PhD by Research

The Dept of Earth Sciences welcomes applicants for those wishing to conduct research in many aspects of the Earth Sciences. For research interests of our staff please see:

• Academic staff web pages 
• Research group web pages

For discussions about possible research projects please contact the member of academic staff.

For questions about the application process please contact: Louise Bowron, Department of Earth Sciences, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3LE. earthsci.pgadmissions@durham.ac.uk.

Tel. no. +44 (0)191 334 2198.

The Dept. of Earth Sciences participates in several Centre for Doctoral Training that offer fully-funded PhD studentships to eligible candidates.

NERC IAPETUS-2 Earth Science Studentships for October 2024

Durham is the lead partner for the NERC funded IAPETUS2 partnership including the Universities of Glasgow, Newcastle, St Andrews, Heriott-Watt and Stirling along with the British Geological Survey and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.

Further information on the IAPETUS 2024 partnership is now available at: https://www.iapetus2.ac.uk/studentships/

In the first instance, applicants should contact the project supervisors or Louise Bowron at (earthsci.pgadmissions@durham.ac.uk).

These PhD studentships will provide for UK tuition fees and a full stipend at UK Research & Innovation recommended levels for each year of study. 

Applications will open in November 2023

Projects details are available on the IAPETUS2 website.

• Impact of climate change on the northern Greenland Ice Sheet over the Late Cenozoic based on a novel geochemical technique
• Reactivation and mineralisation associated with the Lake District Boundary Fault.
• Active deformation and landscape evolution in the western Ordos, northern China
• Uncertain simulations: towards probabilistic modelling for earthquake early warning.
• Earthquake Detection, Classification and Forecasting with Machine Learning.
• Do organic-mineral interactions increase or decrease greenhouse gas release from rivers?
• A metallogenic model for lithium and rare metal resources in the Glen Gairn granite.
• Tracing Anthropogenic Impacts on Water Quality with Metal Isotopes in North East England
• A Central European monthly-scale temperature and rainfall reconstruction over the past millennium.
• Why are we not making soil? Learning lessons from the historic anthropogenic soils of UK and Germany
• Underground heat storage in abandoned coals mines for Net Zero.
• Magmatic processes in mushy systems via coupled stable-radiogenic strontium isotopes.
• Mud Volcanoes as windows to subduction zone processes; slab devolatilisation and mantle serpentinisation in the Mariana forearc
• Volcanological and Petrological Controls on Eruptions at El Salvador’s most Active Volcano.
• Transforming fractures – coupling deformation, heat and fluid flow within the Earth’s evolving oceanic lithosphere.