PhD in Physical Geography
Postgraduate Teaching Assistant (PGTA) studentship: Closed
University of Bristol PGR Scholarship: Closed
NERC GW4+ DTLP Projects: Closed
ERC REFRESH Programme
We are seeking highly capable candidates for an exciting PhD studentship, funded under the UKRI funded ERC Advanced Grant REFRESH:
The project is led by Professor Penny Johnes, collaborating with colleagues across the Schools of Geographical Sciences and Biological Sciences, as well as collaboration with colleagues at Bristol Water, Natural England, and the Environment Agency.
The deadline for applications is 31 August 2025
When applying for projects in the School of Geographical Sciences please choose 'Geography- PhD'' in the 'find a programme' box. You should refer to the project title and supervisor in your application.
| Project Title | Supervisor |
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Managing Freshwater Nutrients for Ecological Health and Sustainable Water Supply |
Postgraduate Teaching Assistant (PGTA) studentship: Closed
The School of Geographical Sciences has a Postgraduate Teaching Assistant position in Physical Geography to fill for 2025/26 entry, with an anticipated start date of 01 September 2025. The School is consistently ranked as top in the UK in terms of the amount of research its staff produce which is deemed "world class". It has a vibrant and expanding Graduate School of some 150+ PhD and MSc students.
A Graduate Teaching Assistant scholarship requires the PhD student to teach Undergraduate students, as well as carry out their research. The GTA will have a teaching contract, making it very clear what is expected from their teaching role, and puts in place the framework to allow them to deliver on both teaching and research.
Please see the details of the studentship here for more information and how to apply:
PGTA studentship description and further info (PDF, 89kB)
Application deadline 01 April 2025.
University of Bristol PGR Scholarship: Closed
For September 2025 the School of Geographical Sciences has a number of University of Bristol Scholarships for both home and overseas students commencing their PhDs in 2025/26. These can be awarded on a full-time or part-time basis.
These scholarships, available for a period of up to 4 years, cover tuition fees and a stipend at the UKRI amount. There is also an allocated amount of funds for research and training expenses per year.
Please make sure to read the admissions statement and other application information on the website before applying.
The deadline for applications is 12.00 Friday 31st January 2025. We regret that we cannot consider applications for funding received after the deadline.
Please select 'University of Bristol Scholarship' under the funding options of your application.
As part of our commitment to an inclusive and representative student community, we are also offering a specific UoB PhD scholarship for applicants of Black and mixed Black heritage eligible for home fees starting their programme in 2025. If you are eligible for this award and would like to be considered for it, please confirm this with our admin team at geog-pgadmin@bristol.ac.uk.
Applicants may apply to a maximum of 1 project at Bristol.
| Project Title | Supervisor |
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| Machine Learning for Understanding Extreme Weather in a Changing Climate | |
| Artificial Intelligence for Managing Ancient Woodlands in the UK Sustainability to Meet Net-Zero Climate Targets | |
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Quantifying the Marine Bio-Physical Feedbacks During Severe Weather Events in a High-Resolution Coupled Earth-System Model |
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Isotopic and Model Constraints on the Climatic Impact of the Opening South Atlantic
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Improving Future Climate Projections Through Modelling and Data of Earth's Past |
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Evolution of Marine Symbionts and the Earth System
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Carbon Cycling in Deglaciating Aquatic Landscapes
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Exploring Mitigation of Nitrous Oxide (N2O) Emissions from Grasslands by Rhizobia Inoculation |
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| Quantifying glacier mass loss with Earth Observation and data-driven modelling |
Flood Centre for Doctoral Training (FLOOD-CDT): Closed
These projects are funded by the FLOOD-CDT in partnership with several institutions, including Bristol University.
Applications for entry in September/October 2025 for FLOOD-CDT are open now with a deadline of 8th January 2025.
Please click on the link above to view all projects, or search by different criteria. For Bristol projects please see below. Each of the successful researchers will undertake a multidisciplinary project, co-supervised with our external partners, investigating real-life problems across at least two of our Research and Training Themes. In parallel each doctoral researcher will receive extensive, multidisciplinary cohort-based training, across all six Research and Training Themes.
Please read the How to apply for NERC FLOOD CDT projects in Bristol (PDF, 563kB) document carefully before submitting your application.
Applicants may apply to a maximum of 2 projects at Bristol.
| Project Title | Supervisor |
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| Drought to Flood Transitions in a Changing Climate | |
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Better Understanding and Handling of Uncertainty in Flood Management
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A Unified Approach to Multiple Timescale Climate, Sea-Level, and Coastal Change Projects in the UK |
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Attribution of Global Sea Level Rise-induced Coastal Flooding |
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How Can Citizen Science and High Resolution Monitoring be Used to Characterise the Effectiveness of Natural Flood Management Solutions? |
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Parametric Flood Modelling for Vulnerable Populations in Southeast Asia |
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Climate Drivers of Future Extreme UK Flood Risk |
NERC GW4+ DLTP Projects 2025: Closed
This is an exciting opportunity to apply for a project funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). We are now accepting applications for PhD projects commencing Autumn 2025 in the Earth, Environmental and Life Sciences.
The application deadline is Monday 13th January 2025.
It is important that you follow the detailed instructions provided when applying for the DLTP and be sure to read the prospectus carefully. We advise you download the 'Admissions Statement' for Physical Geography from the prospectus and follow the instructions. The prospectus also shows other Bristol Schools offering projects under this DLTP.
When applying to NERC GW4+ DLTP projects, please include in your application the NERC GW4+ DLTP personal statement (Office document, 194kB) version of a personal statement.
There is an additional 'applicants questionnaire' that the DLTP require, so please complete this at the time of application as well.
When applying for projects in the School of Geographical Sciences please choose 'Geography- PhD'' in the 'find a programme' box. You should refer to the project title and supervisor in your application.
Further particulars of the programme including eligibility for international applicants (including EU) can be found here.
Applicants may apply to a maximum of 1 project at Bristol.
| Project Title | Supervisor |
|---|---|
| Carbon Budgets for Glacial Landscapes and the Role of Microbes in Storing and Releasing Carbon | |
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Quantifying the Contribution of Glaciers to Freshwater Resources in Mountain Regions
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Revealing and Protecting the Diminishing Phyco-diversity of the Cryosphere |
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The Future of the UK's Water Supply |
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Marine Ecosystems and Biogeochemistry Under Future Climate Change |
Lee de Mora (Plymouth Marine Laboratory) |