Apply to become a founding member of the Defence Universities Alliance
Applications are now open to become a member of the Defence Universities Alliance (DUA).
Background
As a founding member of the DUA, you will be working with the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to shape and design the DUA to meet its strategic aims while delivering benefit for the Higher Education sector and supporting UK defence in meeting the ambitions of the Strategic Defence Review and Defence Industrial Strategy.
The deadline for applications is 23:59 on Sunday 17 May 2026. Late submissions will not be accepted.
Application process
Applications for initial membership are open to all UK institutions that have approval for the ‘university’ title as determined by the Office for Students.
Your application will need to demonstrate how your institution meets a series of essential and desirable criteria. The essential criteria function as a baseline for suitability, while the desirable criteria will be used to score applications on the strength of existing support to defence and national security, including networks into the sector as well as how the institution will grow their support as a member of the DUA.
Full details on the application and evaluation process can be found in the guidance and the FAQ documents below.
How to apply
Institutions will need to complete the DUA application form using the guidance and FAQ documents found below.
This application form needs to be submitted alongside the additional evidence template via email to DOS-OCSA-DUA@mod.gov.uk with the subject line being your institution name followed by “DUA Membership Application”.
The deadline for applications is 23:59 on Sunday 17 May 2026. Late submissions will not be accepted.
What is the Defence Universities Alliance?
The UK is entering a new era of threat, which is driving the need to innovate at a wartime pace and increase defence spending to 2.6% of GDP by 2027. The Strategic Defence Review and the Defence Industrial Strategy emphasise the need to reorientate society and institutions towards UK defence and national security outcomes. This ‘whole of society’ approach moves beyond government-only actions on defence to involving individuals, communities, defence industries, financial services, trade bodies, as well as schools and academic institutions, to work towards societal resilience.
The DUA will be a collaborative, strategic network of UK universities who are publicly committed to partnering with the Ministry of Defence (MOD), the Office of the Chief Scientific Advisor for National Security, the UK Armed Forces and the wider defence and national security sectors.
With its members and support from the wider sector, the DUA intends to build an ecosystem that will support defence over the long-term by building a more strategic relationship between defence and academia. Initially, it will have three strategic aims:
1. Defence Research
- Advancing quality defence and national security research and development within UK institutions, enabling the Higher Education sector to become a global leader in defence innovation.
2. Defence Skills and Career Promotion
- Ensuring that the Higher Education sector develops and equips graduates, students and other emerging talent with the skills required for careers in defence and national security, while encouraging a greater proportion of skilled graduates to consider pursuing roles in the defence sector.
3. Collaboration
- Fostering partnerships between government, academia and industry to ensure a whole of society approach to defence and national security challenges.
Applications will be for up to 20 founding members of the DUA. These are the institutions who will work with MOD to help shape and design the DUA, its governance structures and agenda going forward, ensuring a collaborative alliance beneficial to both defence and Higher Education sector.
Once these initial principles have been established, applications for membership will open again ensuring a wider group of institutions can join the DUA and build on their support for defence.
Next steps
We will be running a webinar, kindly hosted by Universities UK, to answer any questions on the DUA or the application process, details of which will be circulated in due course by Universities UK.
For any other questions, including those on the application process, please contact the DUA team using DOS-OCSA-DUA@mod.gov.uk.
Initial scoring and shortlisting will be conducted by MOD personnel, with independent assessment support provided by wider government partners. Final decisions will be made by a selection panel from defence and other government partners, which will be chaired by the Chief Scientific Advisor for MOD, Professor Tim Dafforn, and the Director of Growth and Missions, Sherin Aminossehe.
Applicants will be contacted on the outcome of their application in June.