Student Information

EPSRC Doctoral Training Grants contain 3 elements of funding to support studentships – fees, maintenance, and consumables (otherwise known as research training support grant [RTSG] funds). The consumables element is currently £6,000 for a 4-year studentship.

What the Consumables budget may be used for (and what is prohibited)

Research Council grant conditions do not provide a list of examples of what training support funds may be used for but do require that the University: a) ensures proper financial management and accountability in its use of public funds and b) pays due consideration to value for money across all activities. All consumables expenditure must be evidenced by receipts.

In general, expenses relating to the following may be charged to the consumables budget:

• Training in generic and transferable skills, costs of short courses, workshops, visits to external research labs are permitted expenses;
• Standard/economy-class travel and accommodation for conferences, summer schools and fieldwork is permitted; these should be within reason and agreed in advance by the department and supervisor;
• Experimental resources and use of equipment specifically required by the research project are permitted, but note that apportionment of costs is not permitted unless validated by individual purchase order and receipt;
• Laboratory and IT resources are a permitted cost where these are specifically required by the research project and where any equipment remains the property of the University;
• The grant conditions state the incidental costs of postgraduate training should have regard for the nature and complexity of projects and the need for fieldwork, conferences, broadening training and industrial or work placements: in other words, EPSRC expects that individual students and projects will have different needs.

The following expenses have been refused by UKRI auditors and must not be charged to the grant:

• Alcoholic drinks, taxis, first-class travel or first-class accommodation must not be charged to the grant (unless there is specific justification - e.g. taxi necessary due to non-availability of public transport, all conference delegates accommodated in one hotel - and the explanation is clearly set out in the expense claim);
• Charging consumables such as solvents and chemicals using an annual apportionment basis is not permitted; any apportionment of expenses for multiple users of resources or equipment is not permitted (UKRI considers these to be the normal costs of training and should be covered by the fees);
• Equipment such as laptops, the costs of software, subscriptions for electronic data storage – which are not specifically required by the research project or which are purchased towards the end of the project – are not permitted;
• Costs associated with the administration of training, advertising costs, or the costs of open days should not be charged to the consumables budget, as EPSRC expects these to be incorporated into the fees.

DISCLAIMER: Please ensure all VAT receipts are retained (bank statement screen shots will not be used as evidence of payment) and sent to your universities AgriFoRwArdS team at the email addresses above.

These will be usually bought or supplied to you by your course administrator. However, if it happens that you need to claim other expenses, you will need to:

1. Complete a student expense form FD1A/1: Excel version and Word Version or PDF Version
2. Email the completed form to your primary supervisor and cc your administrator
3. If the spending is approved, it will be processed by the administrator who will issue an instruction to the Finance office to pay it.

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Expenses Quick Guide

Who to contact for general expenses requests and queries:

Please contact agriforwards-cdt@eng.cam.ac.uk

Please ensure all VAT receipts are retained (bank statement screen shots will not be used as evidence of payment) and sent to your universities AgriFoRwArdS team at the email addresses above.

STEMM Researcher Development and Support for PhD Students (1:1 session)

The Research Development Programme continues to offer one-to-one support to PhD students across all STEMM disciplines. However, given the present circumstances relating to Covid-19, one-to-one support will be provided virtually or online using either Skype, Teams or Zoom.

Please bear in mind that topics for discussion should relate to researcher or personal development, and/or advice relating to the management of your PhD project.

Upon booking, you will receive a booking confirmation email. Please refer to the joining instructions in the email for further information regarding your one-to-one session.

Presentation Skills: Online Course (online)

Do you dread speaking in public or giving presentations? Or are you looking to build on your current skills and experience to make your planning and delivery more effective? This course aims to develop your skills, knowledge and confidence in both formal and informal presentation situations e.g. meetings, training sessions and conferences. This online course provides an opportunity to explore key areas in both preparation and delivery of presentations.

KEY PEOPLE 

Your supervisor will be the person in the department who you work most closely with. When you arrive, you should arrange to meet with them as soon as you can, to discuss what you both expect from the supervision relationship and make plans for getting started.

Your advisor will be assigned to you as a second point of contact for academic support when needed. Your advisor may also be one of your assessors for your first year assessment and second year review. Advisors are usually nominated by your supervisor, and approved by your Head of Division within your first term. If you do not know who your advisor is by the end of your first term, please speak to your Divisional Administrator.

