Doctoral research

The Department has more than fifty PhD students working on a wide variety of research topics in Political Science and International Studies. Our PhD students are at the core of our research culture, organising their own weekly research colloquium, setting research group agendas, participating at the weekly Departmental Research Seminar, helping to organise conferences and workshops, and engaging in undergraduate teaching.

All full-time doctoral students have their own workspace and access to computers, photocopying, fax and telephones. The Department has research funds to support student participation in UK conferences. The University library is one of the best in the UK.

Guidance for PhD Applicants in POLSIS

Research degrees offered:

Political Science and International Studies PhD/MPhil

  • Postgraduate
  • Doctoral research
  • Full time, part time

We are able to supervise a wide range of topics, in line with the research interests of the teaching staff listed below. In broad terms our research work is focused around eight research groups: Asia; Diplomatic Studies; European Politics; International Political Economy; Political Theory; Security Studies; International Relations Theory; and Political Sociology.

European Research PhD/MPhil

  • Postgraduate
  • Doctoral research
  • Full time, part time

Our overall aim is to gain a fuller understanding of the processes of change that are shaping Europe, as a former communist and still fragmented East and a more tightly integrated West engage increasingly intensively with each other. Our research activities are focused on the following key areas: East meets West; Organising Europe; Comparative governance; and Changing notions of citizenship in Europe.

German Studies (Social Sciences) PhD/MPhil

  • Postgraduate
  • Doctoral research
  • Full time, part time

We can offer research degree supervision in all of our main research areas: Germany in comparative European context; the politics and policies of unified Germany; Political parties in Germany and in a comparative context; transitional politics and the politics of memory; German foreign and security policy; EU external interventions; EU counter terrorism policies; Germany within the European Security System; German literature, history and culture since 1600; The role of Germany within the European Union; German gender politics; prisons and prisoner narratives; Baader-Meinhof and West German terrorism.

Integrated Study (Social Sciences) PhD

  • Postgraduate
  • Doctoral research
  • Full time

This four-year PhD programme is designed for individuals wishing to develop advanced knowledge and skills in social science research design and methods through a mixture of coursework and independent research with supervisory support. The programme is particularly suited to PhD applicants who require the masters-level social science research training that is necessary in order to undertake independent PhD study.
Year one is devoted to coursework to build generic social science research skills that are then applied in years two-four through independent research with supervisory support and complementary research training.

Sociology PhD/MPhil

  • Postgraduate
  • Doctoral research
  • Full time, part time

Our PhD programmes offer you a combination of taught courses in the first year and careful supervision throughout your study, with the aim of helping you to produce a thesis that makes a significant and original contribution to the discipline. We take care to match you with a suitable supervisor, and welcome applications to work in a wide variety of areas.

The Department is able to supervise a wide range of topics, in line with the research interests of the teaching staff in Political Science and International Studies. In broad terms the research work of the Department is ordered via a series of Research Groups: