EPSRC Doctoral Studentship - The Social Study of Low Power Environmental Monitoring

Project details

The climate crisis has produced an urgent, planet-wide demand for environmental data. As temperatures rise, air quality deteriorates, and extreme weather intensifies, the need to monitor environmental conditions has grown ever more pressing. Against this backdrop, environmental sensors have become a critical material infrastructure through which climate adaptation and corporate compliance with targets for reductions of greenhouse gas emissions reductions are being governed. Yet the design and deployment of electronic sensing technologies is also creating new flows of electronic waste, making this a critical frontier for innovation in circular engineering and manufacturing.

Supervised across the School of Social and Political Sciences and the REACT (Responsible Electronics and Circular Economy Centre) labs at the University of Glasgow, this fully funded doctoral project offers a cutting-edge opportunity for doctoral research at the intersection of anthropology, design, science/technology studies, and sociology to follow the development of next generation low power environmental sensing technologies from design to global contexts of use.

Low power environmental sensors are not neutral instruments. They enact visions of what a well-managed environment looks like, what counts as evidence, who produces knowledge, and whose experience of environmental change matters. When engineers design low-power environmental sensors, whose sense of urgency shapes the design? The regulatory urgency of net zero targets? The health urgency of particulate matter exposure? The political urgency of citizens seeking evidence of harm? How are low-power environmental sensors designed and what assumptions about environments, users, and evidence are embedded in their architecture? How do these devices operate in across radically different contexts. And what adaptations, improvisations, and failures occur when environmental monitoring devices designed and built in the UK meet diverse material and institutional realities around the world?

This EPSRC funded Doctoral Project will address these questions by investigating the design, deployment, and lived experience of environmental sensing technologies, tracking the development of prototype devices from laboratory settings in Glasgow into real-world contexts, bringing ethnographic and design research methods to bear on the development of future technologies that seek to reduce electronic waste and regenerate planetary ecosystems.

The project will generate ethnographic data about how monitoring technologies operate across diverse social contexts, revealing where design assumptions break down, and produce new insights into the relationship between sensor data and lived experience.

Supervisory Team

Prinicipal Supervisor: Professor Jamie Cross

Secondary Supervisor/s: Dr Mark Wong & Professor Jeff Kettle

About the School/Research Unit 

The successful candidate will be based in the School of Social and Political Sciences (SPS) at the University of Glasgow, one of the largest and most research-intensive social science schools in the UK. SPS brings together 12 subject groups – including Social Anthropology, Sociology, Criminology, Media Studies, Urban Studies, Social Policy, Politics, and International Relations under a single roof, supporting a vibrant interdisciplinary postgraduate research culture of more than 200 doctoral students. The School was rated joint first in the UK for research impact in Sociology in REF 2021 and has long-standing strengths in the social study of science, technology, environment, and infrastructure.

Primary supervision within Social Anthropology & Migration (Professor Jamie Cross) will connect the project to a cluster of researchers working at the intersection of science and technology studies (STS), planetary health and the environmental humanities. The group has particular depth in ethnographic methods, energy and climate research, digital infrastructures, and the politics of measurement and evidence. The successful candidate will also have access to the Glasgow Ethnography Studio, a new initiative that brings social scientists, designers, and engineers together in ethnographic research projects for changing planetary conditions.

The project's cross-disciplinary supervision reflects Glasgow's commitment to research that crosses the social sciences and engineering. Co-supervision from Urban Studies & Social Policy (Dr Mark Wong) brings expertise in social inequalities, digital methods, and the urban politics of environmental monitoring. Co-supervision from the James Watt School of Engineering (Professor Jeff Kettle) and integration with the REACT (Responsible Electronics and Circular Economy Technologies) Centre gives the student direct access to the laboratories, prototyping facilities, and industry partnerships where next-generation low-power environmental sensors are being designed and tested. This is a rare opportunity to follow a technology from the lab bench into the world.

