyisappropriatebutill-expressed. Theproposalisonlyweaklygroundedinrelevantliterature. / Supervisionarrangementsrepresentanear-perfectfitwiththeproposedresearch.Thesupervisoryteamincludesanexperiencedsupervisorwithinternationally-recognisedexpertiseinthefield.
Thesupervisioncombinationmeetsdirectlythestudent’strainingneeds.ThedestinationHEIoffershigh-qualityspecialisttraining.Theresearchfitswellwiththewiderdepartment/school/faculty.

4 / Amixtureofweakandsatisfactoryreferenceswhichleavequestionstostudent’ssuitabilityto conductresearch. / Aproposalwithone seriousweaknessorseveralminorones,whichsuggestsgaps inknowledgeandaweakgraspof theproposedmethodologyanditssuitability. / Supervisionarrangementsrepresentaverygoodfitwiththe proposedresearch.The leadsupervisorisanexperiencedsupervisorwitha strongreputationforresearchinthisfield, andthe combinationofsupervisorsoffersthestudentgoodtraininginthefield.Thereis provisionofadvancedand specialisttraininganda broadlysupportiveresearchenvironmentatthedestinationHEI.
3 / Twoweakreferencesinwhichstudentpotentialisnotcommunicated. / Aproposalwith significantweaknessesinmultiplecomponents,littleappreciationofpossiblemethodologies,and/orawarenessofrelevantliterature. / Supervisionarrangementsrepresentagoodfitwiththeproposedresearch.Thelead supervisorwillbeanexpertinthefieldandthecombinationofsupervisorswilloffergoodsupportto thestudent.TheHEIoffersgoodgeneralsupportandadvancedtrainingforthestudent.
2 / TheequivalentofEITHERa2:2degreeANDanalready / Aproblematicproposalthatwouldneedconsiderableadditional / Supervisionarrangementsareappropriateandthe
achievedpassatMasterslevel(averagemarkof50)which / workbeforebeingfundable.Allcomponentsoftheproposalwill / supervisorhasexperienceinthe preciseareaofthe
doesnotnecessarilymeettheESRCtrainingrequirements / requirefurtherworkand/ordemonstratelittleorno backgroundor / proposedresearch.Thesupervisoryteamoffers
1 / ANDclear evidenceofadditional experienceortraining
thatwouldbringthecandidate upto therequiredlevel / interestintheirsubject. / goodgeneralsupportand theHEI offerssome
advancedtrainingforthestudent.
DTPwould beunlikelytoconsiderapplicantswith
academicscoresbelow theselevels.
1 / Supervisionarrangementsand supportofferedbytheHEImeetthethresholdforESRCrecognisedtrainingonthispathway.Note:supervisionarrangementsbelowthisthresholddonotmeettheESRCtrainingrequirementsandstudentsshouldnotbeofferedDTPfundingonthisbasis.

SGSSS-DTPOpenAwardMarkingFramework(2017-18)Assessmentfor 1+3Awards

CandidateRecord(OUTOF10) / Research Proposal(OUTOF 10) / SupervisionTraining(OUTOF5)
10 / TheachievementorexpectationofafirstclassdegreeorequivalentAND/ORamaster’sdegreewhichdoesnotmeettheESRCtrainingrequirements / Twoexceptionalreferencesinwhichstudentisidentifiedasamongstverybestevertaught. / Anexcellentproposalscoringwellintermsofbothcogencyandoriginality.Allcomponents–overview,context,methodology,andimpact–willbewellthoughtout andclearlyexpressed. / As(9) butproposalisexceptionallygoodinallof itscomponents.
9 / As(8),butwithoneclearlyexceptionalreferenceinwhichstudentisidentifiedasamongstbestevertaught. / As(8) andproposalishighly original andinnovative,atthecuttingedgeofdevelopmentssubstantivelyandmethodologically.
8 / Twoverystrongreferencesinwhichstudentissingledoutasamongstthe bestofapeergrouporequivalent. / As(7) andproposalcontainsclearawarenessofthepotentialimpactoftheresearch.
7 / Twostrongreferences inwhichstudentpotentialiscommunicatedwithclearexamples. / Takinginto accountthe stageof careeroftheapplicant,awell-definedproposalwithresearchablequestions,appropriatelyidentifiedsources,awarenessof thetheoreticalandempiricalbackgroundtotheresearchandanappropriatemethodology.
6 / Theequivalentofa2:1degreeAND/ORanalreadyachievedMasterswhichdoesnotmeettheESRCtrainingrequirements / Bothreferencesofferglimpsesofstrongpotentialbutwithlittlesubstanceandfew examples. / Agoodandpromisingproposalbutwithidentifiableweaknesses.Some,butnotall,componentsof theproposalwillbeproblematic,ill-expressed,orshow alackofknowledge. / Takinginto accountthecareerstageoftheapplicant,agoodproposalwithonly minorbutstillidentifiableweaknesses.Theresearchquestionwill beclear,themethodologyappropriateandclearlypresented,andmostoftheappropriateliteratureidentified.
5 / Twominimallysatisfactoryreferenceswhichmakeitclearstudentiscapableofconductingresearchbutlittlemore. / Takinginto accountthecareerstageof theapplicant,a promisingproposalthatsuffersfromseveralweaknesses.Themethodologyisappropriatebutill- expressed.The proposalisonlyweaklygroundedinrelevantliterature,orshowslittleornoawarenessofthe empiricalandtheoreticalbackgroundtotheproject. / Supervisionarrangementsrepresentanear-perfectfitwiththeproposed research.Thesupervisoryteamincludesanexperiencedsupervisorwithinternationally-recognisedexpertiseinthefield.
Thesupervisioncombinationmeetsdirectlythestudent’strainingneeds.ThedestinationHEIoffershigh-qualityspecialisttraining.Theresearchfitswellwiththewiderdepartment/school/faculty.

