CAM-Doctoral Training Partnership PhD studentships

Supervisors: Prof Sharon Morein-Zamir; Dr Jane Scott; Kat Band (Hoarding Disorders UK (East) CIC)

An estimated 2-6% of people experience hoarding disorder or problematic hoarding, but support pathways in the UK remain limited. Stigma and shame often mean that family members, friends, and carers bear much of the emotional, financial and practical burden.

While available research and support understandably focus on the people who hoard, this research will examine the experiences and challenges faced by those close to them and develop ways to better support this overlooked group.

Apply to study Supporting Those Close to People Who Hoard (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Jason Hodgson; Prof Andrea Manica (University of Cambridge)

Humans are unique in the extent to which behavioural variation due to culture has the potential to impact our biological evolution. This PhD will investigate how variation in marriage practice affects genetic and phenotypic variation in three traditional ethnic groups in Madagascar.

One group has a strong caste system with strict marriage rules, one has a weak caste system with fewer marriage rules, and one has no castes and permissive marriage. If marriage rules affect assortative mating, it is expected that it will also impact genetic and biological diversity.

The student will analyse existing data collected by the supervisory team that includes extensive social, cultural, genomic, and phenotypic data from 325 married couples in Madagascar. They will measure the extent to which marriage rules can either maintain biological differences among social groups, or alternatively create a more biologically homogenous community. The findings may have important health or social implications.

Apply to study the role of culture in human biological evolution (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Daniela Raeva-Bari; Dr Flavia Cardini

The 2026 Report to Parliament on Progress in Reducing Emissions warns that the UK is not moving fast enough to meet its climate targets and highlights the role of demand-side action, household low-carbon choices, and stronger public engagement. This underscores the urgent need for effective messaging to drive the behavioural change required to achieve the UK’s Net Zero target.

Messaging is widely used as a behavioural intervention due to its scalability and cost-effectiveness, yet its impact has been limited due to a poor understanding of the psychological drivers shaping how people respond to messages.

This research will examine how people process climate-related messages both cognitively and emotionally, using lab-based behavioural experiments combined with neuroimaging techniques (e.g. EEG) and physiological measurements (e.g. heart rate and skin conductance). This will allow us to identify neurophysiologically attuned messages that elicit desired responses and to ultimately inform the design of effective climate communication strategies.

Apply to study Making Climate Messaging Work: Multimodal Insights (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Nebil Achour; Dr Naim Abdulmohdi; Matafen Chaouali (Hospitals in the European Region at WHO)

Radiology is one of the critical services that modern health care depends on for an accurate diagnosis of medical conditions and subsequent effective management. While artificial intelligence (AI) systems in radiology offer potential to save time and reduce staff workload, their implementation also raises significant concerns regarding privacy and ethical and regulatory compliance.

In the context of widespread workforce shortages, a comprehensive investigation is needed to establish whether AI is perceived as a support or a threat to the roles of radiology professionals.

This PhD will investigate the views, feelings and readiness for such a challenge to develop a new knowledge to how this technology can influence staff retention across the European region. The study will target a wide and diverse sample of professionals (considering factors such as age, cultural and economic backgrounds) to develop a rich and more representative finding.

Apply to study AI in radiology departments: opportunity or threat (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Ying Wang; Prof Yonghong Peng

Artificial intelligence is transforming the landscape of corporate and entrepreneurial finance, reshaping how businesses make decisions and interact with financial markets. This studentship offers an exciting opportunity to explore the role of AI and machine learning within corporate finance, entrepreneurial finance, and/or FinTech.

Applicants will be encouraged to develop their own research proposal within these areas. Possible topics include the impact of machine learning in financial decision-making, AI in FinTech lending, or the application of large-scale datasets to study business behaviour.

The successful candidate will work with both structured and unstructured data, involving:

• Designing and analysing surveys to capture decision-making (potentially via ADR UK).
• Utilising major financial databases (e.g. Bloomberg, LSEG, Beauhurst) with econometric methods.
• Engineering and analysing 'big data' (e.g. from social media, annual reports) using machine learning.