The student will join a thriving cohort of doctoral researchers across SPS and the wider College of Social Sciences, with structured training provided by the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (SGSSS), Glasgow's PGR development programme, and tailored methods training in ethnography, design research, and STS.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

• Applicants will have a good Masters degree (or overseas equivalent)
• Applicants will have a demonstratable interest in the topic area under investigation
• Applicants must be able to study on a full-time basis only
• Applicants must meet the University's criteria to be considered 'Home' or 'Rest of UK' for fee status

Please note that all applicants must also meet the entry requirements for the Sociology, PhD. 

Award details

The scholarship is available as a full-time +3.5 (3.5 year) PhD programme only. The programme will commence in October 2026. The full funding package includes:

• An annual maintenance grant (stipend) at the UKRI rate
• Fees at the standard home tuition fee rate only
• Students can also draw on a Research Training Support Grant, usually up to a maximum of £940 per year 

Other information

If you would like an informal discussion about the project and research opportunities, please contact Professor Jamie Cross.

How to Apply

Applicants must apply via the Scholarships Application Portal (please see Scholarships Application Portal - Applicant Guide for more information).The funding opportunity is under 'College of Social Sciences Postgraduate Research Funding > COSS-26-023' - note the Portal will open for this opportunity shortly) uploading the following documentation:

• EPSRC Doctoral Studentship (Cross) Application Form (in Word format)
• Academic transcripts (All relevant Undergraduate and Master’s level degree transcripts (and translations, if not originally in English) – provisional transcripts are sufficient if you are yet to complete your degree).
• Academic Prizes
• Contact details for two referees (where possible your referees should include an academic familiar with your work (within the last 5 years). Both referees can be academics but you may include a work referee, especially if you have been out of academia for more than 5 years). Please note, a CoSS PGR Funding Reference template will be sent to your referees for completion)*. Note that no member of the above supervisory team can act as your referee. Please see CoSS PGR Funding Reference request guide for further guidance
• Curriculum Vitae (CV) (academic where applicable)

*Please note that when you enter your referees contact details on the Scholarships Application Portal and send the reference request, your referees are expected to provide their references by the closing date of the Scholarship (below). It is strongly recommended you complete this as soon as possible, as late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Application Closing Date: 29 May 2026

References due no later than 05 June 2026

Selection process

Applications will be assessed by the project team. Shortlisted applicants may be requested to attend an Interview.

All scholarship awards are subject to candidates successfully securing admission to a PhD programme in the School of Social & Political Sciences. Successful applicants will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programme after they are selected for funding.

Contact Details

Questions on the Application Portal only: College of Social Sciences Graduate School

Questions on the Project: Professor Jamie Cross

EPSRC Doctoral Studentship - Plans vs Reality: AI-Enhanced Modelling of Disrupted Urban Mobility

Project details

Overview

Urban mobility models typically assume fixed daily activity schedules and stable transport networks. In reality, individuals continuously adapt their plans in response to disruptions such as delays, missed connections, time pressures, caring responsibilities, safety concerns, and changing priorities. This gap—between planned and realised behaviour—is poorly represented in current models, limiting their usefulness for designing robust, equitable, and sustainable transport systems.

This PhD will extend an existing agent-based and activity scheduling framework developed through the EPSRC AI4CI Hub. The framework integrates: (1) synthetic population generation grounded in demographic structures; (2) activity-based demand modelling; (3) multi-modal routing (walking, cycling, car, and bus); and (4) dynamic schedule adaptation under constraints. The project will advance this system by incorporating behavioural realism and disruption-aware modelling.

Two key innovations underpin the research. First, behavioural modelling using AI, including reinforcement learning (RL) and large language models (LLMs), will be explored to better represent decision-making under uncertainty, including preference evolution and context-aware adaptation. Second, disruption-aware scheduling and routing will be developed by embedding stochastic models of events such as delays, congestion, weather shocks, and safety perceptions, allowing analysis of how disruptions propagate through individual schedules and the wider system.

Aims and research questions

The overarching aim is to develop a framework for resilient urban mobility modelling that integrates machine learning with individual-based simulation. The project will:

1. Compare behavioural modelling approaches (rule-based, RL, and LLM-assisted) for dynamic decision-making.
2. Quantify how disruptions lead to plan breakdowns, rescheduling, and unequal impacts across populations.
3. Generate actionable insights for transport planning, including reliability, service design, ans support for vulnerable users.