Your Divisional Administrator is a source of help for any practical support you need, such as signposting you to local resources, arranging departmental access and making sure you have the necessary space and equipment to study. Most Michaelmas Term starters will meet their Divisional Administrator at the Induction Day, but late arrivals and Lent Term starters should contact them to introduce themselves.

The Graduate Studies Office (GSO) is responsible for all aspects of your academic journey, as well as ensuring that graduate student policies are adhered to and maintaining your student record. Almost everything covered on this website is within the remit of the GSO, so feel free to contact us if you have queries about anything.

Further information can be found HERE

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Students' responsibilities

As a student, you are required to:

• Abide by the University's regulations and Statutes and Ordinances.
• Be proactive and self-directed in all aspects of your study, and take full advantage of the facilities, teaching and supervision offered.
• Meet regularly with your supervisor and keep them informed of your progress. Any problems you experience with your work should be discussed with your supervisor without delay.
• Follow University processes to apply for any necessary changes to your student status (eg course or supervisor change, absence from Cambridge, etc).
• Reside in Cambridge full-time (unless you are a part-time student) and apply for permission to work away or intermit for absences of greater than two weeks.
• Devote around 40 hours per week to your course of study. Holidays may be taken at times agreed with your supervisor, up to a maximum of 8 weeks in a calendar year.
• Be aware of your thesis submission deadline and ensure that you submit on time.

Supervisors' responsibilities

Supervisors are expected to:

• Meet with students on a regular basis; at least twice a term.
• Provide academic advice and monitor students' progress.
• Write a progress report via CamSIS on a termly basis.
• Write an ad hoc progress report if any concerns arise outside of the regular reporting window.
• Review and comment on applications for changes to student status.
• Read drafts of written work, particularly the fist year report and the thesis, and provide feedback.
• Ensure that students are aware of their deadline and submit on time.
• Nominate examiners for the thesis.

FURTHER INFORMATION

FIRST YEAR REQUIREMENTS

Taught Modules: All research students are required to attend a Researcher and Development Course and to take two modules during their first year. Modules can be chosen from the approved list of Part IIB (fourth year Engineering undergraduate) modules, modules from fourth year courses in other Departments or certain MPhil courses, and specialist research modules and reading clubs. You should choose your modules in consultation with your supervisor within the first two weeks of your course. Please note that all students at the University of Cambridge are entitled to attend all lectures, so you do not need to have registered for a module before you can start attending lectures.

FURTHER INFORMATION (Available Modules, Timetables and syllabuses, Exemptions)

First year report: All students following the PhD course in Engineering are required to submit a First Year Report (FYR).  This is an important part of your first year and assessment of your report, along with your module results, will determine if you will be registered for the PhD Degree and be allowed to continue your course. You can start thinking about your FYR from the start of your course. Your supervisor will ask you to review the current literature in your area of research so you can start writing your literature survey in your first term. Sessions on writing your First Year Report are offered as part of the Researcher Development Courses, which all students should attend. Your report should be 10,000 – 15,000 words. Although this is not a strict word limit, it should not be necessary for your report to exceed 15,000 words.

FUTHER INFORMATION (Deadlines, Content, Submission)

First year assessment process:  All PhD students begin as Probationary PhD (NOTAF - not at first registered). At the end of the first year, your progress is assessed via the First Year Assessment, and a decision is made on whether to register you for the PhD. The assessment comprises the following elements:

• Assessment of a 10,000 - 15,000 word First Year Report;
• Passing two modules from the approved list of modules;
• Participation in a Researcher Development Course.

The First Year Assessment is carried out by at least two assessors, and your supervisor is not formally involved in the decision on the outcome, although they are asked to make a recommendation. Usually the two assessors will be your advisor and your Head of Division (or a deputy), although this is not always the case. If you wish to notify your assessors of any disability or request adjustments on account of such disability for your technical and/or formal assessment meeting you can do this via your Degree Committee by completing and submitting the voluntary disclosure form.

FURTHER INFORMATION (Deadlines, Process, Technical and Formal Assessment Meetings)

The University launched a Self-Archiving Policy on 1 April 2023, following the year-long Rights Retention Pilot. The policy gives Cambridge researchers a cost-effective route to make the accepted version of their papers open access without embargo – something that is now required by almost all research funders. It applies to all peer-reviewed research articles submitted after 1 April 2023, including reviews and conference papers.

