10 Quintin Hogg Trust PhD Studentships

The Graduate School at the University of Westminster is very pleased to announce 10 new full PhD studentships funded by the Quintin Hogg Trust to begin in the academic year 2026/27 for a September start. 

Applications are welcome to our Schools listed below. For any queries about any aspect of the application process or informal enquiries about where your research might fit within a School, please contact the relevant School PhD Coordinator (details below). 

In our selection of successful applications, we will be looking in particular for the following: 

• Research proposals that fit with one or more of the key themes of our Research Communities (see https://www.westminster.ac.uk/research/communities). 

• Research proposals with strong inter-disciplinary potential. 

• Applications which meet the university’s commitments to equality, diversity and inclusion. 

The studentships will consist of: 

A fee waiver (at home fee level) and an annual stipend which will match UKRI stipend levels and will include London weighting. UKRI have not announced their 2026/27 stipend level yet, but in 2025/26 the UKRI UK fees are £5,006 and the stipend is £22,780 (which includes London weighting). The stipend will be for three years. * 

Applications are welcomed from international students. The difference between the home fee waiver and the fee for international students would need to be met by the student. Overseas fees for 2026/27 are £17,510. 

Applications should be submitted by 5pm on Friday 6 February 2026. Interviews will take place in the week commencing 9 March 2026. 

Please make sure you detail within the application form the programme you wish to be considered for – see School information below. 

You must include the title of the studentship in your application i.e. ‘The Quintin Hogg Trust Studentship’. 

For more information on our entry requirements for research degrees, visit the Entry Requirements page: westminster.ac.uk/research-degrees/entry-requirements. 
To learn how to apply, go to the How to Apply page: westminster.ac.uk/research-degrees/how-to-apply.  

For useful resources to support your application, visit the Thinking of Doing a PhD page: westminster.ac.uk/thinking-of-doing-a-phd. 

Applications are welcome across our twelve Schools: 

School of Humanities 

The School of Humanities, based in our historic Regent Street building, offers a vibrant, multidisciplinary research environment, at the centre of which are several innovative research groups and centres. We have a well-established PhD programme and you can study with us in, or across, a wide range of disciplines, including modern languages, visual culture, English literature, history, linguistics and translation studies. 

The School welcomes applications in any areas of the humanities (literature, English language, linguistics, visual culture, history, creative writing, languages and area studies), as well as cross-disciplinary projects that combine insights from the humanities with those from other subject areas. We would particularly encourage projects in the areas of culture, ethnicity and migration; heritage, cultural memory and identity; decolonising the humanities. 

For queries about any aspect of the application process, or to discuss where your research idea might fit within our specialisms, please contact  Dr Sara Dominici  via email at  s.dominici1@westminster.ac.uk  in the first instance. 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD English Literature 

• MPhil/PhD English Language 

• MPhil/PhD Linguistics 

• MPhil/PhD Visual Culture 

• MPhil/PhD Modern and Applied Languages 

• MPhil/PhD History 

• MPhil/PhD Creative Writing 

The School focuses on business information systems, project and operations management, and property and construction. Research addresses sustainability, digital transformation, and organisational impact. 

School of Applied Management 

The School of Applied Management welcomes research proposals related to the themes of its two research centres. These themes include information systems and digital business, information management and modelling, business process management, digital business design and transformation, ontology engineering and knowledge representation, construction management and digital construction, sustainability in the built environment and climate change, and project management. We also welcome interdisciplinary proposals spanning the above research areas, with the potential to positively impact on the lives of individuals, organisations and society. 

For all enquiries, please contact the PhD Admissions Coordinator  Dr Alireza Nazarian  via email at  a.nazarian@westminster.ac.uk. 

The School welcomes research proposals related to the themes of its two research centres: 

• The Centre for Digital Business Research  

• The Centre for the Production of the Built Environment  

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Business Information Management 

• MPhil/PhD Project Management 

• MPhil/PhD Operations Management 

• MPhil/PhD Property and Construction 

This School invites research in architecture, urban design, and transport studies, linked to groups on architectural humanities, emerging territories, and active travel. Projects on sustainable cities and mobility are encouraged. 

School of Architecture and Cities 

The School of Architecture and Cities invites applications in the subject areas covered by the School's research groups and centres: Architectural Humanities Research Group, Emerging Territories Research Group, Transport and Mobilities Research Group, Design Practices Research Group, Active Travel Academy, and Centre for Air Traffic Management Research. 