Key research questions include:

• How do different modelling approaches perform in representing adaptive behaviour under uncertainty?
• How do disruptions affect activity completion, mode choice, and network performance?

Methodology

The project will build on and extend an existing modelling framework through four components:

• Synthetic populations and activity generation: A detailed population will be created using census and survey data (e.g. National Travel Survey), capturing household structure and care responsibilities.
• Network modelling: A unified, multi-modal, time-dependent network will be constructed, incorporating travel time, cost, comfort, and perceived safety, alongside dynamic routing capabilities.
• Dynamic activity scheduling: Individuals will follow baseline daily schedules subject to hard and soft constraints, with real-time adaptation triggered by disruptions such as delays or cancellations.
• Behavioural modelling: Agents will be implemented using rule-based approaches, RL policies, and LLM-guided decision-making, and evaluated based on realism, robustness, and task completion.

Model calibration and validation will be conducted throughout

Experiments and policy scenarios

The model will be applied to policy-relevant scenarios developed with stakeholders (e.g. Transport Scotland, local authorities, operators). Scenarios may include reliability improvements, safety interventions, and enhanced real-time information systems. The aim is to identify how interventions affect disruption propagation, accessibility, and equity.

Supervisory Team

Prinicipal Supervisor: Professor Alison Heppenstall

Secondary Supervisor/s: Dr David McArthur & Dr Yahya Gamal

About the School/Research Unit 

The student will be embedded within a highly interdisciplinary and collaborative research environment spanning artificial intelligence, urban analytics, and social science. The project is situated within the EPSRC-funded AI for Collective Intelligence (AI4CI) Hub (Smart City Design theme), where supervisors Heppenstall and Gamal are developing cutting-edge individual-based models, including housing and mobility systems with activity scheduling components. This ongoing work provides a strong methodological and technical foundation for the PhD. Through the Hub, the student will have access to a wide network of academic and non-academic stakeholders, offering opportunities for collaboration, data access, and real-world impact.

In addition, the student will be part of the Urban Analytics research group, led by the supervisors, which includes an active and growing community of national and international researchers. The student will also engage with the Urban Big Data Centre (UBDC) and the wider Urban Analytics group within the College of Social Sciences. This environment offers expertise in working with granular urban datasets and aligns closely with institutional research priorities, particularly around understanding social, economic, and health inequalities in cities, as reflected in initiatives such as Glasgow Changing Futures.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

• Applicants will have a good Masters degree (or overseas equivalent)
• Applicants will have a demonstratable interest in the topic area under investigation
• Applicants must be able to study on a full-time basis only
• Applicants must meet the University's criteria to be considered 'Home' or 'Rest of UK' for fee status

Please note that all applicants must also meet the entry requirements for the Urban Studies, PhD. 

Award details

The scholarship is available as a full-time +3.5 (3.5 year) PhD programme only. The programme will commence in October 2026. The full funding package includes:

• An annual maintenance grant (stipend) at the UKRI rate
• Fees at the standard home tuition fee rate only
• Students can also draw on a Research Training Support Grant, usually up to a maximum of £940 per year 

Other information

How to Apply

Applicants must apply via the Scholarships Application Portal (please see Scholarships Application Portal - Applicant Guide for more information).The funding opportunity is under 'College of Social Sciences Postgraduate Research Funding > COSS-26-024' - note the Portal will open for this opportunity shortly) uploading the following documentation:

• EPSRC Doctoral Studentship (Heppenstall) Application Form (in Word format)
• Academic transcripts (All relevant Undergraduate and Master’s level degree transcripts (and translations, if not originally in English) – provisional transcripts are sufficient if you are yet to complete your degree).
• Academic Prizes
• Contact details for two referees (where possible your referees should include an academic familiar with your work (within the last 5 years). Both referees can be academics but you may include a work referee, especially if you have been out of academia for more than 5 years). Please note, a CoSS PGR Funding Reference template will be sent to your referees for completion)*. Note that no member of the above supervisory team can act as your referee. Please see CoSS PGR Funding Reference request guide for further guidance
• Curriculum Vitae (CV) (academic where applicable)

*Please note that when you enter your referees contact details on the Scholarships Application Portal and send the reference request, your referees are expected to provide their references by the closing date of the Scholarship (below). It is strongly recommended you complete this as soon as possible, as late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Application Closing Date: 29 May 2026

References due no later than 05 June 2026

Selection process

Applications will be assessed by the project team. Shortlisted applicants may be requested to attend an Interview.

