News and blog

A new publication from the University of Toronto Press is a workbook-style ​“how to” guide to demystify the doctorate says Charlotte Skye.

The Board of Trustees gives notice of an important change of charitable status for UKCGE, which will accompany a new strategic plan, to be published in October 2026.

The UK Council for Graduate Education is saddened to hear of the death of our former Chair, Professor Rosemary Deem, OBE (1949–2026).

The Board of Trustees at the Council pays tribute to Professor Jason Arday, whose death is a profound loss to us, to many of our members, and to colleagues and students across the sector. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, colleagues and students, all of whom remain firmly in our thoughts.

In summer 2026, UKCGE welcomed volunteer Charlotte Skye – a doctoral candidate at the University of Birmingham – who will be working on a new campaign focussed on the value of doctoral study. Her placement is funded by Midlands4Cities.

This summer, UKCGE celebrates three years of supervision training for people working outside of Higher Education institutions (non-HEIs). In this article, trainers Professors Janet De Wilde and Julie Sheldon reflect on their unique approach and talk about why they love working with supervisors from more than 40 external organisations across the UK.

On July 16th 2026, we welcomed Barrister, Caroline Roberts-Waterworth, who held an online session helping people to navigate the complexities of international postgraduate research collaborations. The event was held under the Chatham House Rule, and it was hosted by the PEP Network (chaired by Susanna Broom and Kerri Gardiner) although it was also open to Deans and Directors of Graduate Schools and people in similar roles.

On July 15th 2026, we welcomed Julien le Jeune d’Allegeershecque of the Collaborative Research for Online Postgraduate Studies Network (CROPSNet) to launch a new report ​‘Mental Health & Wellbeing of Online PGT Students: Pinch Points & Good Practice’. It comes with a companion self-assessment tool, which has been developed to support programme teams in translating principles into action. 

A new UKCGE/​University Alliance publication on professional doctorates was launched on July 9th 2026 with an online event, hosted by the co-authors, in which the methodologies and key findings were discussed.

The UKCGE Annual Conference 2026 was held on July 2nd and 3rd at the University of Liverpool and comprised a packed programme of presentations and workshops, all themed around ​‘Postgraduate Cultures: Community, Collaboration and Connection’.