PhD opportunities and funding

PhD opportunities

‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌Graduates of our PhD programmes are active with industrial firms, universities and research establishments, not only within the aerospace sector, but in fields as diverse as deep-sea oil rigs, atomic reactors, submarine and ship design, bridge research, racing car and engine research, atmospheric pollution, and in many other aspects of industrial aerodynamics, structural analysis and materials.

Find out how to apply for a research programme.

Highly qualified prospective PhD students are also encouraged to obtain their own PhD scholarship. Opportunities for this can be found on the postgraduate scholarship webpage (note that most of these are highly competitive).

Prospective students should contact relevant academic staff to agree on a suitable project if interested in this option.

Funded PhD opportunities

• Title: Advanced representations of orbital uncertainty in astrodynamics
  Supervisor: Dr Davide Amato
  Ref: AE0055_v2
  Deadline: Until filled
  
  
• Title: Magnetic Suspension Balances (MSBS) for Drag Reduction
  Supervisor: Professor Jonathan Morrison
  Ref: AE0059
  Deadline: until filled
   
• Title:  Multiple PhD Studentship in Aeronautics: Turbulence intermittency for cloud physics
  Supervisor: Dr Oli Buxton
  Ref: AE0070
  Deadline: until filled
  
  
• Title:  Understanding and modelling accidental hydrogen explosions (AE0048_v2)
  Supervisor: Dr Vito Tagarielli
  Ref: AE0048_v2
  Deadline: until filled
  
  

• Title: Machine Learning Modelling for Nonlinear Aeroelastics
  Supervisor: Dr Urban Fasel
  Ref: AE0069
  Deadline: 31st March 2025
  
  

• Title: Machine Learning for alternative power generation systems in aerospace applications
  Supervisor: Dr Urban Fasel
  Ref: AE0067
  Deadline: Until filled
  
  

• Title: Theoretical/Computational Fluid dynamics
  Supervisor:  Professor Yongyun Hwang
  Ref: AE0058
  Deadline: 1 March 2025 
  
  

• Title: PhD Studentship in Modelling and Observation of Aircraft Condensation Trails
  Supervisor: Dr Sebastian Eastham
  Ref: AE0051-V2
  Deadline: until filled
  
  Title: Coarse-grid CFD for plant-scale simulations
  Ref: AE0037
  Supervisor: Prof Joaquim Peiro
  Deadline: until filled
  
  
• Title:  Advanced lightweight metal nanocomposites for the energy transition: interface design and manufacture
  Supervisor:  ‌Dr Qianqian LI
  Deadline: Until filled
  Ref: AE0013v3

Fees, Funding and Scholarships

The amount of funding you will need to fund a PhD will vary according to your fee status (UK, EU or overseas). Please see Imperial College's student fees and funding pages for information on fees, living costs and College-administered scholarships.

Students in the department are funded from a variety of sources, including UK Research Councils, industry, College scholarships and departmental funding.

For scholarships administered from either the College or our Department, any applicant is automatically considered for any scholarships they are eligible for, unless stated otherwise by the applicant and unless it is the President’s PhD Scholarship. Special procedures apply when applying for the President’s PhD Scholarship.

There are many funding options available for students, including, but not limited to the below:

• President’s PhD Scholarship
• Project-specific studentships
• Centres for Doctoral Training
• Imperial College Scholarships (search tool)
• External funding
• International scholarship collaborations