Psychology: Fully Funded SURES PhD Studentship in Cognitive Neuroscience (RS778)

Funding provider: Swansea University

Subject area: Psychology 

Project start date: October 25 

Supervisors: Dr Kathrin Weidacker (Primary), Dr Stephen Johnston (Secondary) & Dr Claire Hanley (Third)

Aligned programme of study: PhD in Psychology 

Mode of study:  Full-time  

Project description: 

Swansea University is pleased to offer fully-funded Swansea University Research Excellence Scholarships (SURES) for full-time doctoral students to its seventh cohort, commencing in October 2025.

This post is for an ambitious PhD student who is eager to further develop their research and neuroimaging experience under the supervision of Dr. Kathrin Weidacker at Swansea University, School of Psychology. 

The position is particularly suitable for a Psychology or Neuroscience MSc graduate. We specifically seek highly motivated candidates with a strong academic (or work experience-based) background in psychology, neuroscience, cognitive science, or a related discipline, and a keen interest in cognitive neuroscience.  

This PhD project offers the opportunity to work on pioneering research that uses state of the art neuroscience methods (e.g. MRS, fMRI, EEG) and behavioural research to enhance new assessments of impulsivity in healthy as well as clinical disorders. 

Ideally, applicants will have direct experience with human neuroimaging research and analysis using at least one of these methods: 

• Electroencephalography (EEG) 

• Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) or structural imaging (MRI) 

• Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS)  

Experience with programming languages (e.g. MATLAB/Python/R/Presentation) and strong statistical skills would be advantages. Any applicant will have to have enthusiasm for the topic of impulsivity, and a clear, demonstrable capacity for acquiring further expertise in these neuroimaging techniques. 

Each scholarship is offered for a maximum period of three years; SURES students are expected to submit their theses within this timescale.

The scholarship is open to UK fee-eligible applicants only.

Candidates must have achieved, or be expecting to achieve, a 1st class UK undergraduate degree (or equivalent international qualification), or a 2:1 UK undergraduate degree and a Distinction in a UK master’s degree (or international equivalent) 

• Where applicants have multiple master’s degrees, a distinction must be held in the degree that is most relevant to the intended PhD study.
• If you are currently studying for a master’s level qualification with an expected award date that is later than 01/10/2025, you should hold a minimum of an upper-second-class (2:1) honours degree.  
• You should be able to demonstrate a pass with a minimum grade average of at least 70% for your part-one master’s degree modules (the taught aspect of your master’s course rather than a research-focused dissertation) and submit your dissertation by no later than 30/09/2025. 

NB: If you hold a non-UK degree, please see the Swansea University degree comparisons to find out if you meet the eligibility criteria.  

Applicants must be able to begin their course of study in October 2025.  As a cohort-based programme, deferral to an alternative enrolment window within the academic year or to another academic year is not permissible. 

English Language requirements: If applicable – IELTS 6.5 overall (with a score of at least 6.5 in each individual component) or equivalent that is recognised by Swansea University.  Details on the Swansea University English Language entry policy can be found here. 

Please note that both the degree and language-proficiency entry requirements for SURES are higher than the baseline standard for entry that is stipulated for most of the PhD programmes at Swansea University.

Each SURES scholarship includes tuition fees and a stipend – reviewed annually at the UKRI standard rate and a £1,000 annual training allowance to support immersive training experiences, conference attendance, engagement with industry and international collaborative opportunities.

To apply, please complete your application online with the following information: 

1. Course choice – please select as per preferred mode of study: 
   
   Psychology / PhD / Full-time / 3 Years / October 
   
   In the event you have already applied for the above programme previously, the application system may issue a warning notice and prevent application, in this event, please email pgrscholarships@swansea.ac.uk where staff will be happy to assist you in submitting your application.
    
2. Start year – please select  2025 October
3. Funding (page 8 on the application process) – 

• ‘Are you funding your studies yourself?’ – please select No 

• ‘Name of Individual or organisation providing funds for study’ – please enter ‘RS778 - SURES 1' 

*It is the responsibility of the applicant to list the above information accurately when applying, please note that applications received without the above information listed will not be considered for the scholarship award. 

One application is required per individual Swansea University led research scholarship award; applications cannot be considered listing multiple Swansea University led research scholarship awards. 

As part of your online application, you MUST upload the following documents (please do not send these via email):

• CV  
• Degree certificates and transcripts  
• A cover letter  
• One reference  
• Evidence of meeting English Language requirement (if applicable)  
• Copy of UK resident visa (if applicable)  
• Completion of EDI Form  

NOTE: Applicants for PhD/EngD/ProfD/EdD - to support our commitment to providing an environment free of discrimination and celebrating diversity at Swansea University you are required to complete an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Monitoring Form in addition to your programme application form.   

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Monitoring Form (online form)  

Please note that completion of the EDI Monitoring Form is mandatory; your application may not progress if this information is not submitted. 

For informal enquiries regarding this post please contact Dr Kathrin Weidacker (k.s.weidacker@swansea.ac.uk)