Applied Sciences

Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship Scheme 

If you’re a Huddersfield graduate, looking to undertake a full-time or part-time research degree, you may be eligible for a full fee-waiver on your research degree.

The scholarship is open to home and international candidates. 

Please note, for international students our Vice-Chancellor's Scholarship Scheme provides a fee waiver of at least 50% on full-time or part-time research degrees, some schools may offer 100%.

 

Eligibility criteria 

Our Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship Scheme is a competitive application process and to be eligible, you must have achieved one of the following: 
 
- a first-class honours degree 
- a distinction at taught Master’s 
or 
- be recommended based on your Master’s by Research by your supervisor and academic school 
and 
- graduated from the University of Huddersfield in the last three years.  

Any offer will be conditional on your degree outcome if you are graduating in the current academic year.

 

General  

Available for research undertaken on a full-time or part-time basis including PhD, Master of Arts by Research, and Master of Science by Research.  

Scholarship is only available for the standard registration period only,  

For doctoral awards, or PhD, the fee waiver will be for 3 years full-time or 6 years part-time 

For Master’s by Research awards, the fee-waiver will be for 1-year full time or 2 years part time.  
 
The fee waiver will not apply to any research undertaken outside of this standard registration period, including any write up period.  
 
The University of Huddersfield reserves the right to vary or withdraw the waiver at any point in future academic years.  

Please note, that this fee waiver is subject to availability.  
 

How to apply 

To apply, please complete an online application form stating the scholarship you wish to apply for in the funding section.

To be considered for the scheme, ensure you meet the application deadlines:  

PGR Start Date	Application Deadline Date
Sept/October 2025	13 June 2025
January 2026	17 October 2025
April 2026	23 January 2026

 

Selection process 

All eligible candidates will be subject to interview as part of the selection process. This will be arranged by the relevant academic school.

Further information 

For more information, please contact the Graduate School at gs.pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk  

Chancellor’s Scholarships

We are seeking the very best graduates from across the UK to participate in our Chancellor’s Scholarships Scheme, which gives those selected access to a full tuition waiver on their research degree, as well as additional funds to attend national and international conferences to disseminate and publish their research.

Details

To celebrate 200 years of the University of Huddersfield, which in 1825 was established as The Science and Mechanics Institute, we are awarding Chancellor’s Scholarships across all PhD disciplines.

These scholarships are available across all academic disciplines for research undertaken on either a full-time or part-time basis.

Eligibility criteria

Our Chancellor’s Anniversary Scholarships Scheme is a competitive application process open to home (UK resident) candidates and to be eligible you must have achieved one of the following:

• 2:1 honours degree or above.
• Distinction at taught Master’s.
• Master’s by Research degree and have a letter of recommendation from your supervisor.

Research degrees include the following awards; PhD, Professional Doctorates, Master’s of Arts by Research, and Master’s of Science by Research.

General

The University of Huddersfield reserves the right to vary or withdraw the waiver at any point in future academic years.

All scholarship students must successfully complete progression monitoring at the end of each academic year to continue the scholarship award.

If you have any queries or require further information, please contact gs.pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk

How to apply

To apply, please complete an online application form stating the scholarship you wish to apply for in the funding section.

For more information on applying, please visit our how to apply for a research degree page.

The following deadline dates will apply:

PGR Start Date	Application Deadline Date
Sept/Oct 2025	13 June 2025
January 2026	17 October 2025
April 2026	23 January 2026

 

Selection process

All eligible candidates will be subject to interview as part of the selection process. This will be arranged by the relevant academic school.

Further information

For further information, please contact the Graduate School at gs.pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk

Decoding Life or Death Decisions: How BMX Molecular Interactions Govern Cancer Cell Fate

Supervisor: Dr Joanna Fox

Cell fate outcome, whether a cell lives or dies, is determined at the molecular level by numerous regulatory proteins including some beyond standard apoptotic pathways. BMX tyrosine kinase is one of these regulatory proteins, whose activity simultaneously promotes cell proliferation and inhibits commitment to apoptotic cell death. However, the mechanism by which BMX is activated, regulates its cellular localisation, and interacts with its apoptotic substrates remains unknown.  BMX is a multi-domain protein containing an N-terminal PH domain which binds to cellular membranes to facilitate cell signalling events and act as a scaffold to bring multiple binding partners into close association to increase signalling efficiency and function. The PH domain of BMX is frequently mutated in Cancer. This project will therefore first analyse the BMX PH domain to identify the regions required for both protein and lipid binding to characterise the role the PH domain plays in regulating BMX activity in response to cell signalling events and cellular localisation.   Secondly, the impact of Cancer relevant mutations within the PH domain on lipid and substrate binding will be established using biochemical, structural biology and cell biology techniques. Thirdly, structure-driven drug design will be used to identify molecules to modulate protein/lipid binding and evaluate BMX PH domain as a novel therapeutic target in Cancer.