All scholarship awards are subject to candidates successfully securing admission to a PhD programme in the School of Social & Political Sciences. Successful applicants will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programme after they are selected for funding.

Contact Details

Questions on the Application Portal only: College of Social Sciences Graduate School

Questions on the Project: Professor Alison Heppenstall

ERC MORTALMED PhD Scholarship - Lethal Prescriptions: Sodium Pentobarbital and Assisted Dying in Switzerland

Project details

This subproject examines the role of sodium pentobarbital (SP) in assisted dying practices in Switzerland, focusing on how this pharmaceutical is embedded within medico-legal, ethical, and institutional regimes that govern voluntary death.

Switzerland occupies a singular position in the global landscape of assisted dying, where right-to-die organisations operate within a complex legal framework that permits assisted suicide under specific conditions.Within this context, SP has become central to the enactment of a “good death,” functioning not merely as a technical means to end life, but as a pharmaceutical through which broader debates around dignity, autonomy, suffering, and legitimate death are negotiated.

Based on ethnographic fieldwork in Basel, Switzerland, this subproject investigates how SP circulates through the infrastructures of assisted dying, from medical prescription and pharmacy acquisition to its administration in assisted death procedures. The project combines participant observation, semi-structured interviews with staff members of assisted dying organisations, physicians, pharmacists, and individuals seeking assisted dying, alongside discourse and legal analysis of medico-legal documents, court cases, and regulatory frameworks surrounding SP in Switzerland. Particular attention will be paid to how assisted dying organisations navigate legal uncertainty, pharmaceutical regulation, and shifting public debates concerning the legitimacy of assisted death.

The project explores how SP becomes entangled in everyday practices of care, bureaucratic procedures, and institutional forms of authorization, tracing the social and political conditions under which access to assisted dying becomes possible. It asks how SP is sourced, prescribed, distributed, and administered; what ethical and legal responsibilities shape pharmacists’ and physicians’ involvement; and how eligibility for assisted dying is established and contested.

Supervisory Team

Prinicipal Supervisor: Dr Marcos Freire de Andrade Neves

Secondary Supervisor: TBC

Information on the School/Research Group

MORTALMED (Mortal Medicine: The Social Life of a Death-Inducing Pharmaceutical) is a five-year research project funded by the European Research Council (ERC Starting Grant) and led by Dr Marcos Freire de Andrade Neves.

Situated at the intersection of Medical Anthropology, Science and Technology Studies (STS), and Political and Legal Anthropology, the project investigates the global circulation and local uses of sodium pentobarbital (SP), a pharmaceutical employed in assisted dying, state executions, and animal euthanasia.

By tracing SP across different legal, medical, and political contexts, particularly Switzerland, the United States, and Mexico, the project examines how pharmaceuticals participate in the governance of life and death and contribute to the emergence of what the project conceptualises as “necro-socialities”: social worlds organised around death, dying, and pharmaceutical mediation.

The project adopts a primarily ethnographic and interdisciplinary approach, combining participant observation, interviews, archival ethnography, discourse and media analysis, and assemblage ethnography to follow SP across institutions, borders, and infrastructures.

