Lead Supervisor: Marija Sciberras (m.sciberras@hw.ac.uk)
2nd Supervisor: Lynda Rodwell (Lynda.rodwell@plymouth.ac.uk)
Associate Partner: CEFAS (https://www.cefas.co.uk)

 

Project description

The scallop sector is one of the highest value commercial fisheries in the UK and supports a productive catch sector and processor businesses. Despite their economic relevance, the UK scallop fisheries lack robust management regimes to regulate effort and landings and minimize impacts on target and non-target species. The UK’s withdrawal from the EU represents an opportunity to prioritise and re-structure future UK fisheries management.

 

Aims and objectives

The proposed project will generate an evidence-base on the environmental, social and economic consequences of different harvest strategies and management measures for the UK scallop fishery.

 

Training

The project is multidisciplinary and cuts across the disciplines of biology and ecology, sociology and economics. The candidate will have the opportunity to learn and develop numerical skills and engage with members of the scallop dredging industry to determine the drivers (social, environmental and economic) of fishers’ spatial behaviour and their preference of management measures for scallop stocks. During this project the candidate will benefit from working with fisheries science authorities (CEFAS, MSS) advising UK government on scallop fisheries management in the UK. Ultimately, the knowledge gained through this PhD will help inform future fisheries management decisions to improve the management of scallop stocks.

 

Project structure

Year 1 – 2

  • Develop understanding of the scallop stocks in different study areas around the UK
  • Determine the drivers (social, environmental and economic) of fishers’ behaviour that influence fishers’ choices of where, when and why they fish where they do and determine their preference for management measures of scallop stocks

Year 3 – 4

  • Carry out environmental and economic evaluations of a range of management scenarios identified during earlier work in this PhD proje
  • Make recommendations on management measures to improve the management of scallop fisheries currently being developed under Fisheries Management Plans (FMPs)

The project will be supervised by Dr Marija Sciberras from Heriot-Watt University, Dr Lynda Rodwell from the University of Plymouth and Dr Gwladys Lambert from CEFAS who bring expertise in ecological impacts of benthic fisheries, numerical and economic modelling. The candidate will receive further support from Dr Michael Bell and Dr Karen Alexander from Heriot-Watt University on biological and sociological aspects of the project.

Information for Applicants

Applications for Cohort 2 of the CDT SuMMeR is now open, with PhD Studentships commencing from 1 October 2023.

How to apply
Please find below the list of PhD projects which will start from October 2023. Please click on the reference code of the project you are interested in for more information and the contact details of the Lead Supervisor. You are encouraged to contact the Lead Supervisor (stated in the description of the project) prior to the submission of your application to discuss any aspect of the project/s you are interested in. This will be informal and will have no impact on any applications that follow, other than showing your interest and enthusiasm.

To submit your application, please send to cdt-summer@plymouth.ac.uk:

  • A two-page curriculum vitae (CV) – please do not include personal information, such as your portrait photograph, age, marital status or nationality on your CV.. Let us know your education history from undergraduate, work experience, employment, research and publications and any other experience you consider relevant for the project. (Do contact the team at CDT SuMMeR if you have queries (CDT-SuMMeR-PGRS@plymouth.ac.uk);
  • A personal statement/covering letter (no longer than 1000 words) which explains why you consider yourself to be a suitable candidate for the PhD Project advertised, what qualifications, experience and skills you have that support your application, and what your aspirations are following on completion of this PhD. Our team is strongly committed to upholding equity, diversity, and inclusion. We expect candidates to uphold these same values and contribute to a positive, safe and inclusive environment. We invite candidates to include a statement about their experience of working across disciplines, cultures, countries or groups in their cover letter. Please ensure you state the PhD Project Reference Code for which you are applying for, on your personal statement/covering letter;
  • Complete the Diversity survey at the following link: CDT SuMMeR EDI Survey Please note this is for monitoring purposes only and is not linked to your application. The raw data is being collected independently of the CDT SuMMeR Programme Office by SERIO and is being collected because we want to check how well we are improving our recruitment processes year-on-year. We want to make sure we attract the best talent by recruiting candidates from many diverse backgrounds and experiences. Only the anonymised and aggregated data will be made available to the CDT SuMMeR programme office.
  • Optional: SuMMeR appreciates and values differences and seeks to attract, develop and retain a diverse mix of talented people that will contribute to and benefit from the CDT. If you wish to do so, please provide any contextual information that is relevant to your prior attainment and/or your educational pathway to this point. For example, if you are returning to the education system after a period of prolonged absence, you may, if you wish, list any relevant professional experience/qualifications that you have gained. Or, if your prior attainment was affected by extenuating circumstances that you wish to share with us, please do so (up to 500 words).

The closing date for applications is 16:00 BST on 17th January 2023.

Shortlisted candidates will be contacted by email and invited for interview, with interviews expected to take place from the week commencing the 6th of February 2023. We regret that we may not be able to respond to every applicant. Applicants who have not received a response by this date should consider their application has been unsuccessful on this occasion.

Eligibility

Applicants should have a first or upper second-class honours degree in an appropriate subject and either a relevant Masters qualification or a wider range of experience in a relevant career path (which is equally as important).

Each applicant may apply for a studentship on up to three projects. Where more than one project is applied for, the supervisors of all those projects will be made aware that other applications have been made

CDT SuMMeR studentships are partially funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), which applies the eligibility criteria laid down by its parent body, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), and co-funded by the respective Hosting Partner institutes. UKRI provides details on its training grants in its Terms and Conditions for Training Funding document, including its Training Grant Guide, which can be found on the UKRI website.

International students are eligible for all UKRI-funded postgraduate studentships but UKRI will normally limit the proportion of international students appointed each year through individual doctoral training programmes to 30% of the total.

The studentship is supported for 3 years and 8 months. All UKRI-funded PhD students (UK, EU, International) will be eligible for the full award – both the stipend to support living costs (currently £17,668 per annum pro rata at the 2022/23 rate), and fees at the research organisations’ UK rate. CDT SuMMeR’s funding will not cover international fees set by universities, applicants normally required to pay International fees may have to cover the difference between the Home and the International tuition fee rates (approximately £12,697 per annum).

Please enquire with the lead supervisor on the situation regarding international fees for the project you are interested in.  CDT SuMMeR’s funding will not cover costs associated with visa application or health surcharges, or additional costs associated with entry to, and living in the UK. For EU and international eligibility for UKRI studentships see UKRI’s guidance .

In case of uncertainty, the planned university of registration should be contacted for eligibility advice; or the CDT SuMMeR Programme Office: cdt-summer-students@plymouth.ac.uk

Find out more here.