The RSS Applied Probability Section (APS) is holding its biennial PhD competition, which will be open to students who have defended a PhD thesis in applied probability in the last two years. The winner of the competition will be given the opportunity to organise an RSS Applied Probability Section workshop on a topic of their choice, with the support of the APS committee.
Criteria
To be eligible for the award, candidates should have completed a PhD at a UK university. The PhD defence should have taken place between 1 March 2024 and 28 February 2026. Applications will be judged on the contribution of their PhD thesis to the field of applied probability, broadly interpreted, and its potential for long term impact on applied probability and/or its potential to reach out into statistical science and other application areas, both established and novel.
To apply for the prize, candidates should submit:
- An electronic copy of the final version of the thesis
- Two supporting letters (max 2 pages) from referees who have a good knowledge of the thesis. This might be the PhD advisor, and the external examiner
- A two-page summary, written by the candidate, reviewing the main contributions of the thesis.
Candidates should also confirm the date of the defence of the thesis. Submissions must be received by mid-day GMT on 20 April 2026. All documents, including supporting letters, should be sent by email by the candidate to appliedprobability@rss.org.uk.
To be eligible, the PhD must have been awarded by a UK university. Questions regarding eligibility should be directed to appliedprobability@rss.org.uk. Note that candidates need not be members of the RSS in order to be considered for the prize.
Prize
The recipient of the award will receive a certificate. To disseminate and foster their area of research, the recipient of the award will be invited to organise a meeting of the RSS Applied Probability Section. The recipient will be supported in this endeavour by members of the RSS Applied Probability section and by RSS staff. These meetings typically take the form of an afternoon meeting at a suitable host institution in the UK. Normally, the meeting would be expected to take place on a topic closely related to the winning thesis.
The winning candidate will be chosen from eligible submissions by the committee of the Applied Probability Section. The decision of the committee is final. The winner of the competition will be announced around the end of July 2026. The winner will be notified by the committee, and will be announced on the RSS website.