PhD Opportunities in Communication, Media, and Film Studies

We warmly invite applications for full-time or part-time self-funded PhD study. 

About the PhD Programme

The Centre for Culture, Media & Society (CCMS) is an exciting interdisciplinary environment delivering research that offers critical insight and real-world impact. 

We are interested to receive applications that relate to our areas of research expertise in:

Communication, Culture and Heritage

• European cultural studies
• Critical heritage studies
• Culture, identity and the body
• Folklore, contemporary legend and media
• Cultural institutions and their audiences, festivals and archives

Film, TV and Audiences

• Film and TV industries, infrastructures, ecosystems and governance
• Film, TV and visual culture
• Genre and narrative theory in film studies
• Nationalism, transnationalism and diaspora in cultures and cinemas of Europe, Asia and Arab world
• Screenwriting and adaptation

Representation, Resistance and Anti-Racism

• Postcolonial Studies
• Critical Race Theory, human rights, social justice and activism
• Textual and visual studies of protest and resistance in media and culture
• Critical explorations of intersectional identity-based inequalities and experience (including but not limited to gender, race and religion)
• Global media and global events coverage

Media and Society

• Digital cultures (including fan cultures)
• Digital inclusion
• Social media (including social media interaction, platforms and culture analytics)
• Journalism and PR studies
• Virtual reality applications in health and wellbeing 

You will join a vibrant PhD programme with excellent student satisfaction scores. There are opportunities to participate in seminars, workshops and conferences, including SHU's innovative interdisciplinary postgraduate research conferences on the topics of research METHOD and research IMPACT. We offer training in research methods via modules on the M. Res in Social Research and access to specialist media and film production facilities including recording studios, edit suites and VR studio and screening facilities at 'The Void' film lecture theatre. You can read more about the PhD community and past and current PhD projects here.

Scholarship Opportunities

Sheffield Hallam Opportunity Scholarships are made available to address the underrepresentation of UK Black, Asian and Ethic Minority candidates in doctoral education.   

The College of Social Sciences & Arts is offering one Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) scholarship as part of this scheme.  GTAs provides an excellent opportunity to combine PhD study with professional development to gain practical experience in learning, teaching and assessment in Higher Education.  You will be able to work towards Associate Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy and as part of your training will be expected to support teaching related activities in the Department of Culture and Media  

Funding and Eligibility   

Scholarships are available for 3.5 years (full-time) or 6 years (part-time) and include:  

•  Tuition fees at the Home student rate 

• A maintenance bursary at the standard Sheffield Hallam PhD stipend rate.  This is aligned with the net Real Living Wage; the current rate for full time study in academic year 2023/24 is £19,722 per annum.  Part-time is paid at 50% 

• Opportunity Scholarships are open to Home candidates only 

How to apply  

See ‘How to Apply’ for guidance, and the prospectus entry for PhD Media & Communication for course information, entry requirements, tuition fee rates, the online application form and list of required documents, which includes a research proposal.  Your proposal needs to be clear and detailed, setting out the aims of the enquiry, its context, current knowledge on the topic, proposed methods of data collection and analysis and any potential challenges or opportunities.     

 In the personal statement field of your application, please state which scholarship opportunity you wish to apply for: 

• ‘GTA Scholarship for UK Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates’    

• ‘Sheffield Hallam PhD Scholarship for Black British researchers’ 

 You can ask to be considered for both GTA and Sheffield Hallam Opportunity Scholarships.     

Applications are welcome from all candidates, irrespective of age, ethnicity, pregnancy and maternity, disability, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, belief, or marital or civil partnership status.

For academic enquiries contact: Dr. Kerry McSeveny, Postgraduate Research Tutor for Media, Communication & Film k.mcseveny@shu.ac.uk

For general enquires contact the Culture & Creativity Research Institute Postgraduate Research Team culture-creativity-admissions@shu.ac.uk

The application deadline for GTA scholarship is 12.00 Noon on 27th April   

Interviews are scheduled for week beginning 20th May, by videoconference.