Ad Astra PhD Scholarship at University College Dublin, Ireland (Fully Funded)

The Ad Astra PhD Scholarship is awarded by University College Dublin (UCD) in Ireland. It supports new entrants to UCD doctoral programmes at PhD level and is fully funded, with awards administered by the university's individual schools and colleges rather than one central competition.

It is open to applicants of any nationality who are starting a UCD PhD, and covers full fee remission at the non-EU rate, a tax-free stipend of €25,000 a year, and €4,000 yearly for research and travel, renewable up to four years. Deadlines vary by school, so check the official page and the sections below.

• Full fee remission at the non-EU tuition rate for the duration of the PhD
• Tax-free annual stipend of €25,000
• €4,000 per year additional research and travel budget
• Funding renewable annually for up to four years, subject to satisfactory academic progress
• Access to UCD's Ad Astra Academy cohort activities and researcher-development supports

Note: exact award numbers vary by school and are not centrally published - confirm with the specific school's call for the current cycle.

The Ad Astra Doctoral Scholarship funds PhD (doctoral) study only. It is intended for students entering a UCD doctoral programme for the first time - it is not available to students who are already partway through a PhD or to master's/undergraduate applicants.

Ad Astra is not a single cross-university "all subjects" scholarship. Instead, individual UCD schools open their own Ad Astra-funded PhD places each year in their own subject areas - recent rounds have included Politics & International Relations and Quantitative & Computational Social Science (via UCD's School of Politics and International Relations, SPIRe), with other UCD schools such as Philosophy, Music, and Global Health running separate calls of their own. Prospective applicants should check with their target school to see whether an Ad Astra-funded place is being offered in their subject for the current admissions cycle.

The Ad Astra Doctoral Scholarship is explicitly open to applicants "regardless of nationality or residence." This makes it one of the few fully funded Irish PhD schemes genuinely open to international applicants from any country, alongside Irish and EU nationals.

• Must be a new entrant to a UCD PhD programme (existing/continuing PhD students are not eligible)
• Must meet UCD's standard doctoral admission requirements for the relevant school and programme
• Open to applicants of any nationality or country of residence
• Must apply for and be considered for funding as part of, or alongside, a specific school's PhD admissions round - funding is offered by the school, not centrally by the university

1. Identify a participating school: check whether the UCD school offering your intended PhD subject is running an Ad Astra call for the coming cycle (calls are announced separately by each school, not on one central page).
2. Apply for the PhD programme: submit UCD's standard doctoral application for that school/programme, including transcripts, CV, and a research proposal.
3. Indicate interest in Ad Astra funding: note your interest in being considered for the school's Ad Astra-funded place, typically within your application or cover letter, following that school's specific instructions.
4. Interview/selection: shortlisted candidates are assessed competitively on academic merit by the school.
5. Accept promptly if offered: successful candidates are generally expected to accept the offer within about two weeks.

Because deadlines and processes vary by school, always confirm the current cycle's exact steps and dates with the specific UCD school before applying.