Apply to study AI, Machine Learning and the Future of Finance (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Lee Cheng; Dr Alex Street; Matt Edge (Cambridge Acorn Project)

The ongoing mental health crisis among children and young people is one of the most pressing healthcare issues in the UK. Recent efforts have explored the use of digital games as therapeutic tools to deliver low-cost, scalable interventions at the school level. However, there is a lack of guidance on how to systematically select, tailor, and implement these game-based interventions in ways that are both therapeutically effective and engaging.

This PhD will develop a shared decision-making protocol to guide allied health professionals, teachers, and caregivers in delivering game-based therapeutic interventions for children and young people, using a trusted adult approach.

The protocol will support collaborative decision-making, allowing young people to choose therapeutic tools based on their gaming preferences, psychological profile, and therapeutic needs. The successful applicant will also plan and conduct an evaluative study to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and impact of the protocol in real-world educational and therapeutic settings.

Apply to study shared decision-making protocol for therapeutic gaming (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Nic Gibson; Dr Nnenna Ugwu

STEM education, including animal sciences, agriculture, veterinary sciences and zoology, rely heavily on practical and sensory learning. Though effective for many, these learning methods can pose significant barriers for neurodiverse (ND) students, whose cognitive differences (e.g. autism, ADHD, sensory disorders) can impact how they engage with traditional practical sessions.

This PhD will explore the experiences and challenges faced by neurodiverse and sensory different (SD) learners in lab-based STEM education. The student will then co-develop interventions tailored to improve accessibility and inclusivity and evaluate how beneficial these interventions are in promoting engagement and academic performance.

Ultimately, the overall goal of this three-part study is to develop evidence-based guidelines for enhancing inclusive practices in laboratory environments that will improve student experience, wellbeing and educational outcomes for neurodiverse and sensory different learners.

Apply to study inclusive practices for lab-based education (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Alvin Helden; Dr Elena Cini; Guy Belcher (Cambridge City Council)

The various management options for grassland in urban green spaces, around road infrastructure and in gardens stimulates a diversity of opinions within local communities, with potential for strong disagreements over approaches taken.

Evidence from many studies shows that reduced management intensity, such as less frequent mowing and low intensity cattle grazing, is strongly correlated with increased biodiversity. Consequently, reduction of management intensity of grassy areas is a valuable response to the biodiversity crisis society currently faces.

However, management options of local authorities are constrained by societal acceptability. Recent studies have identified and quantified opinions on grassland management, highlighting the diversity of attitudes.

Whilst respecting differing values, it would be highly desirable for biodiversity to modify general societal attitudes towards a greater acceptability of reduced management. Working on strategies for Cambridge City Council to achieve this societal adaptation will be the focus of this study.

Apply to study Social acceptability of biodiversity friendly grassland management (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Tabish Zaman; Dr Lynn Martin; Fred Kastner (The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network (TERN))

How can entrepreneurial ecosystems better support displaced communities? This PhD will explore how universities, charities, policymakers and enterprise organisations can co-design more inclusive approaches to entrepreneurship and economic participation. Working with The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network (TERN), the successful applicant will combine rigorous social science research with knowledge exchange to generate evidence that informs policy, practice and entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Apply to study Inclusive Enterprise for Displaced Communities (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Prof David Pearson; Prof Minna Sunikka-Blank (University of Cambridge); Josef Musil (Foster + Partners)

This interdisciplinary PhD will use eye-tracking to examine visual and cognitive processes while people experience built and urban environments. As most eye movements are spontaneous, they provide evidence for changes in visual preference and restoration.

Despite technological advances, applications of eye-tracking in architectural design are underdeveloped. This studentship will use approaches from psychology, architecture, and urban studies to establish how eye-tracking can inform more inclusive, healthy and evidence-based design. This will involve research combining behavioural data, observational fieldwork, and qualitative analysis.

The successful applicant will be jointly based in the Brain, Body, and Mind Research Group (ARU) and the Behaviour and Building Performance Group (University of Cambridge).

The project emphasises a participatory approach in which non-academic users are involved throughout the research process. It includes a knowledge exchange placement at Foster + Partners, a leading international design practice.

