PhD studentships available for 2025 entry

The School of Computer Science at the University of St Andrews is offering a number of PhD scholarships for 3.5 years of study in our doctoral research programme. UK, EU and International students are all eligible for fully-funded scholarships consisting of tuition and a stipend. These awards are part-funded through the University of St Andrews’ ‘handsel’ scheme for tuition waivers.

The School of Computer Science is a centre of excellence for computer science teaching and research, with staff and students from Scotland and all parts of the world. It is a member of the Scottish Informatics and Computer Science Alliance (SICSA).

Value of Award

  • Tuition scholarships cover PhD fees irrespective of country of origin.
  • Stipends are valued at £19,795 per annum (or the standard UKRI stipend, if it is higher).

Eligibility Criteria

We are looking for highly motivated research students willing to be part of a diverse and supportive research community. Applicants must hold a good Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, or a related area appropriate for their proposed topic of study.

International applications are welcome. We especially encourage female applicants and underrepresented minorities to apply. The School of Computer Science was awarded the Athena SWAN Silver award for its sustained progression in advancing equality and representation, and we welcome applications from those suitably qualified from all genders, all races, ethnicities and nationalities, LGBT+, all or no religion, all social class backgrounds, and all family structures to apply for our postgraduate research programmes.

Application Deadline

All applications received before 1st February 2025 will be considered for these scholarships.

How to Apply

Any PhD application received by the deadline will be automatically considered for these scholarships. There is no need for a separate application.

The School’s main research themes are Artificial Intelligence, Health Informatics, Human-Computer Interaction, Programming Languages, and Systems. You can find further details at https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/computer-science/research/themes/. In addition, we have cross-cutting research groups in Complex and Adaptive Systems, Computer Vision, Constraints, Data Science, MedTech, Research Software, and Responsible Computing. Applicants with interests in any of these areas are encouraged to develop a relevant research proposal and apply.

The best way to obtain a place and a scholarship is to make a robust PhD application. You are strongly encouraged to read the application guidance written on our webpages. Note that this guidance asks you to approach supervisors before formal submission to discuss your project ideas with them. Historically, applications with no named supervisor have been much less likely to result in an offer. We provide a list of existing faculty, areas of research and some potential project ideas. All supervisors listed on this page may be contacted directly to discuss possible projects. You can define your own project or discuss a project currently on offer.

Full application instructions can be found at https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/computer-science/prospective/pgr/how-to-apply/. Enquiries and questions may be directed to pg-admin-cs@st-andrews.ac.uk.

Doors Open @ CS, 11th April (10am-4pm)

On 11th April, the School of Computer Science at St Andrews will host our Doors Open event. We will be thrilled to welcome any and all visitors from outwith the School, whether you are locally based, from elsewhere in the UK, or from overseas.

As a rapidly growing school, we are looking to build relationships with new partners and are keen to find out how we can help you, your companies, and/or organisations to solve problems and improve processes.

Our Doors Open Day will have over 60 individual exhibits and activities. Our presenters will be our staff and students, with representation from 1st year undergrad through to PhD students, academic and technical members of staff.

Please register here if you would like to attend to enable us to order sufficient food!

 

PhD studentships available for 2024 entry

About the Programme

The School of Computer Science at the University of St Andrews is offering a number of PhD studentships for 3.5 years of study in our doctoral programme. Funding is available to cover tuition fees for UK, EU and international students, as well as living expenses (a stipend of £18,622 per annum, or the standard UKRI stipend if it is higher). We offer two types of studentship:

  • a fully-funded studentship consisting of tuition and stipend
  • tuition-only studentships, funded through the University’s ‘handsel’ scheme for tuition waivers

The School of Computer Science is a centre of excellence for computer science teaching and research, with staff and students from Scotland and all parts of the world. It is a member of the Scottish Informatics and Computer Science Alliance (SICSA).

Eligibility Criteria

We are looking for highly motivated research students willing to be part of a diverse and supportive research community. Applicants must hold a good BSc or MSc in Computer Science, or a related area appropriate for their proposed topic of study.

We especially encourage female applicants and underrepresented minorities to apply. The University of St Andrews is committed to promoting equality of opportunity for all, which is further demonstrated through its working on the Gender and Race Equality Charters and being awarded the Athena SWAN award for women in science, HR Excellence in Research Award and the LGBT Charter.

Application deadline

1st February 2024.

How to apply

Any PhD application received through the University PGR application system by the deadline will be automatically considered for these studentships. There is no need for a separate application. Note, however, that if you are applying for a CSC Scholarship then you cannot be considered for these School studentships due to conflicting application dates.

