How to apply

Applications for the September 2026 CDT intake are now open. The key dates and deadlines are expected to be as follows:

• International students (to be considered for UCL scholarship opportunities): 9th January, 2026 (23:59)
• Home students: 26th January 2026 (23:59)
• Q&A session: Date TBA (expected early February 2026)
• Interviews: 16th - 20th February 2026

While applications may be accepted after the deadline, we cannot guarantee an interview for late submissions.

We will have full studentship opportunities (tuition fees and a maintenance stipend, i.e. subsistence allowance) available for both home and international students, so we encourage all interested students to apply regardless of their residency status. International students need to submit their applications by 9th January 2026 (23:59) to also be considered for UCL studentship opportunities. Please get in touch with us as soon as possible for further details at dis-cdt-phd-admissions@live.ucl.ac.uk or if you want to be considered for any particular studentship opportunities.

This year’s list of projects for September 2026 is available on the studentship projects page. Applicants should keep in mind that the projects outlined are a starting point for a conversation on the exact research project that will be undertaken during the period of the PhD. Projects will be assigned after you have accepted a place in the CDT, with students able to further discuss their final project choice and topic with perspective supervisors at that point. For further details on any of the projects, please contact the project supervisor. Additional projects may be added to the list prior to the interviews, and those who have registered will receive notifications about updates and the addition of new projects. 

The online application form can be found using the link provided. First, select ‘Apply for this course’ fill in the drop-down list with ‘Department: Physics and Astronomy, then select RRDPHYSDIS01 from the ‘matching programme’ result, select Year 2026 to be considered for September 2026 entry. Please carefully follow the instructions below when applying for the DIS CDT:

• You should include a short CV (strict 2-page limit), which highlights key points about your university education, MSci project (or similar), career/placements, your computing experience, and any other details on your technical/experimental experience which is relevant.
• You should also include a short personal statement (strict 300-word limit) describing your reasons for applying to the DIS CDT programme, your overall research interests, in addition to highlighting any experience, achievements, awards or publications you think are relevant to your application. You should also provide a ranked list of your three favourite research projects at the bottom of your statement. Please note that the ranked listed is not included in the word limit. The personal statement should be added as an additional page to your CV. Please do not enter it in the ‘Personal Statement’ box of the online application. Please only write, ‘see personal statement attached’, in this box.  
• When uploading your combined CV and personal statement, please use a filename such as “CV_SURNAME_FIRSTNAME.pdf”.
• Please do not upload any papers or a research statement; they will not be reviewed.

We will consider all applications received and invite those shortlisted to an interview. PhD admissions inquiries can be addressed to the PhD Admission Team at dis-cdt-phd-admissions@live.ucl.ac.uk. However, it’s likely that many questions will be answered in these pages, so please read through them before contacting us.

Scholarships

In addition to the fully funded studentships, we also strongly encourage applicants to consider applying for appropriate PhD scholarships. A selected list of suitable scholarships is provided below, along with a link to UCL’s Scholarship Finder Tool (which can be used to search based on research area and current country of residence). Please contact us if you would like to apply for one of these scholarships or if you have identified a specific scholarship opportunity you would like to apply for via the DIS CDT.

• UCL’s Research Excellence Scholarship
• UCL’s Research Opportunity Scholarship
• CSC-UCL Joint Research Scholarship
• IOP’s Bell Burnell Scholarships
• UCL’s Scholarship Finder Tool

Eligibility

We will automatically consider all candidates for appropriate studentships when they apply to us. These pay for tuition fees and a maintenance (i.e. subsistence) allowance. More details on the studentships, including their value, can be found on their website. Applicants meeting the relevant criteria are automatically considered for a studentship and do not need to apply for a studentship separately.

Applicants whose first language is not English should note the additional requirements in respect of this. Please note that unless you satisfy the requirements mentioned above, the department cannot offer you a PhD position (i.e. we are not allowed to make exceptions). Therefore, we strongly advise that you check whether you meet the language requirements and take any necessary tests, such as the IELTS, before making an application or, if this is not possible, no later than the date of the interviews.