The academic staff member responsible for PhD admissions in the School is  Dr Kate Jordan  who can be contacted by email via:  k.jordan@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Architecture 

• MPhil/PhD Architecture by Practice 

• MPhil/PhD Transport 

• MPhil/PhD Urban Design 

The Westminster School of Arts hosts CREAM, a leading centre for research in moving image, photography, visual arts, fashion, and music. Projects exploring sustainability, ecology, and global perspectives in art and media are welcome. 

School of Arts 

The Centre for Research and Education in Arts and Media (CREAM) in the Westminster School of Arts (WSA) welcomes applicants in any of our areas of expertise (moving image and media aesthetics, expanded photography, art and society, fashion, music). CREAM is particularly interested in applications exploring research around environmental questions, propositions and answers as they impact and relate to the global majority. CREAM is also interested in projects exploring questions of sustainability, ecology and environment as it relates to art and technology. We also welcome proposals that re-think past knowledge and reflexively engage with archives as trajectories and counter hegemonic historical discourses. 

The Director of the CREAM PhD programme is  Dr Ozlem Koksal  who can be contacted by email at  o.koksal1@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Music 

• MPhil/PhD Creative Media 

• MPhil/PhD Moving Image and Media Aesthetics 

• MPhil/PhD Expanded Photography 

• MPhil/PhD Visual Arts 

• MPhil/PhD Fashion 

Research spans computer science and engineering, including digital signal and image processing, IoT, cyber security, deep learning, and software systems. Applications in healthcare, multimedia, and sustainable urban environments are encouraged. 

School of Computer Science and Engineering 

The research activities of the School are convened within its established one research centre and nine research groups representing cutting-edge research areas within disciplines of computer science and engineering. Research areas incorporate digital signal and image processing, sensor network, Internet of Things, healthcare as application area, multimedia, image and video processing, cyber security, deep learning, programming principles, modelling methods, architectures, infrastructures and tools for the design and development of modern, medium to large scale, software systems. 

The academic staff member responsible for PhD admissions in the School is Dr Alexandra (Aleka) Psarrou who can be contacted by email at  psarroa@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Computer Science 

• MPhil/PhD Electronic Engineering 

Westminster Law School has a strong reputation in socio-legal research, legal theory, law and technology, human rights, criminal justice, and international law. Doctoral students benefit from an interdisciplinary research environment. 

School of Finance and Accounting 

The School particularly welcomes applications in the areas of Accounting (Accounting Standards; Auditing; Corporate Governance; Financial Reporting and Disclosure, Sustainability Reporting and Taxation) and Finance (Capital Markets; Corporate Finance; Behavioural Finance; Financial Institutions; Financial Econometrics; FinTech; Digital Finance; Market Microstructure and Sustainable Finance). 

For all enquiries, please contact the PhD Admissions Coordinator  Dr Alireza Nazarian  via email at a.nazarian@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

The School of Life Sciences supports cutting-edge research in molecular and cellular biology, biotechnology, and human health and performance. Key areas include biopolymers, nanotechnology, obesity, cancer, ageing, nutrition and global public health. 

• MPhil/PhD Accounting 

• MPhil/PhD Finance 

Westminster Law School 

Westminster Law School’s PhD programme is set within a vibrant and supportive research environment in the heart of Central London. The School has an outstanding reputation as a pioneer in socio-legal research, in experimental research in Legal Theory, the Legal Profession and Legal Education, as well as Entertainment Law. It also undertakes cutting-edge research in International Law, Criminal Justice, Law and Technology, and Comparative and European Union Law. The School provides doctoral students with opportunities to network and develop an interdisciplinary approach to research. 

For informal inquiries about our admissions process, and for guidance on potential supervisors, please contact Dr Alexandra Fowler at  a.fowler@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Law 

School of Life Sciences 

The School of Life Sciences occupies modern laboratories in the heart of London with excellent facilities supporting cutting edge research in a number of disciplines including molecular and cellular biology, fermentation and biotechnology, and human health and performance. Notable examples of internationally recognized research within the School include, but are not limited to, research on biopolymers and nanotechnology, obesity, cancer, inflammation, human exercise performance and ageing, nutrition and global public health, social prescribing, and resilience. 

The academic staff member responsible for PhD admissions in the School is Dr Polly Hayes who can be contacted by email via: p.hayes@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

The School undertakes research in customer orientation, digital marketing strategy, social innovation, advertising, consumer behaviour, and sustainable tourism. Projects addressing cultural influence and organisational impact are encouraged. 