MORTALMED consists of five interconnected subprojects. The project aims not only to contribute to academic debates on pharmaceuticals, governance, and death, but also to engage broader public audiences through a final public exhibition in Glasgow. The successful applicant will join an internationally oriented and collaborative research environment and contribute actively to the development of this ERC-funded project.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

• Applicants will have a good Masters degree (or overseas equivalent) 
• Applicants will have a demonstratable interest in the topic under investigation
• Applicants can study part-time or full-time
• Applicants should have familiarity with, or interes in, ethnographic research methods, including participant observation and interviews.
• Applicants should preferably have German language skills
• Applicants should be available to conduct ehtnographic fieldwork in Switzerland, potentially involving two periods of up to six months each
• Applicants must meet the University's criteria to be considered 'Home' or 'Rest of UK' for fee status - International students are ineligible.

Please note that all applicants must also meet the entry requirements for the Sociology, PhD. 

Award details

The scholarship is available as a full-time +4 (4 year) PhD programme only. The programme will commence in October 2026. The full funding package includes:

• An annual maintenance grant (stipend) at the UKRI rate
• Fees at the standard home tuition fee rate only
• Students can also draw on a Research Training Support Grant, usually up to a maximum of £940 per year 

Additional information

Application process

Applicants must apply via the Scholarships Application Portal (please see Scholarships Application Portal - Applicant Guide for more information).The funding opportunity is under 'College of Social Sciences Postgraduate Research Funding > COSS-26-025') uploading the following documentation:

• ERC MORTALMED - Lethal Prescriptions Application form (in Word format)
• Academic transcripts (All relevant Undergraduate and Master’s level degree transcripts (and translations, if not originally in English) – provisional transcripts are sufficient if you are yet to complete your degree).
• Academic Prizes
• Contact details for two referees (where possible your referees should include an academic familiar with your work (within the last 5 years). Both referees can be academics but you may include a work referee, especially if you have been out of academia for more than 5 years). Please note, a CoSS PGR Funding Reference template will be sent to your referees for completion)*. Note that no member of this project's supervisory team can act as your referee. Please see CoSS PGR Funding Reference request guide for further guidance
• Curriculum Vitae (CV) (academic where applicable)

*Please note that when you enter your referees contact details on the Scholarships Application Portal and send the reference request, your referees are expected to provide their references by the closing date of the Scholarship (below). It is strongly recommended you complete this as soon as possible, as late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Application Closing Date: 09 June 2026

References due no later than 16 June 2026

Selection process

Applications will be assessed by the project team. Shortlisted applicants may be requested to attend an Interview.

All scholarship awards are subject to candidates successfully securing admission to a PhD programme in the School of Social and Political Sciences. Successful applicants will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programme after they are selected for funding.

Contact Details

Questions on the Application Portal only: College of Social Sciences Graduate School

Questions on the Project: Dr Marcos Freire de Andrade Neves

ERC MORTALMED PhD Scholarship - PharmaFlows: Mapping sodium pentobarbital across time and space

Project details

This project traces the social life of sodium pentobarbital (SP) across time and space, following its transformation from a widely prescribed sedative in the mid-twentieth century to a highly regulated pharmaceutical primarily associated with assisted dying, state executions, and animal euthanasia.

PharmaFlows investigates the historical trajectories and contemporary global circulation of SP. By mapping the movements of SP across legal, medical, and commercial infrastructures, the project examines how pharmaceuticals become embedded in broader regimes governing life and death.

The project is structured around two interconnected themes. The first explores the temporal transformations of SP, examining how its medical, legal, and cultural meanings have shifted over time through historical advertisements, medical literature, press coverage, and pharmaceutical archives. The second investigates the spatial circulation of SP, tracing how the pharmaceutical moves through different regulatory frameworks, jurisdictions, and socio-political contexts, particularly in relation to assisted dying and capital punishment. In doing so, the project asks what travels alongside pharmaceuticals beyond their material properties, which actors and institutions shape their circulation, and what structural factors facilitate or restrict their global movement.

Methodologically, the project combines archival ethnography, discourse and media analysis, and interviews with key actors involved in the regulation, production, and use of SP.

Supervisory Team

Prinicipal Supervisor: Dr Marcos Freire de Andrade Neves

Secondary Supervisor: TBC

Information on the School/Research Group

MORTALMED (Mortal Medicine: The Social Life of a Death-Inducing Pharmaceutical) is a five-year research project funded by the European Research Council (ERC Starting Grant) and led by Dr Marcos Freire de Andrade Neves.

