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We have 16 Evolution PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships in Manchester
Evolution PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships in Manchester
We have 16 Evolution PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships in Manchester
A PhD in Evolution offers you the opportunity to conduct an extended research project into a specific area of evolution from researching how a specific characteristic has changed over generations to tracking the origin of a protein. Your project could be either formed of field work, carrying out experiments in the laboratory or a Bioinformatics project, likely working with genomics data.
What’s it like to do a PhD in Evolution?
Studying a PhD in Evolution, you’ll gain a range of skills, from programming in R or Python, using cutting edge 3D scanning and digital imaging equipment to becoming a leader in your field work.
Some typical research topics in Evolution include:
- Investigating how bacterial biofilms evolve over time
- Researching how a system e.g. vocal chords have evolved
- Analysis of genomics of a species over time
- Investigating how an environmental factor, such as social interaction affects the brain
- Studying sexual dimorphism in a given species
- Retracing the origins of a specific protein
Most PhD programmes in Evolution are proposed by the supervisor and advertised on the university website with full funding attached. However, some advertised projects require you to self-fund, which can be difficult due to additional bench fees. This funding challenge also makes proposing your own project in Evolution uncommon.
Day-to-day you’ll likely perform experiments and/or observe your species of study. If you have a Bioinformatic based project, you’ll write programmes to identify new features in the data. Regardless of your speciality, you’ll read extensively around your topic to gain inspiration for methods and discuss results with your supervisor and colleagues.
To be awarded your PhD, you’ll need to write a thesis of around 60,000 words and defend your work during a viva exam.
Entry requirements
The entry requirements for most Evolution PhD programmes involve a Masters in a subject directly related to Biology, at Merit or Distinction level. If English isn’t your first language, you’ll also need to show that you have the right level of language proficiency.
PhD in Evolution funding options
The research council responsible for funding Evolution PhDs in the UK is the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). They provide fully-funded studentships including a stipend for living costs, a consumables budget for bench fees and a tuition fee waiver. Students don’t apply directly to the BBSRC, you apply for advertised projects with this funding attached.
It’s uncommon for Evolution PhD students to be ‘self-funded’ due to the additional bench fees. However, if you were planning to fund yourself it might be achievable (depending on your project) through the UK government’s PhD loan and part-time work.
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Using synthetic biology to understand the evolution of antibiotic resistance
Imagine an architect, tasked with converting an old stadium into a building with a different function, without demolishing it. Read more
Evolutionary ‘frenemies’? Understanding the molecular mechanisms underpinning the evolution of endosymbiosis
Symbioses are abundant, taxonomically widespread, ecologically important in a wide-range of habitats, economically important in agricultural systems, and consequently underpin the biodiversity and function of both natural and artificial ecosystems. Read more
Combining Synthetic Biology and Modelling to Understand and Predict Evolution
Mutations, and their effects on organismal fitness, lie at the heart of understanding and predicting evolution. Because of its central role in determining evolutionary outcomes, much experimental and theoretical effort has been put into describing the fitness effects of mutations. Read more
Breaking bad: Evolution by loss-of-function
Paradoxically, the first step adaptation to a new environment often involves losing genes, rather than gaining new ones—a phenomenon observed across the tree of life. Read more
Single-cell measurements of mutation dynamics across bacterial genome
Genetic mutations are the raw material of evolution, driving evolutionary innovations. Mutation rate is thus a key factor determining how organisms adapt to new environments and whether they survive a severe environmental challenge, such as the antibiotic treatment. Read more
Development and Evolution of Shapes: Investigating the genetic pathways governing the leaf shape in Arabidopsis
The shapes and sizes of organisms and organs are scrupulously conserved within a species. What regulates the shapes and sizes of organisms and their lateral organs are intriguing and fundamental questions in Biology. Read more
MicroRNA genomics: evolution, expression and function
MicroRNAs are 22 nt single-stranded RNA molecules that modulate gene function primarily through translational repression. There are thousands of microRNA… Read more
Testing the accuracy of evolutionary inferences from morphological phylogeny
Research Group:
Interdisciplinary Centre for Ancient Life
Phylogenetic data are fundamental for understanding evolution. Building and analysing trees from genotypic and phenotypic data is necessary to reconstruct evolutionary relationships, diversifications, rates, and dynamics. Read more
Mutation dynamics in intramacrophage bacteria: How a host-microbe interaction affects antimicrobial resistance
Mutations are fundamental for the evolution of all organisms and adaptation to their environment. They emerge due to replication errors, oxidative stress or various mutagenic stressors. Read more
Animal movement, route choice and energetic landscape in the Arctic
Scientific research has focused on the Arctic recently as this region is at high risk from the effects of climate change. However, a major challenge holds back our ability to understand the potential impacts of environmental change; our lack of knowledge about what animals do in the wild. Read more
Spatio-temporal dynamics of reactive oxygen species in mixed biofilms
Bacterial cells typically live in a spatially structured community known as a biofilm. Understanding of how cells in a mixed biofilm modify micro-environments and generate complex temporal environmental variations is still poor. Read more
Mutagenesis and DNA repair in persistent cells
Antimicrobial resistance is a global health problem, and we need new approaches to mitigate it. When a microbial community is treated with a lethal concentration of an antibiotic, the surviving cells are either genetically resistant or antibiotic tolerant. Read more
Understanding regulation of gene expression during development via an integrated computational analysis of ‘omics data
Embryonic development requires exquisite control of the expression of large numbers of genes, integrating components from the genome, transcriptome and proteome. Read more
Understanding Life in the Freezer: locomotor performance as the key to understanding the possible influences of climate change in high Arctic species
Scientific research has focused on the Arctic recently as this region is at high risk from the effects of climate change. However, a major challenge holds back our ability to understand the potential impacts of environmental change; our lack of knowledge about what animals do in the wild. Read more
Investigating interactions between temperate bacteriophages and their bacterial hosts
Our research focuses on Bacteriophages (phages), which are viruses that infect and kill bacteria, but can also form partnerships as prophages, acting like internal puppet masters to change the fundamental biology of their bacterial hosts. Read more
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