Apply to study applying eye-tracking in architectural design (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Philippa Carver; Dr Lara Houston; Jassy Drakulic (Royal Horticultural Society)

Fungi are fundamental to ecosystem health, supporting biodiversity, soil function and climate resilience, yet they remain underappreciated by the public. This PhD will investigate how people notice, understand and value garden fungi, and identify effective ways to increase fungal literacy and engagement.

Findings will help inform future developments in biodiversity education, public engagement and environmental stewardship, including directly within the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS).

Apply to study Cultivating fungal literacy in gardens (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Prof Anna Nekaris; Dr Mel Rohse; Cerian Tatchley (British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA))

This PhD will evaluate how UK zoo education programmes and zoo spaces foster public connection to nature and drive behaviour change. Working with British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA), the successful will apply social science frameworks to audit conservation education interventions at multiple BIAZA zoos.

By intersecting visitor outcomes with ESRC poverty databases, the project will map how socioeconomic deprivation impacts equitable access to nature-based learning. The PhD researcher will play a pivotal role in shaping the project's empirical focus by selecting target audiences, ranging from children and families to under-represented adult communities, and determining the key geographic regions they wish to investigate.

Through tailored social science methodologies, the researcher will explore how varied local contexts and structural barriers influence public engagement. Ultimately, the candidate will co-design and refine educational frameworks alongside BIAZA partners to ensure zoo spaces deliver inclusive, equitable, impactful conservation engagement.

Apply to study Zoo Spaces and Equitable Nature Connection (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Sharon Geva; Prof Marta Correia (University of Cambridge); Smriti Agarwal (Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust)

Stroke is the second commonest cause of acquired brain injury, affecting 100,000 individuals in the UK annually. While acute treatments have transformed care, strategies to improve rehabilitation and long-term outcome have emerged as top research and clinical priorities.

This project will identify factors from routine clinical information and brain scans that can support fitting cognitive rehabilitation strategy for each patient, therefore improving cognitive outcome for stroke survivors.

Apply to study Cognitive rehabilitation pathways post-stroke (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Gareth Bates; Dr Tamer Said; Dr Suzanna Forwood

Community-based centres play a vital role in connecting children and families with learning, opportunity and aspiration, particularly in geographical locations facing social and economic disadvantage. Working with Cambridge Science Centre, this PhD will co-design and evaluate long-term STEM engagement programmes in schools, families and communities, examining how curiosity, science capital and place-based partnerships shape STEM Identities.

Apply to study Impact evaluation of the Cambridge Science Centre (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Phil Kirkman; Dr Carrie Ho; Alex Starr (Commonwealth Education Trust)

Working with the Commonwealth Education Trust, this PhD will study partner-selected country cases where teachers engage with professional learning under local organisational conditions. It will examine trust, curriculum expectations, leadership routines and professional norms, producing a thesis and practical resources for CET. The focus of the research will be on understanding how culture and leadership shape teacher agency in international CPD partnerships.

Apply to study Culture & leadership in transnational CPD (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Hossein Abroshan; Dr Mahdi Maktabdar Oghaz; Dr Elizabeth Kirk; Paul Lopez (Eastern Cyber Resilience Centre (ECRC))

Human behaviour is increasingly central to cyber security, yet most organisations still rely on one-size-fits-all awareness training. This project will explore how behavioural science, psychology and responsible AI can support personalised behavioural cyber resilience. Working with the Eastern Cyber Resilience Centre, the successful applicant will investigate human cyber vulnerability and develop AI-powered personalised interventions against social engineering.

Apply to study Personalised Behavioural Cyber Resilience (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Ashim Chakraborty; Prof Silvia Cirstea; Sridevi Kalidindi (Klip Global Limited)

Neurodivergent adults face significant inequalities in health, wellbeing and employment, often experiencing barriers to accessing support services. This Knowledge Exchange PhD, in partnership with Klip Global Ltd, will investigate how neuroinclusive AI can improve access to health, care and employment pathways. Using mixed methods and co-production with neurodivergent people, practitioners and providers, the study will generate evidence to inform inclusive policy, practice and service delivery.

Apply to study Adaptive AI to Reduce Neurodivergent Inequalities (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Prof Chris Foulds; Dr Tom Hambley; Chiara Antonelli (Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP))

While climate action often relies on technical and policy expertise, successful implementation also depends on community leaders, intermediaries, trusted local actors and experiential knowledge. This PhD will investigate how expertise is recognised, legitimised and mobilised across Europe’s energy transitions, and how these processes shape transformative change. Working with the Institute for European Environmental Policy, the PhD will examine the role of expertise in European energy governance.

