PhD (Doctor of Philosophy)

This is a three, 3.5 or four-year research programme, depending on the nature of the project.

Students undertake a research project under the guidance of an academic supervisor and, unlike a postgraduate degree by coursework and dissertation, there are no formal lectures or seminars and work is not formally examined until after the final thesis is submitted. The Graduate School also offers an induction programme and skills training opportunities for all research students to support their studies and to help with career planning.

Medical Sciences

Current research within the Institute of Medical Sciences includes Bone and Musculoskeletal, Cancer Medicine, Cell and Developmental Biology, Immunology, Imaging, Microbiology, Neurobiology, Physiology and Pharmacology, Systems Biology, Translational Medicine, and Cardiovascular research.

• Find out more about the Institute of Medical Sciences
• Browse all research programmes in the Institute of Medical Sciences

Example projects:

We welcome applications from self-funded students. You may already have a PhD project in mind, however, if you are still deciding the following is a list of exciting PhD projects available to self-funded students. Click on the project titles to find out more details about each PhD project.

If you are interested in one of the projects listed then please contact any of the Supervisors noted below and also copy your message to our Graduate School Administrator at f.insch@abdn.ac.uk.

• Control and Modulation of Homologous Recombination During Meiosis
• Aspergillus Infections in Cystic Fibrosis: Establishing the Role of the CFTR-Protein in Innate Antifungal Immunity
• Development of ex vivo Tissue Culture Models for Studying Osteogenic Guidance Cues for Bone Repair and Regeneration
• Dietary Behaviours and Risk of Cognitive Decline and Dementia
• Early Metabolic Intervention in Acute Stress-Induced (Tako-tsubo) Cardiomyopathy
• Evolution and Spread of Antibiotic Resistance Genes Through the Food Chain
• Exploring if Hypoxia-Mimicking Scaffolds Have a Proangiogenic Influence on Bone and Cartilage Tissue Development and/or Regeneration
• Functional Characterisation of Effector Proteins of the Fish Pathogenic Oomycete Saprolegnia parasitica
• How Do Campylobacters with Pathogenic Traits Modulate Intestinal Homeostasis
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD): Role of Gut Microbiota and Advancing Nutritional Assessment Techniques
• Inhibiting Angiogenesis in Aortic Heart Valves via Pharmacological Intervention: a New Therapeutic Target in Aortic Valve Stenosis
• Investigating the Influence of Genotype and the Cell Surface on Superficial Mycoses and Immunopathologies Associated with Fungal Skin Commensals
• Mathematical Modelling of Wnt Signalling in Embryonic Development, Stem Cells and Cancer
• Micronutrient Acquisition Strategies of Human Pathogenic Fungi
• Molecular Evolution of Vertebrate TCF Genes for Wnt Signalling in Embryonic Development and Cancer
• Regulating Translation During Recombinant Protein Expression in Biotechnology
• Role of Platelet Subpopulations in Fibrinolysis
• Stem Cell Activity on the Surface of the Eye
• Simplified Meiosis in the Hemiascomycetous Yeast Yarrowia lipolytica
• The Battle for Survival Between Human Host and Fungal Pathogen: Features of the Physical Environment that Influence the Final Outcome
• The Potential of Combining Novel Silk-Based Biomaterial Implants and Stem Cells in Promoting Spinal Cord Injury Repair
• The Regulation and Role of Cell Surface Glycoproteins in Fungal Pathogenesis and Drug Tolerance
• Validation, Optimisation and Clinical Translation of a PET Tau Tracer for Alzheimer's Disease