The University of St Andrews is recruiting PhD students across chemistry, physics, mathematics, and computer science, with roughly 35% of funded places in chemistry, 30% in physics, 20% in mathematics, and 15% in computer science. This Doctoral Training Partnership addresses the need to train the next generation of researchers in fundamental sciences and their intersections with biology, medicine, and psychology. Without sustained investment in PhD training, the UK risks losing expertise in fields that underpin technological innovation and economic competitiveness. If successful, this programme will produce skilled scientists capable of advancing photonic materials for faster communications, biophotonic techniques for medical diagnosis and therapy, catalysis for cleaner manufacturing, and artificial intelligence for data-driven systems. It also supports fundamental research in geometry, topology, logic, and combinatorics—areas with no immediate application but which historically have enabled breakthroughs in cryptography, network design, and quantum computing. The embedded GRADskills training programme ensures students develop transferable skills in project management and communication, making them effective in both academic and industrial settings.
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The University of St Andrews has a vibrant postgraduate research community (across the science faculty there are currently over 400 PhD students) and offers DTP funded PhD studentships in Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics and Computer Science (in the approximate proportions 35/30/20/15%) including where these disciplines intersect with other sciences including Biology, Medicine and Psychology. For general information on postgraduate study at St Andrews see http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/study/pg/. As a prospective PhD student, you will apply to work with an individual supervisor or supervisory team within a School http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/research/university/schools/ or Institute, http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/research/university/schools/ and not on a specific programme of study. It is therefore important that you look at staff research interests within the University and ensure that your project matches an existing area of research http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/schools/research/. A searchable interface of the research in St Andrews http://risweb.st-andrews.ac.uk/portal/ provides information about the range of research being undertaken. Areas of priority for DTP funding include photonic materials, biophotonic techniques for diagnosis, therapy and quantum information, catalysis, materials characterization, new physical sciences for biology and health care, synthetic biology, complexity science (in the form of Discrete Mathematics), fluid dynamics, geometry and topology, logic and combinatorics, mathematical analysis, computer systems, programming languages, human-computer interaction, artificial intelligence and constraint programming, sensor networks, biomedical modelling cloud and data-driven systems. St Andrews University has a comprehensive transferable skills training programme for all PhD students (GRADskills) http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/capod/students/pgresearch/gradskills/ that is organised by the University's Centre for Academic, Professional and Organisational Development (CAPOD). New PhD students assess their need for generic skills training together with their supervisor and then take the appropriate transferable skills courses (either from the GRADskills programme or externally, e.g. London Mathematical Society and Scottish Mathematical Sciences Training Centre provide specific generic skills training courses). PhD students are required to take at least two generic skills courses each semester. In addition specialist technical courses in the disciplines are provided together with vibrant seminar programs. Applications are accepted via the online system at http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/study/pg/apply/research/. Schools accept applications throughout the year but begin to make offers of DTP funded places from February onwards.
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