PhD in Microbial and Cellular Sciences
- Director of the Faculty Graduate School
- Susanna Hourani
- Programme length
-
PhD -
Full-time: 33-48 months
, Part-time: 45-96 months
MD - Part-time: 24-60 months - Programme start date
- October, January, April, July
We offer a PhD programme and Doctor of Medicine programme within Microbial and Cellular Sciences.
PhD Programme
We value our PhD students – their research education is important to us because they will become the academics, researchers, medical and health care professionals and policy makers of the future. PhD students are initially registered for a probationary period and proceed to full PhD registration after one year, subject to a successful upgrade viva. Students will be expected to demonstrate original thought and a capacity for critical evaluation. The research towards a PhD would normally take approximately three years, with a further year to write the PhD thesis and take the viva voce exam. The University and the Faculty provide a programme of training in generic, transferable skills, as well as research skills, as these are clearly important for the future employment prospects of our graduates.
Doctor of Medicine (MD) Programme
Research for an MD may be carried out in the clinical workplace and/or in the Faculty and will be supervised jointly by a collaborative supervisor from the hospital and a principal supervisor from the Faculty. The research area may be in any branch of medicine that links in with our research portfolio and students should expect to commit approximately two years to research and training activities, plus some time to write up the MD thesis and take the viva voce exam.
Entry Requirements
PhD Programme
Candidates should have a good honours degree (upper second) in an appropriate discipline, but prior experience in research or industry may be acceptable. Enthusiasm for, and commitment to, independent study is essential, as is a good command of the English language. Please contact the Faculty Graduate School to discuss your experience and qualifications.
MD Programme
Open to candidates registered with the General Medical Council and working within the NHS or in an approved institution.
We offer intensive English language pre-sessional courses, designed to take you to the level of English ability and skill required for your studies here.
Fees and Funding
Fees
| Study mode | UK/EU fees | Overseas fees |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time | £3,900 | Available soon |
| Part-time | Available soon | Available soon |
Funding
As well as an annual competition with a studentship prize, we also have a number of academic scholarships. These and other scholarships are advertised as and when they become available on the Faculty Graduate School website. All postgraduate researchers are eligible for the University’s Postgraduate Student of the Year award.
Microbial and Cellular Sciences at Surrey
Research in the Department of Microbial and Cellular Sciences, together with biomedical research in the Faculty, was ranked third in the country in the last Research Assessment Exercise (2008). Over 65 per cent of our research activity was rated world leading or internationally excellent, and over 95 per cent at an international standard. We welcome talented PhD students to work with us.
Research
The aim of the Department of Microbial and Cellular Sciences is to study biological processes in micro-organisms and eukaryotic cells at the physiological and molecular level. Academics in the Department are engaged in research that uses systems biology techniques to investigate problems relating to microbial bioproduct formation, cancer and bacterial and viral immuno-pathogenesis in humans and animals. Microbes currently under investigation include the Mycobacteria, Streptomyces, Neisseria, Escherichia coli, Vibrio and Campylobacter, as well as viruses and yeast. Virology studies centre around interactions with the host ribosomal apparatus and are augmented by fundamental work on the translational apparatus of eukaryotic cells. The Department specialises in studies employing an integrated research approach encompassing laboratory and computational investigation.
Research environment
The Department of Microbial and Cellular Sciences has access to the Faculty core technology programme, to support and fund equipment-intensive research technologies and to promote their use in multidisciplinary research. It encompasses functional genomics (microarray, sequencing, genomics, transcriptomics), computational biology/bioinformatics (data mining, systems biology, pathway modelling, fluxomics), proteomics (2D-PAGE, ICAT, MudPit, MALDI-TOF), metabolomics (GC-MS-MS, GC-MS, LC-MS), BIOLOG and imaging (laser scanning confocal, fluorescence, fluorescence inverted and FRET microscopy, flow cytometry, fluorescence-activated cell sorting, in situ hybridisation). In addition, biomedical research is supported by NMR facilities and animal facilities, including dedicated suites for transgenic work. The Faculty also has all of the standard analytical equipment you would expect in a biomedical faculty to support the subject disciplines.
Contact us
For general enquiries
0800 980 3200 or +44 (0)1483 681 681
For admissions enquiries
+44 (0)1483 689 730