Environmental Research NERC DTP DPhil

University of Oxford

The NERC-Oxford DTP in Environmental Research is a four-year DPhil programme which offers a novel training environment across three broad science streams.

Researchers in the DTP work across disciplines and at the cutting edge of environmental research, to advance knowledge and find solutions to pressing environmental challenges in collaboration with outside partners. You will carry out your research project in one of eight departments after an initial training period. The three streams of the NERC-Oxford DTP are as follows:

• Biodiversity, ecology and evolutionary processes
• Physical climate system
• Dynamic Earth, surface processes and natural hazards

During the first two terms, you will have access to a training programme during which you will have the opportunity to develop your research skills and acquire an understanding of how researchers in other disciplines operate, while also writing your own research proposal in collaboration with your supervisor(s) and in many cases an external partner. You will be recruited to a research stream, and in some cases to a pre-determined project (eg with an industrial CASE partner). You will begin your course based with the DTP.

You will be offered training in 'hard' skills such as scientific computing, statistics and numerical modelling, as well as being offered a broad-brush understanding of the Earth system across all disciplines of the DTP. There will also be course modules in softer transferable skills such as project design, proposal writing, communication and problem solving to underpin the exploration of research methodologies.

Elective training will continue throughout the degree and you will be able to select from a portfolio of advanced training courses to create your own tailored training programme. Later in the course, modules will include thesis writing and paper writing. You will remain a member of the DTP even after transferring out to a department in term three.