Information for potential supervisors

2025-26 call for projects

Want to submit a doctoral project for the next round?

The next MRC LID project call will be sent out to all academic staff in early September 2024. Please check your eligibility, and prepare for the bid in advance, by ensuring that
(a) your supervisory team meets institutional requirements around supervision (initial or refresher) and supervisory team composition.
(b) every member of the team’s institutional RD supervision training is up to date.
(c) every member of the team has met MRC LID’s training requirements.

Once the project call has gone out please read the MRC LID Project Bid Guidance for full details. In the meantime, the key project requirements for our DTP are set out below.

A proposed project must fit within one or more of the DTP themes:
A proposed project must offer research that supports training in one or more of these core skills:
- Quantitative skills
- Interdisciplinary skills
- Whole organism physiology
We are particularly keen to encourage projects which involve collaboration between LSHTM and SGUL.
UKRI allows up to 30% of awards to be offered to international students only (up to two of the nine studentship awards available). The awards are paid at the UKRI studentship rate. LSHTM & SGUL have committed to providing bursaries for remaining fees to studentship holders who are nationals of, and resident in, LMICs.
The student awardee would need to be based in the UK (within commutable distance of the primary institution, and working at their primary institution) for the duration of the studentship, excluding fixed periods of fieldwork and placement.
Every member of the supervisory team must complete MRC LID’s specified training requirements.

MRC LID’s training requirements

MRC LID requires all staff connected with the scheme, regardless of whether the proposed supervisor is based at LSHTM or SGUL or elsewhere (external to either partner institution), to undertake specific mandatory EDI training.
MRC LID specified training must be completed by every person on the supervisory team before any contact with prospective applicants (i.e. before projects are advertised in October/November for registration the following September).
Training must also be completed by the mentor of the primary supervisor if/where a mentor is required for the MRC LID scheme.
Places on each course are limited. Please book for the earliest available opportunity that you can make.
If the training you require is not available or all available options are full please contact MRC LID (by email: mrclid@lshtm.ac.uk) as soon as possible to indicate your interest and join a waiting list. This will help us to gauge demand and try to meet it within the studentship recruitment timeline.
Because of commitments made on our grant MRC LID cannot consider project bids without specified training having been completed by all supervisory team members. Other training cannot be used as an alternative to DTP requirements.

Training required:

Overview of MRC LID (for all supervisors annually; online; self-led)
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
1. Initial courses to provide a baseline understanding and shared vocabulary
  1. ‘An Interactive Introduction to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at LSHTM‘ (previous equivalent course offered was ‘EDI at LSHTM’ workshop)
  2. ‘Challenging microaggressions and being an active bystander‘
2. Refresher workshop (two years after initial/new courses and every two years thereafter)
  1. ‘Inclusive behaviours for PhD supervisors workshop‘ (previous equivalent workshop offered was ‘EDI Reflective Practice for RD Supervisors workshop’)
Institutional supervisory training
1. Initial
2. Refresher every three years

To book

OVERVIEW

All supervisory team members should watch the recording annually.

An updated Overview of MRC LID recording will be added here at the time the project call goes out. Please check back then.

INITIAL/NEW

Both courses must be completed to be eligible for the MRC LID scheme.

If you have previously booked and attended both of these courses (or their historic equivalent, as listed above) please do not repeat them. Instead, undertake refresher training.

An Interactive Introduction to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at LSHTM

Monday 24 June 2024, 10.00-12.00 (online)
Thursday 18 July 2024, 11.00-13.00 (in person at LSHTM) – cancelled
Thursday 22 August 2024, 14.00-16.00 (online) – course full; waiting list in place (email to join)

Challenging microaggressions and being an active bystander

Monday 17 June 2024, 14.00-16.30 (online)
Tuesday 17 September 2024, 10.00-12.30 (online)

Please book via LSHTM Talent & Education Development (TED)
– LSHTM-based supervisors should use the TED booking system via the intranet
– SGUL-based supervisors should send an email request to staffdevelopment@lshtm.ac.uk
– Supervisors based outside of LSHTM and SGUL should send an email request to staffdevelopment@lshtm.ac.uk

REFRESHER

If you have not yet completed the initial training requirements please book for the two required initial training courses instead. Do not book refresher training.

If you have completed the initial training requirements between January 2023 and now you do not yet need to undertake refresher training (which is required every two years).

If you previously completed both of the initial training requirements before January 2023, please book on one of the refresher workshop options available from the list below.

If you completed the MRC LID refresher course (EDI Reflective Practice for RD Supervisors workshop) in 2023 you do not need to undertake this training in 2024.

