Dual-award between The University of Manchester and Tsinghua University
The University of Manchester and China's Tsinghua University have come together to offer a unique dual degree PhD programme, with successful applicants spending four life-changing years across Manchester and Beijing.
Play a key role in developing sustainable, bio-economy solutions to address current and future global challenges - all while broadening your horizons with an incredible opportunity to study abroad.
At Manchester and Tsinghua you'll benefit from the excellent research infrastructure and academic supervision of not one, but two world-leading institutions.
Why undertake the dual degree PhD programme
- Embrace the challenge of living abroad in one of the world's most famous cities, in a country with the world's fastest-growing economy.
- Form part of a talented cohort seeking to address sustainable development challenges through research in bio-economy solutions, and choose from a range of projects spanning synthetic and systems biology.
- Develop a global perspective and international fluency to benefit your future development, opening the door to exciting new job opportunities.
- Boost your intercultural skills and become part of a talented pool of prospective employees for UK academia and industry.
About the programme
The first-of-its-kind dual award PhD programme brings together two globally-renowned institutions at the forefront of research.
This dual PhD programme will develop world-class research outputs, while at the same time providing PhD training and skills to support a transition from a fossil resource to a bio-based system.
"It promises to be a fantastic programme and will provide a unique educational experience for the next generation of scientists. The strengths of Manchester and Tsinghua together will provide an excellent environment for PhD students to grow and blossom." - Dr Neil Dixon, Programme Director.
"This Tsinghua-Manchester dual degree PhD programme will provide unique opportunities for students to experience various research environments of both universities, to learn great sciences across national borders and to become more culturally open. More importantly, the students will exploit complementary strengths of both sites." - Professor George Guoqiang Chen, Programme Director of Tsinghua University.
Life at Tsinghua University
As part of this programme you'll spend two years at Tsinghua University – one of the most prestigious universities in the world. Its campus is also considered one of the world's most beautiful, and is the site of the former imperial gardens of the Qing Dynasty.
Spending so much time abroad can seem daunting; but everything is in place to ensure a wonderful, life-changing experience in Beijing.
Many international students attend Tsinghua, and you can find out more about activities and events on the university's website. You can also discover more about opportunities for UK students in China through the British Council campaign Generation UK.
Pathways
You'll spend two years at The University of Manchester and two years at Tsinghua University, with supervisors in both locations. You'll then follow one of three possible pathways, flexible to suit your research needs.
You'll be required to submit a single thesis in English within four years of the registration date, and your final viva examination will take place in either Manchester or Tsinghua. At the end of the four-year full-time programme, you'll receive a dual PhD, one award and two certificates.
Funding
Fees at both institutions are covered as part of the studentship package, and other fantastic funding opportunities include an annual stipend at the minimum Research Councils UK rate (around £18,622 for 2023 / 24) that will be paid to students while in Manchester, and a commensurate stipend while at Tsinghua.
You'll also receive an annual Research Training Support Grant towards project running costs/consumables while in Manchester, and a flight allowance for travelling between Manchester Tsinghua will be provided.
Recruitment for 2024/25 is now closed, please expect a call for 2025/26 to be live in the late summer/early autumn 2024.
Contact us
If you have any queries about the programme, please don't hesitate to get in touch:
- For Manchester, email the Doctoral Academy at Manchester
- For Tsinghua, email tangcaoyu@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn.