Imperial College London PhD Studentships in Aeronautics

Be part of a world-leading research environment at Imperial College London with one of our funded PhD opportunities within the Department of Aeronautics.

As a global leader in scientific innovation, currently ranked 2nd in the world (QS World University Rankings 2025), we’re committed to advancing the world through pioneering research, innovative teaching and transformative discoveries.

Our PhD studentships cover a comprehensive range of aerospace fields and address critical areas such as the environment, energy and healthcare.

PhD Opportunities and Funding

Graduates of our PhD courses thrive in diverse, impactful careers within the aerospace industry and beyond. This includes roles focusing on deep-sea oil rigs, atomic reactors, submarine and ship design, bridge research, racing car and engine research, atmospheric pollution and many other aspects of industrial aerodynamics.

Funded PhD Opportunities

• Safe Data-Driven Control - Bridging the Gap Between Nonlinear Control and Machine Learning - Supervisor:  Dr Thulasi Mylvaganam
• Reinforcement Learning for controlling nonlinear physical systems: application to wind farm optimization - Supervisor: Professor Sylvain Laizet and Dr Georgios Rigas
• Theoretical/Computational Fluid dynamics - Supervisor:  Professor Yongyun Hwang
• Magnetic Suspension Balances (MSBS) for Drag Reduction - Supervisor: Professor Jonathan Morrison
• High-fidelity simulations of turbulence flows on heterogeneous computer systems - Supervisor: Professor Sylvain Laizet
• High-Fidelity Simulation of Titan/Mars Entry Vehicles with PyFR - Supervisor: Professor Peter Vincent, Professor Oliver Buxton, Dr. Paul Bruce and Professor Matthew Santer
• Scientific machine learning to support aviation sustainability - Supervisor: Dr Sebastian Eastham and Dr Urban Fasel
• Aerodynamic theory of ultra-efficient aircraft rotors - Supervisor:  Dr Kostas Steiros

Fees and Funding

The amount of funding you’ll need will vary according to your fee status (UK, EU or overseas). Please see Imperial College London's student fees and funding pages for information on fees, living costs and College-administered scholarships.

Entry Requirements

Graduates with a degree in engineering, any of the physical sciences, mathematics, biological sciences, physiology or medicine may be accepted for a PhD. We will normally only accept applicants with a good 2:1 or First degree from a UK university, or non-UK equivalent. Please check the Imperial College entry requirements to ensure you meet the minimum entry criteria for research.

How to apply

Applications are only accepted through the Imperial College Online Application System. Start your online application by completing the steps on the How to Apply page.

Application deadline: 9 January 2025