This paper investigates the relationship between staff research and teaching in doctoral education with a special reference to disciplinary variations. The relationship between staff research (the 2001 RAE scores) and the effectiveness of doctoral education as perceived by students is analysed. On the whole, little relationship between departmental research performance (the Research Assessment Exercise scores) and effectiveness of doctoral education is found in Education and Chemistry, especially in the aspects of supervision. The results of research environment are more complex. Although the general findings--the absence of a significant relationship between research and teaching--apply to both Education and Chemistry departments, doctoral education is more favourably perceived by doctoral students in Chemistry than in Education. Finally, a theoretical diagram of Teamwork and Individualist research training structures in Ideal and Degenerative types is created to discuss these findings.