National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Protection Research Unit (HPRU) in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections PhD Studentships

The NIHR HPRU in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections, based at the University of Liverpool and working in partnership with the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and Public Health England invites applications from candidates for fully funded 3.5 year studentships to commence PhD research projects at LSTM in Spring 2021.

Applications now open

Objectives

The overarching aim of the HPRU is to support and strengthen Public Health England (PHE) in its role of protecting England from emerging and zoonotic infections, whilst increasing research capacity. Emerging infections are those which have appeared recently, or are increasing rapidly in incidence or geographical range, e.g. Ebola, MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome) Zika and monkey pox. Most are also zoonotic, meaning they spread from animals to humans. Other zoonoses are already established in the UK, such as Lyme disease. Many emerging and zoonotic infections are spread by bites from mosquitoes or ticks (arthropod vectors); others are classified as high consequence infectious diseases (HCIDs) because they spread from human to human directly, have high death rates, and lack effective vaccines or treatments

Available Projects

LSTM will offer 3 projects, directly aligned to the objective of addressing key emerging and zoonotic threats. Titles below, and further details can be found on our programme page.

• ‘Diagnostics for Epidemic Preparedness’ – Dr Emily Adams
• ‘Epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 within the context of COVID-19 vaccines’ - Professor Luis Cuevas
• ‘Microbial-based strategies for control of West Nile Virus in Culex modestus’ - Dr Grant Hughes

Please contact supervisors directly if you have any questions about individual projects.

Funding & Eligibility

The studentship will provide funding for the duration of 3.5 years from the date of registration. In addition to payment of programme fees, a studentship will provide:

• Stipend paid at the national minimum doctoral rate (set at £15,285 for 2020/21)
• Research Training Support Grant of £5,000 per annum during ‘research active registration, managed by PhD supervisor.

We are unable to accept applications from students that do not meet the residence requirements for this opportunity. Generally speaking, this studentship is only open to UK/EU nationals/residents however candidates should review the full eligibility criteria before submitting an application.

To be classified as having ‘Home’ status, candidates must meet any one of the following criteria:

• Be a UK national (and meet residency requirements, detailed within our full funding and eligibility guide)
• Have ‘Settled Status’ in the UK, meaning they have no restrictions on how long they can stay
• Have ‘Pre-Settled Status’ in the UK for the entire duration of the studentship (and meet residency requirements, detailed within our full funding and eligibility guide)
• Have indefinite leave to remain or enter the UK

How to Apply

All applications are made online via MyLSTM

Deadline for Applications: Thursday 18^th February 2021; 12:00 noon GMT

Further Information

For full project details, information about the programme, funding and eligibility, and guidance on how to apply, please visit the NIHR HPRU PhD Programme Page.