For subject specific enquiries please contact: j.fox3@hud.ac.uk

Funding Notes 

Funding: A tax-free annual bursary at the standard UKRI rate (£20,780 for 2025/26 entry) and tuition fees at UK rate, for 3 years. 

Academic year: 2026/27 

Eligibility 

Open to citizens of the UK. 

Applicants should have a first or upper second undergraduate degree or master’s degree in a relevant subject.

How to apply

Application deadline: midnight on the 2^nd of March 2026

To submit your application for this Studentship please email the following to gs.pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk:

• An email outlining your motivation and experience.
• Your CV
• Your degree certificate(s) and transcript(s)
• Provide references from two individuals – please contact your referees and ask them to send them directly to pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk from their email address.

Shortlisted candidates will attend an interview on the University campus the week commencing 23^rd March 2026.

Hydrogel-Mediated Delivery of Repurposed Antimicrobial Agents for the Targeted Suppression of Burn Wound-Associated Bacterial Pathogens

Supervisor: Dr Anthony Slate

The rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in bacteria is a growing global health crisis. By 2050, it is projected that AMR-related deaths will surpass cancer as the leading cause of global mortality. The process of developing a drug, from initial discovery through to regulatory approval, is estimated to take ~10–15 years and cost ~$2–3 billion. One potential avenue to be explored is drug repurposing, this selects for pre-existing FDA approved drugs (which have already been approved for medical use) with serendipitous antimicrobial activity. Drug repurposing significantly reduces both the financial and temporal costs of drug development. Globally, infections are observed in 26.9% of patients with burn wounds (with 42-65% of deaths attributed directly to infection). Key bacterial pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa drive pathogenesis, resulting in polymicrobial biofilm formation, and enhanced resistance to current treatments. This project aims to 1) identify novel therapeutic agents with antimicrobial activity against burn-wound associated bacterial pathogens, 2) develop a biofilm model which is more physiologically relevant of the polymicrobial nature of burn wounds and, 3) incorporation of lead candidate drugs into hydrogel coatings and efficacy testing against human epithelial cells and a porcine burn wound model.

For subject specific enquiries please contact: a.j.slate@hud.ac.uk

Funding Notes 

Funding: A tax-free annual bursary at the standard UKRI rate (£20,780 for 2025/26 entry) and tuition fees at UK rate, for 3 years. 

Academic year: 2026/27 

Eligibility 

Open to citizens of the UK. 

Applicants should have a first or upper second undergraduate degree or master’s degree in a relevant subject.

How to apply

Application deadline: midnight on the 2^nd of March 2026

To submit your application for this Studentship please email the following to gs.pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk:

• An email outlining your motivation and experience.
• Your CV
• Your degree certificate(s) and transcript(s)
• Provide references from two individuals – please contact your referees and ask them to send them directly to pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk from their email address.

Shortlisted candidates will attend an interview on the University campus the week commencing 23^rd March 2026.

Deciphering Cellular Drivers of Wound Healing in a 3D Engineered Skin Model

Supervisor: Dr Karima Bertal-Ngaage

Wound healing is a complex biological process involving multiple skin cell types. While fibroblasts and keratinocytes have been extensively studied using 2D and 3D models of wound healing, the roles of other skin cells—such as melanocytes, adipocytes, and endothelial cells in such models remain underexplored.

This PhD project explores how overlooked skin‑resident cell populations influence wound healing at the tissue level. You’ll work with plastic surgeons and access healthy human skin donated from routine procedures (including abdominoplasties, breast reductions, and graft surgeries). Using this material, you’ll isolate primary human skin cells and engineer advanced 3D skin models by repurposing the dermis as a biological scaffold. This is a rare opportunity to combine clinically relevant human tissue, cutting‑edge bioengineering, and fundamental cell biology to uncover mechanisms that could transform future wound‑repair therapies

By highlighting the contributions of these cells, we seek to expand the current understanding of skin regeneration and identify novel cellular targets that could be leveraged in advanced wound care strategies. These findings may inform the development of next generation dressings and therapeutic interventions designed to accelerate healing and improve patient outcomes. Additionally, this work will lay the foundation for a new 3D model system capable of studying the interactions and functions of diverse skin cell types in the wound healing environment.