One key difference between the new Self-Archiving Policy and the previous Rights Retention Pilot is that it is opt-out rather than opt-in. This means that all researchers must either:

Follow the policy

Before submission:

• Ensure that your co-authors agree to apply a CC BY licence to the accepted manuscript. Alternative licences are permitted providing they are in line with funder requirements.
• It is advisable to include the following sentence in your article’s financial disclosure or acknowledgements section: “For the purpose of open access, the author has applied a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) licence to any Author Accepted Manuscript version arising from this submission”. This ensures that the publisher is aware of your intention to retain the right to distribute the accepted manuscript.

On acceptance:

• Deposit your article into the repository through Symplectic Elements.
• Inform us of any preference for an alternative Creative Commons licence using the options provided.

 Or Opt Out

Email info@openaccess.cam.ac.uk stating your intention to opt out. When depositing papers into the repository through Symplectic Elements, it is your responsibility to inform us that you are opting out by using fields provided in the form.

More information about the new policy can be found at https://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/stories/self-archiving-policy

Guidance and FAQs are available at https://www.openaccess.cam.ac.uk/publishing-open-access/self-archiving-policy-guidance

This FORM should be completed every time when students travel to educational activities outside of Cambridge such as conference, field works, industry site visits.

Please download, complete and send this to the Engineering Department Health and Safety Office: safety-office@eng.cam.ac.uk

Student Support information provided by the University Student Services: https://www.studentsupport.cam.ac.uk/

General Principles for use of Generative AI

When using AI tools and websites, please consider the following guiding principles:

• Students should understand that it is not a replacement for developing their own skills in critical analysis, creative thinking, and rigorous research.

• Generative AI tools produce answers that may contain social biases and stereotypes depending on the information it has access to and draws upon, as well as the prompts provided.

• Detection of AI-generated content is possible, but difficult and not wholly reliable; the University does not currently offer a standard detection package.

• AI tools like ChatGPT and others may be useful as a study aid, for inspiration or exploring concepts, for approaching complex tasks or content, or for supporting self-assessment and review.

• Staff are encouraged to consider ways in which AI can be constructively used within their teaching; the Blended Learning Service can provide support where required.

• Users should be aware of the potential privacy and data risks inherent in using tools such as these. Whether it learns directly from your input it still has access to this information and it may not be clear how it is being used.

It is important to understand the implications of generated information and proceed with caution when using outputs from these platforms without thorough analysis and critical reflection. Much like you would approach research of any other kind, users should continue to be diligent, skeptical, and validate AI output with other sources of data and information. 

Guidance for Students

Students are permitted to make appropriate use of artificial intelligence tools to support their personal study, research and formative work. Before using any AI, please check guidance provided by your Department or Faculty and discuss with your Supervisor where relevant.

A student using any unacknowledged content generated by artificial intelligence within a summative assessment as though it is their own work constitutes academic misconduct, unless explicitly stated otherwise in the assessment brief.

When using AI tools and websites, please consider the following guiding principles:

You can find out more about the University’s disciplinary procedures here.

Students are, however, permitted to use such tools for personal study, research, and a number of other scenarios, including but not limited to:

• providing an overview of new concepts and acting as a collaborative coach to problem solve

• reinterpreting information to present alternative ways of expressing ideas (e.g., personal lecture notes)

• supporting time management and suggesting methods of approaching complex tasks

• generating ideas or overcoming writer’s block assisting through design processes

• making sense of complex information and prompting reflective questions to facilitate learning

• dynamic self-evaluation offering structured Q&A or discussion topics to monitor own progress

Whilst we encourage students to explore how best tools such as these can support them in their own learning or personal life, you should continue to be aware of the limitations, inconsistencies, and potential biases that can exist within generative AI. It is also worth being aware of potential drawbacks from over reliance on these tools as they may limit your development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills and could cause you to miss embedded learning opportunities from independent study. 

If you are unsure about how to use it effectively for your own needs please do not hesitate to discuss with your Supervisor and, if there is any uncertainty, make sure to discuss the options for permissible use of AI with your Director of Studies or Director of Teaching.