Following a UK Government pilot scheme called TechExpert that we participated in for the 2026 Studentship competition, the CDT will continue participating in this scheme (since rebranded as TechFirst doctoral support ). This means the CDT expects to offer an enhanced stipend for Home fees status students (as defined by UKRI), who are starting in September 2027. This enhanced stipend will be set at £30,000 per year (with increments to account for inflation likely) for the four years of the studentship (pro-rata for the six-year part-time programme).

Students receiving the enhanced stipend will be expected to participate in an additional programme of training and engagement from outside the CDT, provided by the TechFirst team.

All home fee status applicants for our September 2027 cohort will be automatically eligible for this funding (full time, or part time pro-rata). Students funded through this pilot scheme will still receive the other benefits of our CDT students outlined on this page.

In early December 2025, the UK Government published more information on both TechExpert and TechFirst:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/techexpert

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/techfirst

Final confirmation of the details of the scheme for studentships starting in September 2027 is expected from the UK Government in late 2026. Currently, we have limited details beyond these above, but we will be updating this webpage when more information is available.

Impact of this pilot scheme on non-eligible students

Our CDT is very supportive of the underlying motivation of the TechExpert and TechFirst funding, which is seeking to address the low levels of PhD student stipends in the UK especially when compared to most countries in Europe and North America. However, we are observant and concerned about the impacts of the scheme on non-eligible students – students in earlier cohorts on the CDT, and Overseas fees students joining the September 2026 and 2027 cohorts and later recruitment rounds.

To be transparent about the rationale for our CDT choosing to participate in the TechExpert pilot, and to also outline our concerns about this, we have published a position statement on the following page: https://www.responsiblenlp.org/techexpert-funding-for-home-fees/our-posistion-on-techexpert-funding/