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University of Stirling
At the University of Stirling, our researchers are truly making a difference. We’re leading the fight against tobacco-related harm, working to improve the lives of people with dementia and feeding communities through sustainable aquaculture research.
Our research is conducted to the highest standards of quality and integrity, allowing us to support and improve life across the world.
In 2019, our world-renowned Institute of Aquaculture’s pioneering work was recognised with the UK’s most prestigious academic honour – the Queen’s Anniversary Prize – and University of Stirling academics have been appointed by the Scottish Government to lead on 10 major projects investigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Why undertake a PhD at Stirling?
Our aim is simple. We want our research to change lives and tackle the global issues of our time. So we provide the best conditions for our thriving community of 3,800 UK and international postgraduate students studying with us.
Collaboration is at the core of our approach – not just working across disciplines but also with business, other universities, the public sector and government. Our academics are experts in their fields, internationally-recognised and shaping research groups and hubs.
As a postgraduate researcher at Stirling, you will benefit from our Institute for Advanced Studies. The Institute offers a wide range of support and development opportunities, including access to our Researcher Development Programme and Career Development Centre.
Work is also underway on our £21.7 million Campus Central project – a major infrastructure investment which saw the opening of our brand-new Study Zone in early 2020. The Study Zone is a dedicated learning and research collaboration space designed to encourage knowledge exchange and help you to develop your research passion.
Find out more about our PhD subject areas and current PhD opportunities.
Our research
Research at Stirling is encompassed within three overarching themes: Cultures, Communities and Society; Global Security and Resilience; and Living Well. Within these themes, we have 12 research programmes which highlight the strength of strategic research activity at Stirling.
Staff in our five academic faculties are the starting point and driving force behind the research taking place at the University. We have an outstanding record of conducting world-leading and internationally excellent research. Staff collaborate across divisions and with external partners to produce research that sparks new conversations, informs government policies and impacts lives for the better.
Check out our faculty research.
How to apply
If you’ve got the drive and the potential to join our ground-breaking research community, here’s how you can apply for a research degree at the University of Stirling.
Step 1: Develop your research proposal
Step 2: Choose a subject area
Step 3: Apply online
Academic Units
How fast will an infectious disease spread? How can evolutionary techniques help provide solutions to a complex problem? How does information flow in the brain? These are some of the questions being tackled by our Department. Research is pursued that is relevant to industry, commerce or quality of life. Co-operation with external organisations stimulates research through real problems, and allows results to be validated on realistic applications.
We are committed to internationally excellent research, providing a stimulating environment for postgraduate students, research fellows and visitors.
The department attracts substantial funding from a wide range of bodies (e.g., ESRC, EPSRC, BBSRC, NERC, Royal Society). The research infrastructure is based around the four research groups: Applied Formal Methods, Communications and Service Engineering, Computational Intelligence, and Mathematical Biology. More details can be seen on the department website: www.cs.stir.ac.uk/research
Project List:
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Anya Kirpichnikova)Cardiac modelling allows us to understand how healthy and diseased hearts work.
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Andrew Hoyle)Designing new antibiotic treatment regimens that mitigate against poor patient compliance
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Wen-Shin Lee)Sparse multidimensional exponential analysis in computational science and engineering
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Kevin Swingler)The Artificial Intelligence Sight Loss Assistant (AISLA)
Project List:
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr J Allen)Coaching the sport coaches: Sport coach developers and coach development processes and practices
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr N Brooks)Defining the metabolic and neuromuscular mechanisms of skeletal muscle adaptation to reduced physical activity and subsequent recovery throughout adult lifespan
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr P Coffee)Online Active Communities: The role technology can play in the virtual support of our physical activity
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr P Coffee)SI-Flex: Investigating the use of social identities (SI) to promote psychological flexibility (Flex)
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(PhD Supervisor: Prof Anna Whittaker)Stress and health: Lifespan stress and cardio-metabolic disease risk pathways through cardiovascular stress reactivity
Psychology at the University of Stirling is a thriving and vibrant division of the Faculty of Natural Sciences. Our postgraduates are guided by world-class researchers and supported by the Stirling Graduate Research School. Every one of our postgraduates enjoys an unrivalled range of social, cultural and sporting opportunities, all within our beautiful campus location. To find out more about Stirling, visit www.stir.ac.uk.
The Division attracts substantial funding from a wide range of bodies (e.g., EPSRC, BBSRC, Wellcome Trust, and The Royal Society). We have excellent research infrastructure, including a children's playgroup, a neuroimaging laboratory and extensive audio and visual facilities.
Psychology research falls into several broad categories each of which is associated with a core area of psychological research: Behaviour and Evolution; Health and Social; Cognitive Neuroscience; Perception; and Developmental. More details can be found on the Psychology Division website: www.psychology.stir.ac.uk.
Project List:
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr G Martin-Ordas)A developmental approach to the study of Mental Time Travel and counterfactual thinking—what is the link?
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr S Kessler)A multidisciplinary approach to understanding the evolution of human healthcare networks
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Lesley McGregor)How has Covid-19 changed blood donation decisions and motivations and what are the long-term implications?
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Ailsa Millen)Modelling and classifying concealed face recognition.
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr A Lee)Musical/artistic ability and sexual selection
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr G Martin-Ordas)Solitary and social bees’ cognition: is there a difference?
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Paul Dudchenko)Testing Cognition in Three Rodent Models of Intellectual Disability
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Pawel Fedurek)The function and structure of ‘nest calls’ in wild chimpanzees
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr A Reader)Understanding perception and representation of the human body structure
The School of Applied Social Science is a large inter-disciplinary unit, combining teaching and research interests in Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology, Social Work, Dementia and Housing Studies and a number of specialist centres.
It has a vigorous record in all these areas and in the most recent Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) in 2008, 95 per cent of our research was internationally excellent, with the top 10 per cent of that judged to be 'world leading'. We are an ESRC recognised postgraduate research training centre, as part of the Scottish Graduate School.
Project List:
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Kim McKee)Growing Older in the Private Rented Sector: Supporting landlords, tenants and support services to prepare for an ageing population
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Kim McKee)Towards a more sustainable private rented sector: understanding consumer and landlord behaviour
Project List:
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr S Monaghan)Building functional understanding of the diversity and roles of leukocytes and other immune cells in Atlantic salmon
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Lynne Falconer)Impact of climate change on farm-level aquaculture production and carrying capacity
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr A Albalat)Parasite strategies for success: Hematodinium sp. infection in the Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus)
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(PhD Supervisor: Dr Andrew Desbois)Structural and biological characterisation of virulence factor in Gram-negative pathogens affecting aquaculture