Public Consultation - Review of the Northern Ireland Postgraduate Award (PGA) Scheme
Privacy Notice - Review of the Northern Ireland Postgraduate Award (PGA) SchemeThe PGA Scheme has been in operation since 2002 and currently provides funding (tuition fees and a stipend for living costs) for the equivalent of 729 full time PhD students per annum.
Funding supporting the PGA Scheme (while contingent on budget availability each year) is considered as a ringfenced* element of the annual block grant that is provided to universities to promote the financial sustainability of research and innovation (R&I). This institutional block grant funding also comprises core Quality-related Research (QR) funding and Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF) streams to support R&I capacity and capability.
In 2022/23, the Department commissioned external consultants to carry out a review of the PGA Scheme to determine effectiveness and Value for Money, and subsequently held a number of workshops with key stakeholders to develop potential options to inform an economic appraisal for the Scheme going forward.
*Ringfenced funds are allocated for a specific purpose and cannot be spent on anything else