Situated at the intersection of Medical Anthropology, Science and Technology Studies (STS), and Political and Legal Anthropology, the project investigates the global circulation and local uses of sodium pentobarbital (SP), a pharmaceutical employed in assisted dying, state executions, and animal euthanasia.

By tracing SP across different legal, medical, and political contexts, particularly Switzerland, the United States, and Mexico, the project examines how pharmaceuticals participate in the governance of life and death and contribute to the emergence of what the project conceptualises as “necro-socialities”: social worlds organised around death, dying, and pharmaceutical mediation.

The project adopts a primarily ethnographic and interdisciplinary approach, combining participant observation, interviews, archival ethnography, discourse and media analysis, and assemblage ethnography to follow SP across institutions, borders, and infrastructures.

MORTALMED consists of five interconnected subprojects. The project aims not only to contribute to academic debates on pharmaceuticals, governance, and death, but also to engage broader public audiences through a final public exhibition in Glasgow. The successful applicant will join an internationally oriented and collaborative research environment and contribute actively to the development of this ERC-funded project.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

• Applicants will have a good Masters degree (or overseas equivalent) 
• Applicants will have a demonstratable interest in the topic under investigation
• Applicants can study part-time or full-time
• Applicants should have familiarity with, or interest in, ethnographic research methods, including archival ethnography, discourse and media analysis, and interviewing.
• Applicants should have an interest in interdisciplinary and collaborative research practices
• Applicants should have an interest in qualititative data managements and analysis software (e.h. MAXQDA)
• Applicants must meet the University's criteria to be considered 'Home' or 'Rest of UK' for fee status - International students are ineligible.

Please note that all applicants must also meet the entry requirements for the Sociology, PhD. 

Award details

The scholarship is available as a full-time +4 (4 year) PhD programme only. The programme will commence in October 2026. The full funding package includes:

• An annual maintenance grant (stipend) at the UKRI rate
• Fees at the standard home tuition fee rate only
• Students can also draw on a Research Training Support Grant, usually up to a maximum of £940 per year 

Additional information

Application process

Applicants must apply via the Scholarships Application Portal (please see Scholarships Application Portal - Applicant Guide for more information).The funding opportunity is under 'College of Social Sciences Postgraduate Research Funding > COSS-26-026') uploading the following documentation:

• ERC MORTALMED - PharmaFlows Application form (in Word format)
• Academic transcripts (All relevant Undergraduate and Master’s level degree transcripts (and translations, if not originally in English) – provisional transcripts are sufficient if you are yet to complete your degree).
• Academic Prizes
• Contact details for two referees (where possible your referees should include an academic familiar with your work (within the last 5 years). Both referees can be academics but you may include a work referee, especially if you have been out of academia for more than 5 years). Please note, a CoSS PGR Funding Reference template will be sent to your referees for completion)*. Note that no member of this project's supervisory team can act as your referee. Please see CoSS PGR Funding Reference request guide for further guidance
• Curriculum Vitae (CV) (academic where applicable)

*Please note that when you enter your referees contact details on the Scholarships Application Portal and send the reference request, your referees are expected to provide their references by the closing date of the Scholarship (below). It is strongly recommended you complete this as soon as possible, as late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Application Closing Date: 09 June 2026

References due no later than 16 June 2026

Selection process

Applications will be assessed by the project team. Shortlisted applicants may be requested to attend an Interview.

All scholarship awards are subject to candidates successfully securing admission to a PhD programme in the School of Social and Political Sciences. Successful applicants will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programme after they are selected for funding.