We strongly advise applicants to contact potential supervisors to discuss their research proposal before applying. Historically, applications with no named supervisor have been much less likely to result in an offer.

The School’s main research groups are Artificial Intelligence, Computer Systems, Human-Computer Interaction, and Programming Languages. You can find further details at https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/computer-science/research/groups/. A list of existing faculty and areas of research can be found at https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/computer-science/prospective/pgr/supervisors/. All supervisors listed on this page may be contacted directly to discuss possible projects. You can define your own project or discuss a project currently on offer. Some highlighted potential areas or projects offered by supervisors include:

  • Tool support for the representation of ethical concerns in software artefacts (Dr Dharini Balasubramaniam)
  • Automated Configuration of Constraint Solvers via Machine Learning
    (Dr Nguyen Dang)
  • ILNP ubiquitous communications (Prof Saleem Bhatti)

Full details on how to apply can be found at https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/computer-science/prospective/pgr/how-to-apply/

Application enquiries can be directed to pg-admin-cs@st-andrews.ac.uk.

Distinguished Lecture Series: Computer Science and the Environment

Thank you to Professor Gordon Blair for delivering this year’s distinguished lecture on Computer Science and the environment.

The series of talks explained the role of computer science in addressing the massive challenges associated with a changing climate.

Feedback was positive and the series was enjoyed by all!

From Left to Right: Jonathan Lewis, Blesson Varghese, Simon Dobson, Gordon Blair, Ian Miguel & Al Dearle (Back)

Doors Open @ CS, 11th April (10am-4pm)

On 11th April, the School of Computer Science at St Andrews will host for our first ever Doors Open event. We will be thrilled to welcome any and all visitors from outwith the School, whether you are locally based, from elsewhere in the UK or from overseas.

As a rapidly growing school, we are looking to build relationships with new partners and are keen to find out how we can help you, your companies and/or organisations to solve problems and improve processes.

Our Doors Open day will have over 60 individual exhibits and activities. Our presenters will be our staff and students, with representation from 1st year undergrad through to PhD students, academic and technical members of staff.

Please register here if you would like to attend to enable us to order sufficient pizza!

 

Computer Science Offer Holder Days

The School of Computer Science will hold its Offer Holder days for September 2023 entry on Saturdays 18th and 25th March 2023. These events are open only to undergraduate applicants who have received an offer to study Computer Science at St Andrews. Along with your offer to study an undergraduate programme involving Computer Science, you will receive an email with details of how to sign up for one of the offer holder days.

Our Computer Science Offer Holder events allow you to see more of St Andrews and the School while also learning more about the great experience we offer. We have a full programme of exciting and stimulating events, including talks from lecturers and some of our current students, and the chance to try out our state-of-the-art teaching labs by participating in a coding activity. No prior CS or programming experience is required for the activity. We will provide you with lunch and refreshments during the day. Parents, guardians, carers or companions are welcome to attend the day with you. Please provide the necessary information when you register for the event.

At the end of the Offer Holder day, prospective students also have the option to attend a dinner with some of the other applicants, and current undergraduate and postgraduate students. This gives offer-holders the opportunity to ask any remaining questions in an informal setting.

The events will run from 10am until 8pm (including the evening meal), so we do recommend that you plan to spend the majority of your day in St Andrews.

 

Please email admissions.events@st-andrews.ac.uk with any queries.

Fully-funded PhD scholarship in Health Data Visualisation

The School of Computer Science at the University of St Andrews has a fully-funded scholarship available working with Dr Areti Manataki. The PhD topic is “Shedding light on patient flow through advanced data visualisation”. Applications must be received by 1 March 2023.

Project Overview

In modern healthcare systems, millions of patients are admitted to hospital every day. Managing patient flow through hospital, to ensure that patients are at the right place at the right time, can improve quality of care and health outcomes, while saving money and time. However, managing patient flow in a way that is safe for patients and cost-efficient is a challenging task, and requires a deep understanding of the complexities associated with patient flow.

This project involves employing advanced data visualisation techniques to shed light on patient flow and its many important dimensions: temporal and spatial patterns, patient characteristics, clinical expertise, hospital capacity and associated cost. Drawing inspiration from visualisation approaches to astronomy and transportation, and working closely with healthcare professionals, we will develop interactive visualisations that allow for the exploration of large and rich patient flow data. Our aim is to build visualisations that are powerful enough to capture the complexity of patient flow, and, at the same time, simple enough for clinicians to easily use to draw conclusions towards improving care.

