I have already completed my undergraduate and masters studies in continental Europe (engineering/natural sciences, very applied field) and am currently applying for PhD positions starting autumn 2023.
Most of the research projects I am interested are advertised as being funded by private partners. As far as I am concerned one is still expected to pay fees for the PhD despite working on developing technology for these parties. I find this very odd first of all, this is very different to continental Europe, where even master thesis students are commonly paid by the industry partner benefiting from the intellectual property.
I am still interested in applying at two UK universities though as I would find this academically interesting. I have seen there is some competitive funding schemes one can apply to (scholarships by the university), also covering the horrendous study fees for EU students. However, for these one needs to apply together with the potential supervisor.
So I am wondering whether it is appropriate when writing the potential supervisor to mention straight away that one is only interested in the position if an application for funding is successful? I am also wondering how this will be seen by the academic and whether this is uncommon. Taking debt to work on these projects is not an option for me, given offers at other locations where one receives a full salary.