Research and training grant support guidance

Many PGR students receive an individual Research Training Support Grant (RTSG) budget for the project and travel costs associated with their research. The information below provides guidance about your RTSG entitlement and management.

The following departments do not currently allocate individual budgets to most students:Mathematics, and Physics and Astronomy.

All other departments will provide a minimum RTSG budget for all students where funding is not available from another source. This is currently £1,000 per annum in the School of Natural Sciences and £750 per annum School of Engineering for full time programmes. A larger RTSG may be available to students as part of their funding or based on the tuition fee rate their supervisor selected during the admissions process.

The rules around RTSGs vary based on the source of the funds

Students who are self-funded, in receipt of The University of Manchester funding (e.g. Department studentship, President or Deans Doctoral Scholarships, etc.) or fees are paid by an external sponsor, such as the student’s home government or employer (the student provides a letter from the sponsor to complete financial registration):

Students receiving an individual budget will be allocated individual task codes for their for travel and consumables costs within two weeks of completing all stages of the registration process.
The expenditure on these codes must be associated with the named student.
The budget cannot be used to pay tuition fees or provide a stipend.
The supervisor is responsible for charges to the account and where there is any overspend or ineligible charges, will need to provide an alternative account to transfer these costs.
Students who started their programme from September 2024 onwards will be allocated a task against a finance code where the main supervisor is the budget holder. The supervisor will be able to check the balance and transactions on their student’s task codes.
The majority of students who started their programme prior to September 2024 have been allocated tasks on finance codes where their supervisor is not the budget holder. For these students, the Doctoral Academy Funding team can provide balance and transaction updates – please email us with your full finance and task codes.
The task codes will close at the end of the student’s research period – either when the student is due to register for the Submission Pending period, submits their thesis or withdraws from the programme.
If the student’s research period is extended, the end date of the task codes will be extended to reflect this. No additional funding will be available for any extension period.
Moving from full-time to a part-time version of the same programme (or vice versa) will not change the RTSG budget.
If the student transfers to another programme, such as moving between MPhil and PhD, the RTSG budget and end date will be updated to reflect the change to the research period.
Any funds remaining following the end of the student’s programme will be retained by the University.

We understand that opportunities to publish your work and attend conferences may occur after the end of your research period. Therefore, where sufficient funds are remaining, supervisors can request approval for a student’s RTSG to be extended for use during Submission Pending period for the following reasons only:

Publication charges where the PGR is listed as an author.
Conference attendance.

UKRI funded, including EPSRC, STFC and BBSRC

Students receiving an individual budget will be allocated individual task codes for their travel and consumables costs.
The expenditure on these codes must be associated with that specific student and must comply with the UKRI terms and conditions.
All spending and costs must be within the students funded research period. It is not acceptable to book and pay in advance for activities taking place after the end of the funded research period.
The supervisor is responsible for charges to the account and where there is any overspend or ineligible charges will need to provide an alternative account to transfer these costs.
The majority of students will be allocated tasks on finance codes where their supervisor is not the budget holder. The Doctoral Academy Funding team can provide balance and transaction updates – please email us with your full finance and task codes.
No spending can be made during an unfunded extension to the research period, in submission pending or after submission. This includes if funding for an extension is provided from an alternative source.
The funded research period may only be extended where an interruption has been approved and has extended the funding beyond the original end date.

Students who are in receipt of an Externally Sponsored Studentships , for example: Industry or Charity funded (agreement is between sponsor and the university):

All spending must follow the terms and conditions of the funder.
For areas not specified in these terms and conditions or in the contract with the funder, then the rules and procedures applicable to students receiving The University of Manchester funding above should be followed.
Where an individual student is named in the contract, they should be allocated individual task codes that must only be used for costs associated with that specific student.
Formal agreement from the sponsor may be required to extend funded period, even where an interruption or extensions has been approved by the University.