• MPhil/PhD Anatomy, Physiology and Pathology 

• MPhil/PhD Biology 

• MPhil/PhD Biotechnology 

• MPhil/PhD Microbiology 

• MPhil/PhD Molecular Biology, Biophysics and Biochemistry 

• MPhil/PhD Nutrition 

• MPhil/PhD Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmacy 

School of Management and Marketing 

The School welcomes in particular applications in the areas of: interfunctional coordination; customer experience; services and digital marketing; influence of organisational and national culture; social innovation; sustainable Tourism and events; sustainable consumption. 

Research spans economics, HRM, leadership, and entrepreneurship, with interests in labour standards, migration, global health policy, and corporate sustainability. Interdisciplinary and policy-focused projects are encouraged. 

For all enquiries, please contact the PhD Admissions Coordinator  Dr Alireza Nazarian  via email at a.nazarian@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Business Studies and Strategy 

• MPhil/PhD Consumer Research 

• MPhil/PhD Marketing 

• MPhil/PhD Tourism 

School of Media and Communication 

Westminster is a pioneer in media education, introducing the first media degree in the UK. The School is home to CAMRI, a world-leading research centre which has been at the cutting-edge of communication research for over 30 years. Students are taught by an international team of research-active academics, many of whom have industry experience in organisations such as the BBC. Studying in Harrow, you will be part of a vibrant, diverse community of students and staff in the creative sectors. 

For all enquiries contact the School PhD & DRDP Coordinator: Dr Alessandro D’Arma A.DArma@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Media Studies 

School of Organisations, Economy and Society 

This School hosts two Research Centres and three Research Groups. Their profiles and research interests are available at: Centre for Employment Research, Westminster Development Policy Analysis, Research Centre on Peripheral Populations; Global Economic Policy Group and Research Group on Entrepreneurship. All applications matching their interests will be considered. For this year the School welcomes in particular applications in the areas of: Labour standards and worker rights; Global Health Policy; Migration (especially gender and health related); Integration of peripheral populations; International trade and investment; Education and labour economics; Policy evaluation; Applied econometrics; Administrative data studies (e.g. NPD-LEO); Energy economics; Evidence-based Human Resource Management; Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace; Entrepreneurship (especially EDI, Innovation and Ethics related); Social entrepreneurship; Corporate sustainability management. 

For all enquiries, please contact the PhD admissions coordinator Dr Alireza Nazarian via email at a.nazarian@westminster.ac.uk. 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Economics 

• MPhil/PhD Human Resource Management 

• MPhil/PhD Leadership and Development 

• MPhil/PhD Entrepreneurship 

School of Social Sciences 

Within the School of Social Sciences candidates can pursue a PhD in either Psychology, Politics and International Relations, Sociology or Criminology.  

The Centre for Social Justice Research (CSJR), established in 2023, sets out to understand contemporary social inequalities and challenge the power relations and institutions that sustain them in order to bring about meaningful social change. CSJR members are experts in a range of areas in critical social science, including prisons, migration, education, gender, race, and social class. We welcome creative and interdisciplinary projects and are particularly keen to see applications from students from non-traditional backgrounds. The Centre for the Study of Democracy (CSD), established in 1989, has a longstanding reputation for research excellence. Research in Politics and International Studies at CSD was ranked fourth highest in the UK for impact in the Research Excellence Framework 2021. CSD academics undertake socially engaged, methodologically diverse and often interdisciplinary research that aims to address a range of critical political challenges in relation to democracy worldwide. The Westminster Centre for Psychological Sciences conducts inclusive, practice-informed research with global impact across different sectors of society. Our research falls into five themes, and we welcome applications in the following areas: health, stress and wellbeing; learning and development; brain, cognition and perception; identity, self and society; forensic and investigative psychology. 

If you are currently working on a PhD proposal and would like to find out more about potential supervision, please select one of the above three research centres to write to that fits most closely with your research topic. 

• Centre for the Study of Democracy: PoliticsIRPhDEnquiries@westminster.ac.uk  

• Centre for Social Justice Research: SocCrimPhDEnquiries@westminster.ac.uk 

• Westminster Centre for Psychological Research: PsyPhDEnquiries@westminster.ac.uk 

Available Programmes: 

• MPhil/PhD Criminology 

• MPhil/PhD Politics and International Relations 

• MPhil/PhD Psychology 

• MPhil/PhD Sociology 

* Minimum full-time enrolment before submission is 33 months. Fee waivers are in place for the three-year studentship. Following that there is a six month no fee period for writing up. Should a doctoral research student not have submitted by the end of the no fee period then a £1,500 fee is applicable