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Trinity Research Doctorate (Disability) Award (PhD) 2026-27

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The Trinity Research Doctorate (Disability) Award is open to disabled students who wish to pursue a PhD.

The scholarship covers:

  • Tuition fees for a four year (full-time) structured PhD programme/research doctorate. In exceptional circumstances, it may be possible to extend the duration of the research programme and funding.
  • An annual tax-free stipend of €25,000.

Eligibility

  • Applicants must have received an unconditional offer for admission to the full-time PhD register by April 30th, 2026 with the support of a Principal Supervisor. This implies that applicants will have met all admissions criteria, including English language requirements.
  • Applicants must be residing in the Republic of Ireland.
  • Applicants must be eligible to register with the disability Service at the point of registration for their PhD. Further details on eligibility and registration with the Service are available here https://www.tcd.ie/disability/current/RAApplication.php’
  • Applicants must be able to commence studies in the academic year 2026-27 (September 2026, and no later than March 2027).

Application Process

Applicants for the Trinity Research Doctorate (Disability) Award must first have an offer of admission to the full-time PhD register in Trinity. Applicants should liaise directly with the potential Principal Supervisor for guidance through the official application process for admission to the PhD register (NOTE: There is a non-re-fundable online application fee of €55 per application).

Guidance on how to identify a potential research supervisor and submit a research proposal for consideration is available here. If you are still unsure how to identify a supervisor, please email us directly at pgrenewal@tcd.ie for further assistance. 

Once applicants have an offer for admission to the full-time PhD register, they should complete the separate application process for the Trinity Research Doctorate (Disability) Award.

Application for the Award is a two-part process, as follows:

  • the applicant must complete the specific application form for the Trinity Research Doctorate (Sanctuary) Award, and 
  • their named Principal Supervisor must complete the required supervisor form.  (Note: access to this form is restricted to Trinity staff) and submit the required template no later than May 15th, 2026, the final closing date for all documentation related to the application process.

Evaluation Criteria

Complete applications will be scored out of a total of 100 marks and allocated across four categories as follows:

  • 30 marks for the quality of research design and methodology.
  • 25 marks for research impact including overall significance and degree of innovation of the project. Note: Applicants are required to provide evidence that consideration has been given to the project’s contribution towards enhancing our local and global social and/or sustainability ambitions. This element will not be weighted but is a mandatory requirement in each application.
  • 25 marks for evidence of support of the supervisor and appropriate supervision supports for the applicant.
  • 20 marks for evidence related to the impact of an award on the student’s research trajectory in light of the functional impact of their disability on their postgraduate research ambitions.

Evaluation Process

Each completed application will be reviewed and scored by internal cross-faculty reviewers.  Thereafter, short-listed applications will be evaluated by a panel, chaired by the Dean of Graduate Studies, an academic representative from each Faculty, and a representative of the disAbility Service on the basis of the full evaluation criteria.

Shortlisted applications may be invited to interview, to be determined by the Evaluation Panel. The decision as to which applicant will receive the Trinity Research Doctorate (Disability) Award for 2026-27 is at the sole discretion of the evaluation panel whose decision on the matter is final.

All applicants will be contacted by the Dean of Graduate Studies at the end of the evaluation process. Note: unsuccessful applicants to the Trinity Research Doctorate (Disability) Award, who are in receipt of an unconditional offer, will remain eligible for admission to the PhD register and may be considered for other available awards (as appropriate).

Timeline

  • Application for TCD admission in 2026-27 opens: October 31st, 2025.
  • Application to TRD Disability Award opens: January 17th, 2026.
  • Application to TRD Disability Award closes: May 15th, 2026.
  • Outcome of evaluation process expected: June 19th 2026.

Contact

Please email any queries to pgrenewal@tcd.ie.  

disAbility Service

For more information about Trinity’s disAbility service, please see here.

Trinity Research Doctorate Awards

For more information about Trinity Research Doctorate Awards please see here.