Finally, developing a reproducible in vitro wound healing model will reduce reliance on animal testing, aligning with the 3Rs—Reduction, Replacement, and Refinement. This model will provide a human relevant platform for evaluating novel therapies, accelerating preclinical research while promoting ethical and translationally meaningful outcomes.

For subject specific enquiries please contact: k.bertal-ngaage@hud.ac.uk

Funding Notes 

Funding: A tax-free annual bursary at the standard UKRI rate (£20,780 for 2025/26 entry) and tuition fees at UK rate, for 3 years. 

Academic year: 2026/27 

Eligibility 

Open to citizens of the UK. 

Applicants should have a first or upper second undergraduate degree or master’s degree in a relevant subject.

How to apply

Application deadline: midnight on the 2^nd of March 2026

To submit your application for this Studentship please email the following to gs.pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk:

• An email outlining your motivation and experience.
• Your CV
• Your degree certificate(s) and transcript(s)
• Provide references from two individuals – please contact your referees and ask them to send them directly to pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk from their email address.

Shortlisted candidates will attend an interview on the University campus the week commencing 23^rd March 2026.

Improving Optometric Referrals for Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Supervisor: Dr Corinne Fulcher

The neovascular form of age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) can have devastating effects on central vision, but fortunately timely intervention with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (antiVEGF) has improved outcomes for countless individuals. In the UK NICE guidelines recommend treatment commences within 14 days of referral to the hospital eye service. A recent study found that the optometric referral accuracy of nAMD may be as low as 37%, a figure which has not improved in over a decade. This could result in many false positive referrals – patients suspected of having nAMD when they do not actually have it, possibly leading to treatment delays for those with the disease. In Bradford for example, only one fifth of suspected nAMD patients are seen within the recommended 14 days. This PhD project will aim to investigate factors that may influence optometric referrals of nAMD, including the use of optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging, and look at possible ways of improving diagnostic accuracy. Depending on the interests of the candidate this could be through focus groups / questionnaires / semi-structured interviews or through the development of a training tool for primary care clinicians.

For subject specific enquiries please contact: c.fulcher2@hud.ac.uk

Funding Notes 

Funding: A tax-free annual bursary at the standard UKRI rate (£20,780 for 2025/26 entry) and tuition fees at UK rate, for 3 years. 

Academic year: 2026/27 

Eligibility 

Open to citizens of the UK. 

Applicants should have a first or upper second undergraduate degree or master’s degree in a relevant subject.

How to apply

Application deadline: midnight on the 2^nd of March 2026

To submit your application for this Studentship please email the following to gs.pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk:

• An email outlining your motivation and experience.
• Your CV
• Your degree certificate(s) and transcript(s)
• Provide references from two individuals – please contact your referees and ask them to send them directly to pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk from their email address.

Shortlisted candidates will attend an interview on the University campus the week commencing 23^rd March 2026.

High-Performance, Metal-Enhanced Photochromic Lenses

Supervisor: Dr Orlando Azevedo

Join us to overcome the technological limitations facing the $5B+ photochromic lens market. This project tackles the slow switching speeds of current lenses by developing a new class of high-performance photochromic dyes. You will pioneer a sustainable metal-enhancement strategy, replacing expensive rare metals (e.g., Rhenium) with earth-abundant alternatives like Zinc (Zn²⁺) and Cobalt (Co³⁺) to coordinate with novel naphthopyran dyes. This provides critical geometric and electronic control over the photoswitching process, stabilising the high-colour form and suppressing unwanted side reactions. We are seeking a highly motivated candidate with a strong academic background in synthetic chemistry for this unique opportunity to develop photochromic systems that are faster and more colourful than current market offerings, while gaining expertise in advanced synthesis and photochemistry.

For subject specific enquiries please contact: o.deazevedo@hud.ac.uk

Funding Notes 

Funding: A tax-free annual bursary at the standard UKRI rate (£20,780 for 2025/26 entry) and tuition fees at UK rate, for 3 years. 

Academic year: 2026/27 

Eligibility 

Open to citizens of the UK. 

Applicants should have a first or upper second undergraduate degree or master’s degree in a relevant subject.

How to apply

Application deadline: midnight on the 2^nd of March 2026

To submit your application for this Studentship please email the following to gs.pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk:

• An email outlining your motivation and experience.
• Your CV
• Your degree certificate(s) and transcript(s)
• Provide references from two individuals – please contact your referees and ask them to send them directly to pgradmissions@hud.ac.uk from their email address.

Shortlisted candidates will attend an interview on the University campus the week commencing 23^rd March 2026.