UKRI’s ‘new deal’ for postgraduates ‘too little, too late’

Campaigners welcome employment status review but say it comes too late for many Covid-hit PGRs

Recently announced plans by the UK’s national research funder to review the employment status of postgraduate research students are “too little and too late” for those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, a campaign group has said.

The comments, from the campaign group Pandemic PGRs, follow plans outlined by Rory Duncan, UK Research and Innovation’s director of talent and skills, for a “new deal” for PGRs, as announced in the government’s R&D People and Culture Strategy.