PhD Competition 2026

About this program

Mental Health Research UK funds PhD scholarships for research into mental illnesses, their causes and cures, prioritising PhD studentships and having invested £3.61M since 2008 to support 39 research students and 92 publications. Applications must be submitted by UK universities and supervised by staff based at UK institutions; individual applicants (including current PhD students) are not eligible, and each university may submit one application per named scholarship award while applying for multiple different scholarships. MHRUK expects user and carer involvement and compliance with NIHR/NHS information governance where applicable. The competition is currently closed; MHRUK may consider funding one open‑access fee per student per year (full cost for single‑author papers or pro‑rata for multi‑author papers) only with prior approval and documentary evidence that the university will not cover the cost.