The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), Imperial College London and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) are pleased to invite applications for two PhD studentships in real-time infectious disease modelling, as part of the NIHR funded Health Protection Research Unit (HPRU) on Health Analytics, Epidemic Modelling and Health Economics. The studentships will start in January 2026 and comes with 3.5 years of funding.
The awards will cover a tax-free stipend of £22,780 per year, tuition fees at home rates and research and travel expenses.
The HPRU in Health Analytics and Modelling brings together three of the world’s leading groups in infectious disease analytics and modelling (at Imperial College, LSHTM and UKHSA). It will create an unparalleled environment for research degree students to thrive, being supervised by leading experts in their fields. These two studentships will be based within LSHTM’s Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health but will be jointly supervised by a team representing each of the three institutions. All three institutions are multi-disciplinary encompassing epidemiologists, data scientists, mathematical modellers, health economists and public health practitioners.
The exact focus of each PhD will be developed with the successful candidate and will depend on their interests and prior expertise. Applicants are asked to contact the project supervisors for an informal discussion prior to applying.
Please see the two example projects for the type of research that these projects involve.
Eligibility requirements
Applicants must hold, or expect to obtain before the start of the PhD, a relevant Master’s Degree awarded with good grades, or have a combination of relevant qualifications and experience which demonstrates equivalent ability and attainment.
Applicants must meet the criteria for home fees to be eligible to apply. Your fee status is determined in accordance with the Fee Assessment Policy of LSHTM and regulations defined by the UK Government.
The PhD programme
Students will be mentored by their supervisory team made up of academics/public health specialists from each of the three institutions. They may also have a wider Advisory Committee who can help with specific issues. Students are expected to take part in the academic life of their institution and help create a strong cohort of early-career researchers across the three institutions within the HPRU. LSHTM students may join relevant Academic Centres, such as the Centre for the Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases. Imperial College has the MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis and WHO’s Collaborating Centre for Infectious Disease Modelling. Both universities have several other NIHR Health Protection Research Units. Research seminars and journal clubs in the three collaborating institutions will be open to PhD students from this scheme. Students are also able to take Master’s level study modules within either academic institution, subject to approval from their supervisors.
Support for research students’ future career development is covered through the supervision process, the transferable skills programmes and careers services within each institution. As the students will work with individuals from all three institutions they will gain excellent opportunities to network and establish professional contacts across both academia and public health. They will also have the opportunity to attend national and international conferences.
