UCD Iseult Honohan Doctoral Scholarship 2026

University College Dublin

Deadline: Friday 30th January 2026 at 5pm Dublin Time

The aim of the scholarship is to attract applicants of the highest academic calibre to pursue a PhD in the UCD School of Politics and International Relations, and to provide them with the training, experience and mentorship necessary to their professional development.

We welcome applications from all areas of the discipline including political science, political theory, international relations, European governance, computational social science, development and international political economy.

The UCD School of Politics and International Relations (SPIRe) is the oldest and largest school of its kind in the Republic of Ireland. According to the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024, UCD School of Politics and International Relations is ranked in the top 100 in the world.

The scholarship is named after Dr Iseult Honohan, one of the first female PhD graduates from the (then) Department of Ethics and Politics. She retired from teaching in 2015 after over 25 years of service to UCD as one of the leading academics in normative political theory.

Eligibility:

• Applications are open to full-time candidates with a September 2026 start date and with a SPIRe supervisor, in either of the following programmes:
  • PhD Politics and International Relations
  • PhD Quantitative and Computational Social Science (only with a SPIRe supervisor)
• Continuing students, students with a non-September start, students with a supervisor outside of SPIRe or students transferring only part of their PhD studies to UCD are not eligible to apply
• Applicants must have a minimum grade of 2.1 (GPA: 3.6) in a relevant Master's degree.
• Applicants who have not yet completed a Master's degree are eligible to apply but the award will be conditional upon a final minimum grade of 2.1. For applicants not currently holding an MA degree, the quality of the research proposal is particularly important.

Scholarship

This scholarship:

• Covers full fees
• Provides a living stipend of €25,000 per year for up to four years
• Is open to EU and non-EU applicants

Application Process

For further information, terms and conditions, and details on how to apply, please click on the link below

https://www.ucd.ie/spire/study/prospectivephdstudents/iseulthonohandoctoralscholarship/