Propose New PhD Projects

View our current PhD projects by exploring the CDT’s research themes here. 

Please read these guidelines carefully, you will find a link to the application form at the bottom of this page.

Our PhD projects are supervised by academic staff from various backgrounds and of all levels of seniority from across UCL, supported by non-academic partners where appropriate. Projects are submitted and selected in autumn for a start in the autumn of the next calendar year. 

Proposals are ranked per research theme, with a maximum of 5 projects selected per research theme, to be proposed to candidate students (~10 in total per cohort) during the PhD recruitment process. 

Projects can only be submitted by UCL supervisors, are expected to be interdisciplinary, and must be (for at least 50%) in the EPSRC remit. 

Selection criteria are: 

• Fit to remit of the CDT and one of the three main CDT research themes
• Quality of the proposed research
• Quality of the supervision and research environment
• Strength of contributions from non-academic partners (if applicable) 

Project selection and allocation will take into account matched funding contributions made by different UCL departments to the CDT, and where appropriate favour supervisors from those departments.

Furthermore, for the 2027 Project Call there is an increased emphasis on the involvement of external, non-academic partners provided all other selection criteria are met. We encourage partners to contribute around 50% of the total studentship costs. In addition, we look for in-kind contributions as complementary and – if deemed appropriate and sufficiently meaningful – alternative ways of partner engagement.

Potential supervisors are strongly encouraged to initiate discussions with partners as soon as possible, keeping the CDT informed via CDT-AMR@ucl.ac.uk as appropriate. Partner contributions need to be confirmed in letters of support, in line with UKRI guidance, and submitted alongside the project proposal. Please note that collaboration agreements should be fully executed before the commencement of the studentship, in line with UKRI terms and conditions. 

For information on the matched funding required and how studentships with external partners will be set up, please consult the “Matched funding - info for supervisors.docx” document.  

Academics will not be allowed to be first supervisor for more than one on-going CDT PhD project or to be second supervisor for more than one on-going CDT PhD project; and should not submit more than one CDT PhD project as first supervisor or more than one CDT PhD project as second supervisor any year. Projects with significant matched funding (cash contribution) are exempt from these limitations. 

Confirmation of initial project selection may be pending on additional information provided by supervisors.  

Supervisors of selected projects are expected to participate in the student recruitment process and supervisor on-boarding sessions (2 per year). 

Please refer to the CDT AMR Supervisor Framework, which outlines our expectations for supervisor responsibilities.

If you would like to preview the sections included in the application form before applying, you can view a word document version including all fields to be completed in the online submission form