Elevating PhD student experiences in London and Paris

Marjan Marjanovic (The Bartlett) and Marie Kwon (ENS-PSL) used funds from the UCL-PSL Doctoral Research Internship to embark on an invaluable exchange programme.

International perspectives and collaborations are increasingly valuable in academia. Yet there are few opportunities for PhD students to benefit from funded trips to meet, learn from, and collaborate with international researchers. Connecting with academics who have aligned research interests leads to improved research outputs, and can spark new and exciting ideas.

The UCL-PSL Doctoral Research Internship was created for doctoral students from UCL and Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL) to undertake funded research stays at each institution. PhD students who have returned from these funded stays value the experiences they had, the opportunity to feed additional ideas into their research, and the new connections they have made.

International research opportunities for all

“My dissertation connects three different topics, and I was looking for an expert to consult with on one of the topics – urban shrinkage and shrinking cities,” explained Marjan Marjanovic, who secured a place on the internship in 2024. “Professor Emmanuèle C. Cunningham Sabot at PSL is renowned in this field, and the UCL-PSL Doctoral Research Internship enabled me to travel to Paris to meet with her. What I really needed was someone to have intellectual discourse with, and our meetings were very fruitful.”

During his time in Paris, Marjan was able to use Emmanuèle’s office when she was out. Marjan made such good progress on his thesis that he was able to submit it while he was still in Paris. Marjan and Emmanuèle are currently in the process of completing their second paper together too.

Marie Kwon, a PhD student from École Normale Supérieure – PSL (ENS-PSL), had a similarly beneficial experience when she spent a month at UCL as part of the UCL-PSL Doctoral Research Internship. As she was writing her thesis in English, she was keen to spend time at the UCL Centre for the Study of South Asia and the Indian Ocean. “I wanted to immerse myself in Anglo-Saxon approaches to critical geography,” Marie explained. “Professor Tariq Jazeel sponsored me, and it was great to get out of my bubble and become involved in another geography department. It opened my mind to other approaches and methodologies.”

During her time on the internship, she was able to have in-depth conversations with Tariq and other scholars, and attend various seminars and events. Marie’s experiences at UCL are directly feeding into her thesis, and she says it has changed the direction of at least one of the chapters for the better. 

An opportunity for progression

Both Marjan and Marie are encouraging other PhD students to apply for the UCL-PSL Doctoral Research Internship.

“The funding amply covered my living costs while in Paris, so I didn’t have to worry about whether I could make ends meet,” said Marjan. “That was really important. It meant I could completely focus on my thesis without distractions. And Paris is a very nice place to spend time. Being able to discuss new ideas, and gaining acknowledgement from a known name in the field, was really beneficial to me. I feel lucky to have been selected to take part in this exchange.”

Marie believes opportunities like these bring multiple benefits. “I found the whole experience very enriching on an academic, personal and professional level,” said Marie. “It’s precious to contrast your ideas with what is being done elsewhere, and meet people working on similar themes.”

Both PhD candidates say the UCL-PSL Doctoral Research Internship will likely bring them a number of future benefits too, including contacts for further collaborations. “The current state of the academic world values international mobility,” Marie explained. “I discovered my ability to immerse myself in another academic environment in a very short space of time. It’s a transferable skill I’ll be able to apply to my future career. I’m very happy I got the chance to take part in this.”

Links

• UCL-PSL Doctoral research internship 
• The Bartlett, UCL's Faculty of the Built Environment
• ENS-PSL
• Participants in the UCL-PSL Doctoral Research Internship 2025

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