Grants and Writing Resources for the University of Warwick

In February 2026 the School of Engineering reported that two second-year Automotive Engineering students had earned outstanding recognition in the BORG Automotive Reman Challenge 2025, an international competition run by the remanufacturer BORG Automotive Group. Their entry applied machine learning and digital modelling to the uncertainty in remanufacturing work. In October the School reported that a fourth-year Civil Engineering student had been nominated for the 2026 Tony Strong Memorial Prize in Structural Engineering, a new award from the Institution of Structural Engineers for outstanding work in structural analysis and design during the penultimate year of a degree.

Research Projects for Undergraduates

The Undergraduate Research Support Scheme (URSS) pays a bursary of up to £1,500 for a research project of six to ten weeks carried out with a supervisor, and some departments add a top-up. A project can sit in any department and need not relate to the student's degree. Groups may work together, but each member applies separately and produces a separate outcome. Final-year students are eligible as well; the University extends their registration so they keep email and library access.

The usual outcome is an A1 poster at the URSS showcase. A three-minute presentation, an academic paper, a blog or a video also counts. The scheme carries no grade, and completion is recorded on the Higher Education Achievement Record. Through the PATHWAY URSS, part of Warwick's research culture programme, undergraduates who identify as Black or of Black heritage can apply for the same bursary of up to £1,500 and join networking and career events.

Doctoral Scholarships and Small Grants

Warwick's Postgraduate Research Scholarships for October 2027 entry share one application that covers six streams. Up to 30 Faculty Chancellors scholarships are open to any nationality or fee status. Up to 12 Interdisciplinary Chancellors scholarships go to projects linked to a Research Spotlight or Research Centre. Both streams pay full UK or international fees and a tax-free stipend at the UKRI rate for three and a half years, with a £5,000 Research Training and Support Grant. Neither stream is open to students already registered for a research degree.

Doctoral researchers who want to start a network or run an event for other PGRs can ask the Doctoral College's PGR Networking Fund for up to £300. The money can pay for speaker travel, facilitators, venue fees and reading-group resources. Conference attendance is excluded. Applications that bring a contribution from another source, such as a department, are viewed more favourably, and recipients send a short report after the event.

Proofreading Rules and Thesis Submission

Warwick's Proofreading Policy covers any work submitted for assessment, credit-bearing or not, and applies to professional proofreading companies in the same way as to peers, flatmates and family. A proofreader may identify errors but may not correct them. The permitted list includes spelling, punctuation, grammar and syntax, formatting and layout, minor referencing format and the labelling of diagrams, charts and figures, and the policy likens the role to a mentor. Rewriting unclear passages, adding or cutting content, changing a faulty argument, applying a referencing system, checking facts or calculations and translating a student's text are all outside it.

Students state on the submission form whether a proofreader, paid or unpaid, helped with the work, and it is their responsibility to tell the proofreader about the policy. For dissertations, projects and research degrees, student and supervisor should both be clear about how much proofreading will take place. Where a proofreader goes past these limits and compromises the authenticity of the work, the student is investigated under Regulation 11. The University's academic integrity guidance for students links the policy and asks anyone using proofreading support, whether a professional proofreader, a friend or an online tool such as Grammarly, to understand and follow it.

The Doctoral College's Guide to Examinations for Higher Degrees by Research asks candidates to proofread the thesis for typographical errors and refers any third-party input before submission to the same policy. A PhD thesis has a limit of 80,000 words, excluding appendices, footnotes, tables and bibliography, and includes a declaration that it is the candidate's work. The first submission goes through an online form on the College's submission pages, and a separate form handles the final library copy.

Help With Academic Writing

The Doctoral College runs more than 200 Researcher Development workshops a year in small, coaching-style groups, booked through SkillsForge. Writing Support is one of the programme's six strands. Sessions in its autumn 2026 RDO Writing Series include storyboarding a draft and Making your thesis easier to read for your examiner.

Students can also contact the Library's Academic Support Librarians for help locating trusted sources in specialist databases and referencing them correctly.

Warwick's Proofreading Policy lets an outside reader point out errors in spelling, punctuation, grammar, formatting and referencing format while the corrections stay with the student, and our editors mark a paper, thesis or dissertation on those terms. See our University of Warwick dissertation and thesis editing and University of Warwick essay editing pages, or write to editors@editorsforstudents.com.

From Our Writing Guides

• How to Avoid Academic Dishonesty: Citing and Quoting Sources
• Literature Synthesis: Moving Beyond the Summary toward Authority
• Dissertation Defense: Defending the Logical Skeleton