Inclusive behaviours for PhD supervisors workshop

Thursday 20 June 2024, 13.00-5.30 (online) Booking link
Thursday 25 July 2024, 10.00-12.30 (online) Booking link
Thursday 22 August 2024, 13.00-15.30 (online) Booking link
Friday 6 September 2024, 11.00-13.30 (online) Booking link
Monday 30 September 2024, 10.00–12.30 (online) Booking link
Friday 4 October 2024, 11.00–13.30 (online) Booking link
Wednesday 30 October 2024, 13.00-15.30 (online) Booking link
Thursday 31 October 2024, 13.00-15.30 (online) Booking link

EDI FAQs

DTP1 followed traditional HEI advertisements and recruitment, and the data shows that we are missing out on a wide range of potential students. Central to our DTP2 bid was an equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) strategy, with plans to focus on “widening participation” over the course of the grant. As part of this change, mandatory training for all supervisory team members must be completed before projects are considered for inclusion.

We are regularly asked the same questions about the mandatory EDI and supervisory training requirements. It is likely that our EDI FAQs will cover your question. If it does not, please contact the MRC LID Manager.

1. Mandatory EDI Training

Why does MRC LID require EDI training?

MRC LID’s DTP1 data showed that historically recruitment of students from marginalised groups and non-traditional backgrounds was extremely low.

Therefore, as part of our DTP grant bid, MRC LID committed to every member of a prospective supervisory team undertaking specified EDI training before any contact with potential applicants. This is only one commitment made: more details of our strategy can be found on the MRC LID EDI page.

How frequently must I take the EDI and supervisory training?

MRC LID intends for all supervisors to attend/refresh their EDI training every TWO years.

If you were on absence leave (e.g., maternity or sick leave), you can discount the period of leave from the accumulation of years – for instance, a person who took maternity leave for 52 weeks in the past TWO years will have only accumulated one year (i.e. the year that they were at work) and will still have one year to go until they have accumulated two years and need to do the refresher course. Please contact MRC LID to discuss details further and advise of the aggregated time out.

Supervisors must update their institutional supervisory training every THREE years (see institutional guidance).

What EDI training must I do?

MRC LID specified training must be completed by every person on the supervisory team before any contact with prospective applicants (i.e. before projects are advertised in October/November for registration the following September). This requirement is the same regardless of whether the proposed supervisor is based at LSHTM or SGUL or elsewhere (external to either partner institution).

Training must also be completed by the mentor of the primary supervisor if/where a mentor is required for the MRC LID scheme.

Each potential supervisory team member must initially undertake:

‘An Interactive Introduction to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at LSHTM’ (previously ‘Equity, Diversity & Inclusion at LSHTM workshop’), and
‘Challenging Micro-Aggressions and Becoming an Active Bystander’

Both courses must be completed.
Those who have not completed this training previously should undertake it now.
After you have undertaken each course once, and it is showing on your record, there is no requirement to redo it.

Potential supervisors who have previously attended the initial required training must attend refresher training (required every TWO years). Refresher training offered is:

‘Inclusive behaviours for PhD supervisors workshop’ (previous equivalent course was ‘EDI Reflective Practice for RD Supervisors Workshop’).

What would happen if I had taken equivalent training from other institutions? Can I use those?

Unfortunately, we don’t have the facility or time to assess equivalent training for what would be a large number of potential supervisors. To ensure that everyone has a common basis for discussing EDI and other RD training issues, we require all potential supervisors to do our in-house training.

Why can’t I do the training later?

Most EDI issues arise at the moment potential supervisors start talking with prospective students and contributing to students’ applications, which is why the training has to be done before the project can be advertised.

What if I can’t book on the training courses?

Places on each course are limited. We strongly recommend that colleagues plan to undertake required EDI training through the year, at the earliest available opportunity, and as far in advance of the call deadline as possible.

If courses are full please contact MRC LID as soon as possible to join a waiting list. This will help us to gauge demand and try to meet it within the studentship recruitment timeline.

The training offered nearest the deadline is always oversubscribed, and there are always people who miss out. Unfortunately, there is no leeway for those who wait until the final opportunity to book and then are unable to attend (for example, due to illness or last-minute teaching commitments).

Every year there are complaints and confrontations about our mandatory training. However, the DTP is unable to compromise on commitments made to UKRI.

2. Decolonising global health

Why does my reflection on decolonizing global health issues apply if my project is primarily based in the UK or other high-income country (HIC) settings?

We recognize that all projects are different, and the concept of coloniality may not seem applicable to a proposed project. However, potential supervisors should spend time as a team reflecting on factors that may perpetuate inequities, such as

underrepresentation of minoritised groups in research,
power dynamics between research participants and researchers as well as between supervisor and supervisee,
sources of knowledge, who is considered an “expert” in a given topic and why, and/or
engagement of study participants and the potential beneficiaries of the research in all steps of it.

These issues may apply to research conducted in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) as well as HICs.

Some other potential sources of information could be found at:

Contact

If you have any questions about required training or any other aspect of project bids and the studentships please contact the MRC LID Manager by email: mrclid@lshtm.ac.uk.