Contact Details

Questions on the Application Portal only: College of Social Sciences Graduate School

Questions on the Project: Dr Marcos Freire de Andrade Neves

CoSS-UWI Collaborative PhD Scholarship - Strengthening Caribbean Health Systems: A Cost Effectiveness Approach to Maternal, Mental, and Adolescent Health

Project details

This funded PhD project explores how scarce health resources can be allocated more effectively to improve maternal, mental, and adolescent health in the Caribbean. The student will apply health economics methods to three linked studies on postpartum health, mental health investment, and adolescent mental health programmes. The first study evaluates a community-led, digitally supported programme to reduce postpartum cardiovascular risk among women affected by adverse pregnancy outcomes. The second develops an investment case for mental health in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago, with a focus on intervention costs, benefits, and domestic resource mobilisation. The third assesses the cost-effectiveness of multisectoral mental health promotion and care programmes for Indigenous adolescents in Dominica and Brazil. The project is embedded in international collaborations with partners at the University of the West Indies, and offers the opportunity to produce policy-relevant, publishable research with real-world impact. The successful applicant will have access to training in economic evaluation, applied microeconometrics, and health policy analysis.

Supervisory Team

Principal Supervisor: Professor Anwen Zhang

Secondary Supervisor(s): Dr Alberto Ciancio, Professor Simon Anderson (UWI) & Dr Althea LaFoucade (UWI)

About the School/Research Unit

This is not a joint or dual degree, but external supervision is provided. The project is based in the Adam Smith Business School at the University of Glasgow, and is jointly supervised with leading academics at the University of the West Indies. The supervisory team brings together expertise in health economics, development economics, population health, and Caribbean health systems. It is embedded in a strong international collaboration with clear pathways to policy engagement. Through this partnership, the student will benefit from a stimulating research environment and rigorous methodological training at Glasgow, and direct engagement with Caribbean policy and health research networks through the University of the West Indies.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria

• Applicants will have a good Masters degree (or overseas equivalent)
• Applicants will have a demonstratable interest in the topic under investigation
• Applicants must be able to study full-time
• Applicants must be a citizen of a Commonwealth Caribbean Nation; and
• Applicants must be a current student, staff member, or alumnus of the University of the West Indies

Please note that all applicants must also meet the entry requirements for the Economics, PhD. 

Award details

The scholarship is available as a full-time +3 (3 year) PhD programme only. The programme will commence in October 2026 (or January 2027). The funding includes:

• An annual stipend at the UKRI rate
• Fees at the standard home or international fee rate
• Students can also draw on a Research Training Support Grant, usually up to a maximum of £940 per year

Other information

Applicants with prior training in economics, health economics, or a closely related field are especially encouraged to apply

Application process

Applicants must apply via the Scholarships Application Portal (please see Scholarships Application Portal - Applicant Guide for more information).The funding opportunity is under 'College of Social Sciences Postgraduate Research Funding > COSS-25-010'), uploading the following documentation:

• CoSS-UWI Scholarship - Caribbean Health Systems application form (in Word format)
• Academic transcripts (All relevant Undergraduate and Master’s level degree transcripts (and translations, if not originally in English) – provisional transcripts are sufficient if you are yet to complete your degree).
  
• Academic Prizes
• Contact details for two referees (where possible your referees should include an academic familiar with your work (within the last 5 years). Both referees can be academics but you may include a work referee, especially if you have been out of academia for more than 5 years). Please note, a CoSS PGR Funding Reference template will be sent to your referees for completion)*. Note that no member of this project's supervisory team can act as your referee. Please see CoSS PGR Funding Reference request guide for further guidance
• Curriculum Vitae (CV) (academic where applicable)
• Demographic eligibility
  • Copy of documentation showing your citizenship of a Commonwealth Caribbean nation; and
  • Documentation showing you are a current student, staff member or alumnus of the University of the West Indies

*Please note that when you enter your referees contact details on the Scholarships Application Portal and send the reference request, your referees are expected to provide their references by the closing date of the Scholarship (below). It is strongly recommended you complete this as soon as possible, as late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Closing Date: 09 June 2026

References from referees are due no later than 16 June 2026

Selection process

Applications will be assessed by the project team. Shortlisted applicants may be requested to attend an Interview.

All scholarship awards are subject to candidates successfully securing admission to a PhD programme in the Adam Smith Business School. Successful applicants will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programme after they are selected for funding.

Contact details

Questions on the project: Professor Anwen Zhang

Questions on the Scholarships Application Portal only: College of Social Sciences Graduate School