Apply to study Transition Expertise in Energy Governance (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Craig Owen; Prof Peter Allen; Graham Saint (Cambridge United Football Club Foundation)

How can trusted community hubs, such as football clubs, support men’s engagement with prostate health? This studentship will explore how underserved men access and respond to prostate health information, the factors shaping screening decisions, and opportunities to enhance community outreach. Working with Cambridge United Football Club and its outreach activities, the project will generate evidence to inform practice, improve engagement, and address inequalities in men’s health.

Apply to study United Communities, Healthier Men (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

Supervisors: Dr Vahid Parvaresh; Dr Elisa Orofino; Tamara Polajnar (HerEthicalAI)

AI models are rapidly reshaping society, yet whether their responses can be shifted through conversation remains poorly understood. This has real implications, from extremism to ideological change. It also intersects with emerging questions about 'AI morality' (Tantucci & Culpeper, 2026): are models human-like in their susceptibility to influence, or inherently safeguarded? This project will examine whether models can be persuaded into harmful, extremist, or ideologically dangerous responses.

Apply to study Can AI be persuaded the wrong way? (please select your preferred 'CAM-DTP Only' option)

What does the studentship provide?

The CAM-DTP Studentship includes a fee waiver and annual stipend, as well as departmental allowance for research training needs, a personalised training programme and more. Visit the CAM-DTP website for further information.

Can I apply as an international student?

Yes, international students are eligible for the funding. However, you'll also need to secure an additional scholarship to cover the difference in home and international fees.

Can I apply as a part-time student?

Yes – applications are welcomed from candidates wishing to study full-time and part-time.

What are the deadlines for applying?

Applications must be submitted by 15 November 2026.

How do I contact a supervisor?

You can find a list of supervisors on the course page of your research area, or on our find an expert pages.

Can I apply with my own project?

Yes, if you are applying for Route 1 (Student-led) funding. Please contact your intended supervisor prior to applying. You can find a list of supervisors on the course page of your research area, or on our find an expert pages.

Can I apply for more than one project?

Yes you can. You will need to submit separate applications for each project. If you are applying for two projects in the same school, please contact [email protected] to discuss, as the system may prevent duplicate applications.

Do I need to include a research outline?

Yes – we would like to see how you would go about researching the topic you are applying for.

When do I need to provide reference letters?

If you add your referee details to the application form, then our system will automatically send a request via email. We understand that applicants do not have control over when their referees respond, so while references are preferred by the application deadline, your application will not be marked down if they are missing.

Do I need to prepare a research proposal?

Yes – we would like to see an outline of your proposed project, including the gap in knowledge and methodology.

How do I answer the fees question on the application form?

Please select “Research Council” from the drop down list, and in the section about advertised projects please state “CAM-DTP” and the title of the project you are applying for.

When are the interviews scheduled?

Interviews for the Departmental nomination/Student-led/Route 1 will be arranged as soon as possible after your application has been received and reviewed.

Interviews for Topic Supervisor Nomination/Supervisor-led/Route 2 will be held between 7 and 18 December.

All interviews will be held online.

When will I know the outcome of my application?

For Departmental nomination/Student-led/Route 1, applications will be reviewed as they are submitted and the decision communicated as soon as possible.

For Topic Supervisor Nomination/Supervisor-led/Route 2, we will contact all applicant between 23 November and 4 December to confirm either shortlisting for interview, or an unsuccessful application.

What happens if I am successful after my interview?

If you are successful at interview, then you will be invited to complete the nomination forms with your intended supervisors. This will be organised in January, with the submission being due in early February. We will provide further information to the successful candidates. Please note: nomination from ARU does not automatically mean you will be funded.

If I am nominated, what next?

Following submission of the nomination forms, CAM-DTP will review all candidates and make the final decisions on who will be offered the studentship. We anticipate the decisions to be made by April 2027. CAM-DTP will also create a reserve list, in case any candidates decline their place.

Other questions?

If you have any other questions, email [email protected]