Postgraduate Opportunities at IBERS
Postgraduate research students are an integral part of the IBERS family and make a highly valuable contribution to advancing knowledge and scientific discovery. Supported and mentored by leading academics, our students undertake independent research and benefit from access to state-of-the-art facilities including our:
- Fully-equipped molecular, analytical and microbiology laboratories
IBERS PhD students are also part of the University’s Doctoral Academy, which supports postgraduates at Aberystwyth through researcher development, careers enhancement and teacher training programmes. The Doctoral Academy coordinates events such as the annual Postgraduate Research Conference and Three-Minute Thesis competition. PG students are also encouraged to join the University’s Early Career Researcher Network which organises training, talks and networking opportunities across disciplines.
Cohort numbers at IBERS vary from year to year but we typically have up to 30 doctoral candidates working alongside our staff on the Gogerddan campus. The focus of their studies can range from sustainable agricultural systems and testing how wheat responds to mechanical wind simulation to creating seaweed-derived biofilms for food packaging or exploring how different fungi affect the aroma of novel fungal fermented foods.
Funding
We regularly offer doctoral awards supported by external funding bodies, including the the UKRI Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). As one of the UK’s eight strategically funded BBSRC institutes, IBERS plays a key role in national bioscience research and contributes to a range of doctoral training programmes.
Studentships are offered through doctoral training programmes such as the:
Additional PhD opportunities may arise through grants from other research councils, charities or industry partners. Aberystwyth University also offers competitive AberDoc Scholarships, and some of these awards include additional President's scholarships that cover the difference between UK and international tuition fees for top-ranked applicants.
For international students, there are potential funds from UKRI’s PhD studentships, the British Council, the US Fulbright Global Wales Visiting Student Researcher Award and others.
For students domiciled in Wales or England, Postgraduate Doctoral Loans may be available through Student Finance Wales or Student Finance England. Self-funding is another route.
See the University’s PG Fees and Finance pages for more detail.
Join our community
Interested in pursuing a PhD that supports IBERS’ mission to help humanity sustainably produce food, feed, and plant-based industrial resources?
Please contact Dr Maurice Bosch, IBERS Director of Postgraduate Research, for further information or to arrange an informal conversation: mub@aber.ac.uk