Eligibility Criteria

We are looking for highly motivated research students willing to be part of a diverse and supportive research community. Applicants must hold a BSc or MSc in Computer Science or a related area (e.g., Data Science, Engineering, Mathematics, etc.). Experience in data visualisation, enthusiasm for research at the intersection of data science and health, an ability to think and work independently, excellent programming and analytical skills, and strong verbal and written communication skills are essential.

International applications are welcome. We especially encourage female applicants and underrepresented minorities to apply.

To apply

Informal inquiries can be directed to Dr Areti Manataki at A.Manataki@st-andrews.ac.uk. Formal applications can be made through the School’s postgraduate research portal.

The deadline for applications is 1 March 2023.

Funding Notes

We have one fully-funded scholarship available, which will be awarded competitively to the best applicant. This scholarship covers all tuition fees irrespective of country of origin and comes with a stipend (currently £17,668 per annum full-time equivalent). Additional scholarships may be available from other sources.

The School welcomes applications from under-represented groups, and is willing to consider part-time and flexible registrations. The successful applicant will however be expected to conduct their research in St Andrews and not fully remotely.

Phd Scholarships for 2023

Scholarship Description
The School of Computer Science is offering the following types of scholarships for 3.5 years of study in our PhD programme. UK, EU and International students are all eligible for:

• Fully funded scholarships consisting of tuition + stipend
• Tuition-only scholarships

This award is part-funded through the University’s new ‘handsels’ scheme.

Value of Award
• Tuition scholarships cover PhD fees irrespective of country of origin.
• Stipends are valued £17,668 per annum (or the standard UKRI stipend, if it is higher).

Eligibility Criteria
We are looking for highly motivated research students willing to be part of a diverse and supportive research community. Applicants must hold a BSc or MSc in Computer Science or a related area appropriate for their proposed topic of study.

International applications are welcome. We especially encourage female applicants and underrepresented minorities to apply.

Application Deadline
All applications received before 1st February 2023 will be considered for the first round of scholarship eligibility. Later applications will also be considered for scholarships as long as funding remains.

How to Apply

If accepted, every PhD application indicating interest will automatically be considered for these scholarships. There is no need for a separate application.

The best way to win one of our scholarships is to make a robust PhD application. You are strongly encouraged to approach supervisors before formal submission to discuss your project ideas with them.

The School’s main groups are Artificial Intelligence and Symbolic Computation, Computer Systems and Networks, Human-Computer Interaction, and Programming Languages. It is highly recommended that applicants identify potential supervisors in their applications. A list of existing faculty and areas of research can be found at https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/computer-science/prospective/pgr/supervisors/). All supervisors listed on this page may be contacted directly to discuss possible projects.

Full application instructions can be found at https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/study/apply/postgraduate/research/.
Inquiries and questions may be directed to pg-admin-cs@st-andrews.ac.uk.

Zoë Nengite awarded Principal’s Medal

Congratulations to Zoë Nengite who has been awarded The Principal’s Medal in recognition of outstanding academic achievement and exceptional activities within the University and the wider St Andrews community. The Medal is awarded to students who have both excellent academic accomplishments and those who have inspired and supported their peers and who have often undertaken extensive advocacy work, which has improved life for many of their fellow students.

Zoë sent us a reflection on time spent studying in the School and a photo celebrating with Mum.

“I’m really sad that my time at St Andrews has come to an end. I will especially miss the School of Computer Science. We are such a close community of students and staff alike. I will even miss the Jack Cole labs, despite spending many hours with my head in my hands stuck on a problem gripping my mug of coffee. I always knew that help wasn’t too hard to find.

“Some of my best memories are from my time at St Andrews. Most of them spent with my closest friends who also studied Computer Science. Coming from London, I was apprehensive about St Andrews, but it quickly became a place I called home. I think even years from now, it will always be somewhere I call home.”

The award was announced during the virtual conferral of degrees in July. Zoë hopes to attend a rescheduled Class of 2020 Ceremony in the future where we look forward to celebrating with her in person.

December Graduation Reception: Tuesday 3rd December

The School of Computer Science will host a graduation reception on Tuesday 3rd December in the Jack Cole building, between 12.00 and 14.00. Graduating students and their guests are invited to the School to celebrate with a glass of bubbly and a cream cake. Computer Science degrees will be conferred in a morning ceremony in the Younger Hall. Family and friends who can’t make it on the day can watch a live broadcast of graduation. Graduation receptions have been held in the school from 2010.