SWDTP Management and Business studentships

Applications close on 14 January 2025 (12:00 noon UK time) and the studentship will start on 1 October 2025

Apply

To apply for the SWDTP Management and Business Pathway please use the online application form for the PhD programme discussed with your potential supervisor and simply click on the relevant online application link below:
Within the Research section of the application form, in the following fields, please add:
  • Proposed project title/studentship title: add your project title
  • Proposed supervisor: add the potential supervisor name
  • Studentship code: add SWDTP 25-10 M&B

Application guidance 

It is important that you follow the instructions above or your application for this studentship may be missed and therefore will not be considered.
Before applying, please ensure you have read the Doctoral College’s general information on applying for a research degree.  
For more information on the admissions process, please contact research.degree.admissions@plymouth.ac.uk.
Plymouth Business School 
Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business
Plymouth Business School has a research active community producing high quality trans- and interdisciplinary research of local, national, and international importance. We work collaboratively, engaging with individuals, businesses, and organisations from the private, public and third sectors to deliver impactful research which is making a difference to societies, economies, and cultures around the world, and which is embedded into our overseas and domestic, undergraduate, and postgraduate teaching. 
Collaborating with the Plymouth Business School will connect you with our research and thought leadership– translating, applying, and testing ideas, concepts, and models into the world of business. You will be working with pioneering academics of global standing who have extensive and active networks in a range of industries, and we are committed to ensuring our students have opportunities to explore the latest developments across a variety of areas.
ESRC-funded studentships can be taken up in any of the specialist areas of research supported by the school including tourism, events, and hospitality (and cruise), shipping and logistics, supply chain management, maritime business, maritime transport, marketing, business management, enterprise and entrepreneurship, human resource management, and accounting, economics, and finance. More specifically, the following staff welcome contact for research related to the following areas in this SWDTP round:
  • The role of big data analytics/artificial intelligence/emerging technologies in manufacturing operations.
  • New business models for manufacturing operations towards circular economy.
  • Sustainable design and manufacturing approaches and practice.
  • Co-creation of closed-loop value chains in food systems.
  • Social innovation to support food-sharing communities from value chain perspective.
  • Sustainable supply chain management in food sector.
  • Knowledge mobilisation spanning boundaries across different stages of food supply chains.
  • The coastal housing crisis.
  • Economic productivity and regeneration in coastal communities.
  • Developing the talent pipeline amongst children and young people living in peripheral coastal communities.
  • Socio-cultural outcomes (health, education, crime, deprivation, isolation) and resilience of coastal communities.
  • Modelling the growth of social enterprise ecosystems using system dynamics simulation.
  • Preparing undergraduates for the world of work: Using simulation gaming to develop employment competencies.
  • Mechanisms and dynamics of integrating low-carbon transport within urban freight ecosystems through multi-stakeholder collaboration. 
  • Emergent processes for integration of micromobility and public transport as part of urban sustainability transitions.
  • Informal economies and urban sustainability transitions, focusing on how people construct narratives for sustainability path from just transitions perspectives in global south cities.
  • Ongoing activities and practices embedded within indigenous and local knowledge systems in urban sustainability transitions.
  • Examining the role of artificial intelligence in spreading sustainability misinformation on social media.
  • Examining the impact of value co-creation on resource optimisation and sustainability.
  • Examining the impact of value co-creation on resource optimisation and sustainability.
  • The role of CSR and/or sustainability in marketing strategy development and implementation.
  • Facilitating sustainable practices in service industries through the principles of circular economy.
  • Digital Experience design for Sustainable Tourism.
  • Evaluating the role of international policies, national action and corporate action in achieving significant GHG reductions for maritime transport). 
  • The impact of maritime security on modern maritime transport trade and geopolitics.
  • Designing a sustainable humanitarian relief logistics model. 
  • Human resource management and impact of digital technologies for maritime sector. 
  • Impact of dividend policy within the optimal control theory framework and corporate governance on CSR decoupling.
  • Evaluating the success of messages by professional English football clubs in changing the desired behaviour of their visitors, match attendees and members. 
Successful applicants will be part of a large, vibrant, highly collaborative community of PhD students with good interdisciplinary links, providing opportunities for research, training, and collaboration.

Initial enquiries

If you would like advice on potential supervisors, please contact Professor Sheela Agarwal .

How to apply

The ESRC SWDTP encourages collaboration across the universities of the partnership and with external organisations.
Closing date: 14 January 2025, 12:00 noon (UK time)
Start date: 1 October 2025 
The studentship is supported for three to four years depending upon the pathway and includes full home tuition fees plus a stipend which is currently £19,237 per annum (2024/2025 rate). There are limited number of places for international students. 

Eligibility 

Information on the eligibility criteria for full awards can be found on the South West DTP website.

Application process

We strongly encourage you to discuss your proposed research topic with an academic staff member in your field. More specifically, the staff listed welcome contact for research related to the areas mentioned above in this SWDTP round. You can also explore the member lists of Plymouth's research groups and centres or search staff profiles using subject-area search terms (e.g. citizenship) or an individual's name. Please discuss with your potential supervisor the PhD programme title you need to submit a formal application for.
You will need to submit the following documentation in order for us to consider your application:
Your application will only be considered if it contains the above and you have met our minimum criteria. If we need further details or additional documentation, we will contact you.
For full details on the studentship process, please visit the South West Doctoral Training Partnership: How do I apply for a studentship? page.