4 / Amixtureofweakandsatisfactoryreferenceswhichleavequestionstostudent’ssuitabilityto conductresearch. / Takinginto accountthecareerstageof theapplicant,a proposalwithoneseriousweaknessorseveralminorones,whichsuggestsgaps inknowledgeandaweakgraspofthe proposedmethodologyanditssuitability. / Supervisionarrangementsrepresentaverygoodfitwiththe proposedresearch.The leadsupervisorisanexperienced supervisorwitha strongreputationforresearchinthisfield, andthe combinationofsupervisorsoffersthestudentgoodtraininginthefield.Thereisprovisionof advancedand specialisttraininganda broadlysupportiveresearchenvironmentatthedestinationHEI.
3 / Twoweakreferencesinwhichstudentpotentialisnotcommunicated. / Aproposalwith significantweaknessesinmultiplecomponents,littleappreciationofpossiblemethodologies,and/orawarenessofrelevantliterature. / Supervisionarrangementsrepresentagoodfitwiththeproposedresearch.The leadsupervisorwillbeanexpertinthefieldandthecombinationofsupervisorswilloffergoodsupportto thestudent.TheHEIoffersgoodgeneralsupportandadvancedtrainingforthestudent.
2 / TheequivalentofEITHERa2:2degreeANDanalready / Aproblematicproposalthatwouldneedconsiderableadditional / Supervisionarrangementsareappropriateandthe
achievedpassatMasterslevel(averagemarkof50)which / workbeforebeingfundable.Allcomponentsoftheproposalwill / supervisorhasexperienceinthe preciseareaofthe
doesnotnecessarilymeettheESRCtrainingrequirements / requirefurtherworkand/ordemonstratelittleorno background or / proposedresearch.Thesupervisoryteamoffers
1 / ANDclearevidenceofadditionalexperienceortraining / interestintheirsubject. / goodgeneralsupportandtheHEI offerssome
thatwouldbringthecandidate upto therequiredlevel / advancedtrainingforthestudent.
DTPwould beunlikelytoconsiderapplicantswith
academicscoresbelow theselevels.
1 / Supervisionarrangementsand supportofferedbytheHEImeetthethresholdforESRCrecognisedtrainingonthispathway.Note:supervisionarrangementsbelow thisthresholddo notmeettheESRCtrainingrequirementsandstudentsshould notbeofferedDTP fundingonthisbasis.

Timeline for the 2017 Studentship Competitions

DATE / OPEN COMPETITION
/ AQM AND ESRC-DS COMPETITIONS
/ COLLABORATIVE &
Skills Development Scotland COMPETITIONS
Dec 2016
/ Announce competitions / Announce competitions
Mon 6 Feb
/ Completed applications from academics submitted to SGSSS-DTP by email.
Thursday 9 Feb / List of students considered for the Awards emailed to SGSSS
Fri 10 Feb / Pathway Representatives to inform students if they are put forward for Open Competition
Mon 13 Feb
/ All students to be considered by Pathways must have registered for the Online Portal by this date.
/ All students to be considered by Pathways must have registered for the Online Portal by this date.
Friday 17 Feb
/ All students being considered must have uploaded their documents to the online portal by this date.
/ All students being considered must have uploaded their documents to the online portal by this date. Students wishing to be considered for AQM or ESRC-DC should complete the requisite form for submission along with their application.
Mon 20 Feb
/ SGSSS Admin ‘clean up portal’; IT give access to pathways by 24 Feb
/ SGSSS Admin ‘clean up portal’; IT give access to pathways by 24 Feb
/ SGSSS-DTP announces results of competition.
Fri 24 Feb – Thurs 9 Mar
/ Pathways meet to assess and rank applications for Pathway Awards (those with steer allocation only) and nomination to Open Competition, keeping a record of procedures followed.
/ Pathways meet to assess and rank applications for nomination to Open Competition, keeping a record of procedures followed.
/ SGSSS-DTP will place advertisement for Collaborative Competition awards. SDS to liaise
with academics on recruitment
Thu 9 Mar
/ Pathway decisions on ranking to be uploaded to SGSSS-DTP Portal by Pathway Convenor by this date together with the record of procedures followed.

SGSSS-DTP Portal will communicate to students that did not meet the quality threshold that they have been unsuccessful.
/ Successful AQM/ESRC-DS-focused students in the Pathway Competition are entered into AQM and ESRC-DS Competitions.
The top ranked candidates as per pathway allocation together with their scores and ranking are entered into Open Competition.
Mon 13 Mar
/ Open Competition cross-pathway reviewers
receive applications. Reviewing of AQM/ESRC-DS also considered this time.
Friday 24 Mar
/ Open Competition cross-pathway assessors upload all graded applications to SGSSS-DTP Portal by this date together with AQM/ESRC-DS allocations.
Tues 11 April
/ AQM and ESRC-DS Panels meet
Wed 12 Apr / Papers for Open Panel meetings out to Panel member
20 April and 21 April
/ Pathway Panel meetings to rank applications Open Studentships Allocation Board
Week of 24 April
/ Communication to students in Open, and AQM and ESRC-DS Competitions.
Supervisory Board receives for their formal approval details of all proposed studentships to be awarded across all competitions.
Week of 8 May
/ SGSSS-DTP will communicate with all candidates on the outcome of the competitions by Friday 12 May