Undergraduate Research Experience Placements 2026
We have four paid Research Experience Placements (REPs) available for the summer vacation 2026 for aspiring Environmental Research Scientists. These are designed to provide undergraduate students who may be interested in working towards a research PhD, with a taste of life as a PhD researcher. This is an opportunity to gain experience of the research environment at a university or research institute.
We have a disproportionately low number of students from the ethnicities listed below in our PhD Researcher cohorts of the GW4+ Doctoral Landscape training Partnership (DLTP). We are therefore keen to encourage you to apply if you are:
Asian Bangladeshi or Asian British Bangladeshi
Asian Pakistani or Asian British Pakistani
Asian Indian or Asian British Indian
Black African or Black British African
Black Caribbean or Black British Caribbean
From any other Black or Black British background
From any mixed or multiple ethnic background which includes at least one of the above ethnic groups
Benefits of the placements
Being supervised by one or two established scientists and further supported by a researcher-mentor depending on availability.
Eight-weeks’ experience of hands-on research work and life as a PhD researcher.
Completing a poster, presentation or report to show an outcome of your work, demonstrating your research experience and potential on your CV and PhD application.
Pay of no less than the national minimum wage (maximum 35-37 hours per week depending on institution) which includes at least a week dedicated to preparing your poster, presentation or report.
Contribution of up to £500 towards research and training expenses during the placement, to be agreed with the project supervisor.
Upon successful completion, attendance at one of our future research conferences or symposia to present a poster or give a presentation on your placement work. Travel and accommodation expenses are covered for you to attend.
Important – you must have the right to work in the UK
The placements are paid, temporary employment, and therefore you must have the right to work in the UK to apply. Everybody’s right to work will be checked before commencing a placement. If you are an international student, we strongly recommend that you check with your university’s student visa office to ensure you can take up a placement before applying.
Student Eligibility - please read carefully
To apply, you must:
Be undertaking your first undergraduate degree studies (or integrated Masters). NOTE: Students in their final year who have graduated and no longer have student status at the time of the placement start date are not eligible.
Have not previously completed a NERC Research Experience Placement (REP).
Be studying a subject within the broad fields of natural and applied sciences, geographical and environmental sciences, computer sciences, mathematics and statistics. We particularly encourage applications from those studying quantitative disciplines, such as computing, mathematics and statistics.
No specific project or placement is guaranteed. There are more options for projects than we have funding available for placements.
Where two equally qualified applicants compete for a placement and one is from a disproportionately underrepresented ethnicity listed above, we will prioritise the applicant from that ethnicity, to enable them to participate.
Projects available
Please click on the links below to view the projects. Please read the project description and candidate requirements very carefully. Please also consider the location of the work as some projects are based at specific universities and research institutes.
University of Bristol
Characterising the resilience of newly created woodlands to climate change
How do extreme climate events influence cognition of wild bumblebees
Investigations of Accelerated Chemical Reactivity in Atmospherically Relevant Aerosol Droplets
Seeing Underground: How Do Ants Build Hidden Nests?
Stressing peas for a sustainable future
University of Exeter
Are human pathogenic Vibrio Species present in the River Teign?
Environmental regulation of transposable elements across plant tissues
Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML)
AI for Deep-Sea Biodiversity Mapping in the Atlantic
Personal statement
Please note the application requires a personal statement in which you will need to tell us about your research ambitions, why you wish to apply for your chosen project, how your skills are a good fit to the project work and how you meet any candidate requirements. The maximum length is 2,000 words and we strongly recommend that you spend some time carefully writing this statement first before you fill in the application form.
In writing your personal statement, you must tell us:
Why you are interested in the projects you applied for.
Why your skills are suited to the project requirements.
How doing the project will help with decisions about your career.
In addition, you may also consider the following questions to answer in your personal statement to add further interest. You do not have to answer all of these questions:
How have you explored new ideas, tools, methods and knowledge?
Where have you shown creativity and inventive thinking?
How have you developed and supported others or collaborated with others?
How have you contributed to a wider community around you or talked to others about your scientific interests (e.g. at school, university)?
You may also tell us about any challenges you have experienced that have shaped your educational and scientific journey or your development as a person. How have you approached these challenges?
Contact
If you have any general questions about these placements, please email us on gw4plus-dtp@bristol.ac.uk. If you have any questions about the project itself, please contact the main supervisor using the email address listed under 'Project Enquiries'.
How to apply
When you have chosen your preferred project and are sure that you meet the eligibility requirements above, please click on this link to apply
The deadline for applications is Midday on Wednesday 29 April, 2026.