The LSE ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership is pleased to offer the following Collaborative Studentship, commencing in September 2026:
Project Title: Conceptualizing the Diversity of Care Responsibilities and Understanding the Gendered Policy Implications
Collaborative Partner: Women’s Budget Group
LSE Department: Department of Gender Studies
Studentship Lead: Professor Wendy Sigle (W.Sigle@lse.ac.uk)
Project Description: Against the backdrop of low unemployment, meeting the current Labour Government’s goal of reaching an 80% employment rate will require efforts to move those who are currently inactive into paid employment. The government has been actively trying to reduce the number of people not working due to ill health and disability by targeting their benefit entitlements, but the measures introduced show (1) a lack of understanding of the impact this will have both on disabled people and on carers, many of whom are disabled themselves; or (2) that requiring carers to enter or remain in the labour market will necessitate an increase in formal care provision. While there has been some political awareness that increasing women’s employment requires additional childcare and early education capacity and support, detailed knowledge of support for specific types of care (e.g. for a disabled child) is often lacking.
Despite some scholarly efforts to more precisely define and, to a lesser extent, to operationalize care work, in practice, it remains a portmanteau concept, combining a range of tasks that are carried out to directly and indirectly serve the needs and maintain or enhance the well-being of others. Similarly, the term carer is broad and masks substantial variations in the time and intensity of the care they deliver. A more precise conceptual articulation is needed to understand and document the ways that different kinds of care responsibilities shape the lived experiences of caregivers and care recipients.
As part of the scholarship, the PhD candidate will develop a project which contributes to both the conceptual and empirical aspects of the research topic. It will identify where targeted policies could prevent families with high care needs from falling into poverty and provide better assistance for transitions out of poverty, including their economic circumstances. The project will definitely involve a focus on the UK setting, but might also include, if appropriate and feasible, a cross-national comparative component, depending on the recruited student’s skills and interests.
Length of studentship:The studentship will commence in September 2026, with a duration of 3.5 years.
Value of studentship: LSE ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership Collaborative Studentships cover full fees and an annual stipend. The stipend per year for 2025/26 entry was £22,780
Candidate Requirements: Candidates must have already completed a MPhil (or international equivalent, typically a Master’s level qualification) in a related subject (either interdisciplinary gender studies or a social science discipline with evidence of a substantive focus on gender) and have experience of quantitative data analysis gained through study or working experience.
Application process: Students of all nationalities are eligible to apply for this studentship. Suitably qualified candidates should make an application via MPhil/PhD Gender.
Instead of submitting a research proposal, you should clearly cite the Collaborative Studentship project title and outline your suitability for the Studentship within the 'statement of academic purpose' section of your application, directly addressing the project description above. Please note this will only constitute an application for admission for the Collaborative Studentship. The successful candidate will enrol directly into the PhD element of the programme.
If you would also like to be considered for general admission to this programme, please include a separate research proposal with your application, which meets the criteria for this programme as set out on the programme page.
Deadline for applications: 10 December 2025
Enquiries regarding the application process should directed to Pam Rolfe, Deputy Head of Scholarships and Financial Support (p.rolfe@lse.ac.uk)