Cyber Security PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships for Self-funded Students

A PhD in Cyber Security research is aimed at tackling the vulnerabilities in the information system of a country to help mitigate the chance of a cyber attack.

What's it like to do a PhD in Cyber Security?

Cyber Security is a fast-growing field of study in both the public and private sectors. A PhD in Cyber Security will help governments and organisations develop strategies to improve their cyber- resilience against cyber attacks.

Some popular areas of research in Cyber Security include:

Digital forensics

Cyber attacks are becoming increasingly sophisticated and to help mitigate the damage, you'll be researching into the methods to recover digital assets.

Cryptography

As the world makes more and more use of data, the need for secure data transmission has become inevitable. You'll likely be looking into the methods of encryption and decryption of data to help ensure it's safe during transmission.

Cyber attacks

Cyber Security is also a field of study that looks into the methods to protect people and organisations from cyber attacks. You may look into methods to detect, investigate and mitigate cyber attacks.

For a PhD in Cyber Security, you may write a thesis that's self-contained and also contributes to wider academic fields. You may also be required to submit an oral defence of your thesis.

Like most other STEM subjects, a PhD in Cyber Security is usually advertised with a research aim already attached.

Entry requirements for a PhD in Cyber Security

A PhD in Cyber Security will require you to hold a Masters with at least an Upper Second-class honours degree in a related subject.

Some programmes may accept a Lower-Second class honours degree with a certain amount of extra modules or work experience.

You may also be asked to prove that you've the necessary language skills to complete your PhD, certain programmes may require you to demonstrate that you have certain level of language proficiency before you can be accepted.

PhD in Cyber Security funding options

In the UK, a PhD in Cyber Security is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) which provides a fully-funded studentship along with a monthly stipend.

If you are applying for a PhD that is advertised with funding attached, you'll automatically be considered for funding if you're successful in your application. However, if you are proposing your own project, you'll have to first be accepted onto a PhD programme and then apply for funding if you wish to receive it.

PhD in Cyber Security careers

Cyber Security careers are as diverse as the field of study itself. You may end up working in Information Security for a large company, work for the government as a digital forensics expert or be an integral part of a hackers' team.