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£600,000 award to train scientists and engineers at the University of Reading for Britain's future – University of Reading

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the UK funding body for science and engineering, has announced £600,000 in funding to the University of Reading to train Britain's future scientists and engineers, it announced on 12 February 2009. The funding, in the form of Doctoral Training Grants, provides for new PhD studentships.

Professor Steven Mithen, Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Reading, said: "The new EPSRC Doctoral Training Grants for the University of Reading reflects the excellence of on-going research in the engineering and physical sciences at the University. These new funds will be used to support up to 12 new PhD studentships. These will be grouped into 'packages' to support up to three on-going or new research themes of key strategic importance to the University within the Faculties of Science and Life Science."

The Doctoral Training Grants, which have been awarded to 45 universities and higher education institutions, are worth £82 million in total nationally and will generate over 1200 PhD students.

Professor David Delpy, chief executive of EPSRC, said: "People are at the heart of what we do. These grants mark a significant investment in talented future PhD students who will help drive forward the UK's economy."

The Grants 2009-10 are part of the EPSRC's broader commitment to excellence in Britain's post graduate research.

ENDS

Further information from Alex Brannen, Media Relations Manager, on 0118 378 7388

Notes for editors:

Doctoral Training Grants provide a flexible block of funding that allows universities to recruit students who meet the strategic needs of the university as well as national and regional needs.

They are allocated each year to a wide selection of British universities. They are awarded on the basis of EPSRC research grant income. The DTG allows institutions to be flexible in terms of staff recruitment and retention as well as varying the length of support (between three and four years) dependant on the project.

University of Reading

• The University of Reading is ranked as one of the UK's top research-intensive universities. The quality and diversity of the University's research and teaching is recognised internationally as one of the top 200 universities in the world.

• The University is home to more than 50 research centres, many of which are recognised as international centres of excellence such as agriculture, biological and physical sciences, European histories and cultures, and meteorology.

• The University takes a real-world perspective to its research and is consistently one of the most popular higher education choices in the UK.

• The Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2008 results confirm the standing of the University of Reading as a research-intensive university. Published in December 2008, the outcomes recognise over 87% of the university's research to be of international standing. The work of over 600 University of Reading research active staff was submitted to the Higher Education Funding Council for England for the RAE (88% of our eligible staff), demonstrating the breadth and quality of research across the university. Areas of particular research strength recognised by the 2008 RAE include meteorology and climate change, typography and graphic design, archaeology, philosophy, food biosciences, construction management, real estate and planning as well as law.

About EPSRC

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is the main UK government agency for funding research and training in engineering and the physical sciences, investing around £740 million a year in a broad range of subjects – from mathematics to materials science, and from information technology to structural engineering.