Please note this timeline is a guide for reference purposes and may be subject to change depending on the ongoing Covid situation.
| 7th February 2022 | Call for applications opens |
| 13th March 2022 23:59 | Call for applications closes |
| 10th May 2022 | Shortlisted applicants are invited to interview |
| 15th (& 16th) June 2022 | Face-to-Face panel interviews take place in Bristol |
| 21st June 2022 | Applicants are notified of the outcomes of the interviews |
| 6th – 9th September 2022 | Mandatory Introductory Week |
| September 2022 – March 2023 | GW4-CAT HP fellows identify their supervisors team and write their project proposals with assistance from a GW4-CAT HP Director and the Programme Manager |
| 1st April 2023 | GW4-CAT HP fellows submit their project proposals for peer review |
| April – May 2023 | Project proposals sent for peer review and fellows respond to comments |
| 6th June 2023 | Project proposal interviews take place |
| 14th July 2023 | Any amendments to project proposals are completed and signed off |
| August – September 2023 | Most GW4-CAT HP fellows will commence their PhD (start dates are negotiable) |
| September – October 2023 | Mandatory Induction Week |
After appointment on the GW4-CAT HP Programme, a typical journey is as follows:
Post Appointment Process
June – August
- 3-5 applicants per cohort are appointed to the programme
- Offer letters will be sent to candidates successful at the interview
- Once you have accepted this formal offer, it is expected that you will withdraw from any other PhD applications, you have pending
- References will then be requested
- You will have the opportunity to meet with the GW4-CAT HP administrative team to discuss initial PhD ideas, potential lead supervisors, preferred start-date and working pattern, and any obstacles you foresee to writing a PhD proposal prior to commencing your PhD
Pre-PhD Year
September
- A compulsory GW4-CAT HP introductory week is held for all new fellows, where you will have the opportunity to meet the management team, potential supervisors and explore the equipment and resources that each of our institutions has to offer
October – May
- With the support of a member of the board of directors and the GW4-CAT HP Programme Manager, you’ll hone your project ideas and decide on your cross-institutional supervisory team
- Your supervisory team, and the relevant GW4-CAT HP director, will help you to develop a project proposal and an itemised budget request
- Projects proposals will be sent out for peer review
June – August
- Registration at your primary institution commences
- At a formal PhD proposal interview your project plan will be scrutinised and advice and feedback will be provided
- The interview panel will consist of all members of the Board of Directors, or appropriate substitutions if required
- This interview will be a part of an iterative process, rather than a ‘pass or fail’ situation, so you will have the opportunity to amend your proposal for resubmission if necessary
- You will have the chance to address the feedback from the project proposal interview and resubmit your project plan and budget request if necessary
- If the concerns of the directors are satisfactorily addressed at this point, they will officially approve your project and budget proposal
- GW4-CAT HP is the acting funder for your grant, so this final approval is an essential aspect of the proposal process. If they still have concerns, they will provide action points that they think are crucial to address before they are able to sign-off on your project plan and your requested grant budget
September – October
- Most GW4-CAT HP fellows will commence their PhD projects in September
- There will be a compulsory induction event GW4-CAT HP induction
PhD Year One
- You will likely be undertaking research and honing the focus of your project
- There will be the opportunity to have a welfare meeting with the Programme Manager. This informal meeting is an opportunity to check that you have settled into your team and are happy with the progress you are making with your PhD studies. Here you can also discuss any potential issues that may have arisen in the early stages of your PhD work
- At the end of year one, any institutional progress monitoring processes will be completed
- You will also meet with a GW4-CAT HP director for a programme review. The director will ensure that any stop:go points you identified in your project proposal have been met, that you are working well with your supervisory team, and they will discuss with you how the project has evolved and any challenges that you have faced