• Print

Our PhD community

We're committed to supporting your wellbeing to ensure that your experience studying with us is the best it can be. Whether you're studying policy or looking for new ways to fight infection, we want all of our students to feel part of our vibrant and diverse research community.

Listen to our students on what they have to say about applying, postgraduate life, support available and why they chose Nottingham to study their research degree.

Postgraduate community

There are loads of opportunities to meet your fellow researchers and get involved with student activities and projects during your time at the University of Nottingham including:

• Weekly lunchtime seminars

• Social activities such as Pizza nights, BBQ and networking

Meet Carver our postgraduate student rep

Hi everyone! My name is Carver and I'm a PhD Pharmacy Student at the University of Nottingham, as well as the postgraduate (PGR) student representative for the School of Pharmacy.

I am with Dr. Zheying Zhu’s lab group in the Molecular Therapeutics and Formulation division, and co-supervised by Dr. Marios Georgiou and Dr Rian Griffiths.

My project is focused on evaluating the pre-clinical efficacy of a novel dual-target agent using an in vivo D.melanogaster tumor model coupled with mass spectrometry approaches.

As a PGR representative and LCF member, I am always looking out for PGR student feedback and aiming to enrich the experience of current and prospective students at the School of Pharmacy.

Kei Fung Carver Wong 

Molecular Therapeutics and Formulation (MTF) – 2nd Year (2024 finish)
PGR Student Representative for the School of Pharmacy at University of Nottingham

Our postgraduate students

Entry requirements

Home/UK students

• Degree 2:1 (or international equivalent) in a relevant subject

EU/International students

• Degree 2:1 (or international equivalent) in a relevant subject
• International and EU equivalents: We accept a wide range of qualifications from all over the world. For information on entry requirements from your country, see our country pages.
• IELTS: 6.5 (6.0 in each element)
• English langugage requirements: As well as IELTS (listed above), we also accept other English language qualifications. This includes TOEFL iBT, Pearson PTE, GCSE, IB and O level English.

Alternative qualifications

We recognise that applicants have a variety of experiences and follow different pathways to postgraduate study.

We treat all applicants with alternative qualifications on an individual basis. We may also consider relevant work experience.

If you are unsure whether your qualifications or work experience are relevant, contact us.

Applying

Defining my research area

If you have a particular research area you are interested in, you should start by emailing a relevant supervisor and talking through your interests with them. After you have done your research, you can contact a relevant supervisor. 

We are very pleased that you are considering applying for our PhD programme and look forward to receiving your application. The PhD application process is outlined below:

1. Check entry requirements detailed above to ensure you meet the minimum entry criteria for research.
2. Visit the research and academic staff pages of the Pharmacy website to identify topics of interest and appropriate supervisors.
3. Contact your chosen supervisor(s) directly, to devise or discuss potential projects.
4. Make your official PhD application via the online application system (add link). Make sure you state your chosen topic and supervisor(s) on the form and attach all necessary documents.  
   
   We don't need a research proposal for the application form but please indicate the research area you're interested in and the supervisor's name.
5. Your proposed supervisor will contact you to arrange for an interview.
6. After your interview, your supervisor will tell you if they would offer a PhD position and/or would be nominating you for funding (if appropriate).
7. You can expect to receive a decision on your application within 8-10 weeks of applying (the application can be tracked via your student account.

Our support

The School of Pharmacy has a broad range of world-leading research spread across four buildings. We welcome students from an array of academic backgrounds, providing a highly stimulating environment for student research. The PhD programme is comprised of research investigation to solidify students' skills in conducting independent research while contributing to the state of the art.

My primary goal is to support, encourage, and facilitate a strong and value-added research programme, ensuring you are provided with excellent training, supervision support, seminar programmes, and career development, whilst emphasizing students' wellbeing.

Enjoy your time in the School of Pharmacy as you acquire the research and transferable skills needed to complete your degree to succeed in your future career.

As Director of Postgraduate Training, my mission is to ensure that a programme of generic and discipline-specific training courses, workshops and events is available to meet the individual training needs of our diverse postgraduate research community.

To ensure that this programme is up to date, relevant and accessible, I actively listen to the voice of postgraduate researchers and their supervisors, I involve world-class academics and I make use of innovate digital technology.

The benefits of formal training are manifold, from promoting and supporting high-quality research to lifelong transferable skills development and planning your future career. To capitalize on these, as postgraduate researcher you will exercise a Training Needs Analysis and maintain a Training Portfolio.