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The DUFE PhD Scholarship is available for students who have completed the UU/DUFE programme and commencing postgraduate research at Ulster University in September 2025.

Value

  • £7,770 for each year of the three-year PhD study
  • The scholarship will be applied as discount to the annual tuition fee.

Postgraduate Research

Postgraduate research study at Ulster University Business School provides access to world-class experts and facilities, links to business and industry, and the chance to push the boundaries of your research knowledge to find solutions to real-world issues.

PhD Programme Structure

  • Three years at Ulster University, Northern Ireland
  • Opportunity to carry out research in China.

PhD Entry Requirements

  • Minimum of a 2:1 undergraduate degree in a relevant business area.

Tuition Fee  (£GBP)

  • 2025/26 tuition fee: £18,520

*Fees are subject to an annual increase.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to apply for the scholarship you must:

  1. Hold a First Class Degree classification from the UU/DUFE Joint Programme in:
    • BSc (Hons) Accounting, or
    • BSc (Hons) Finance
  2. Meet the University’s English Language requirements

How to Apply

  1. Applications are submitted via the online application system
  2. You should create an account and submit an application, selecting
    • ‘A PhD Ulster Business School Full Time’ as your academic programme
    • ‘399234 - Business and Management (self funded)’ as the Project ID/Title from the drop down list
    • State ‘DUFE’ in the section relating to funding your studies
  3. You will receive an automated receipt email once your application has been submitted prompting you to upload relevant supplemental items, which form part of your application, including:
    • A Personal Statement, which gives details on your motivation to pursue a PhD at Ulster University Business School
    • A Research proposal of around 2,000-words, illustrating your proposed area of PhD study
    • Copies of your Degree certificates and transcripts
    • Evidence of English Language proficiency
  4. You will be invited to attend an online interview as part of the admissions process

Application Deadline

Applications open: 2 December 2024

Applications close: 16:00 (GMT) on 24 February 2025

Interview period: 18 March – 4 April 2025

Notification of outcome: 5 May 2025

Potential PhD Topics

Accounting Industry and Accounting Education Issues

  • The role of not-for-profit organisations in the finance industry – what can organisations such as credit unions offer customers who are excluded from mainstream financial institutions?
  • Exploring accounting students’ attitudes towards ethical issues and ethical decision making
  • Pedagogical issues in accounting – what subjects should accountants of the future be studying in an age of artificial intelligence?

Outsourcing, Performance Management and Assets Management

  • Understanding government outsourcing and value for money
  • Performance measurement in the public/private sector – understanding effectiveness of methods/frameworks in public and private sector organisations
  • Asset pricing issues – (factor investing, bubble detection, mispricing of stocks during economic uncertainties, financialisation of commodities and precious metals, risk and return)

Financial and Narrative Reporting

  • Understanding effective narrative reporting by listed companies (corporate social responsibility, risk reporting and human capital risk reporting).
  • Understanding how Regtech can streamline reporting and monitoring for financial institutions?

Financial Technology Issues

  • Understanding Financial Technology and how it will impact Banking in the Future
  • How does AI-driven valuation compare to traditional methods?
  • Auditing Distributed Ledgers: Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Financial Audits
  • Exploring empirical analysis of Cryptocurrencies and Stablecoins

Other General and Strategic Management Issues

We would also consider more general strategic management areas linked to:

  • Marketing and Advertising
  • Leadership, Human Resource Management and Organisational Behaviour.
  • Entrepreneurship and Small business Development
  • Operations and Supply Chain Management,

Find out more

To find out more and how to apply, contact:

Kevin Tian

Ulster Programme Manager