Applications are invited from excellent candidates to pursue a PhD project in Geography, for which one bursary will be awarded. Interested candidates may apply to undertake PhD research in the following areas of expertise:
- GIS, Remote Sensing, and Geospatial Data Science
- Earth observation, machine learning and big data
- Agricultural Sciences, Forestry and Phenology
- Climate Change and Environmental Geography
- Natural Hazards and Climate Hazard Adaption
- Air Pollution
- Transport Geographies
- Geographies of Development and Innovation
- Irish-British migrations and how migration impacts on identity, belonging and emotional engagement with place
- Historical Geographies and the History of Cartography in Britain and Ireland (c.1500-1850).
- Digital and Spatial Humanities
- Heritage and Community Heritage
- Citizen Science
In advance of an application, prospective applicants are required to make contact with the member of staff whose research area covers their proposed doctoral work. Applications in research areas not listed above may also be considered, provided the applicant has identified a suitable research supervisor from among the members of the staff.
Take a look at faculty research interests.
Applications made without the agreement of a potential supervisor will not be considered.
| Entry Requirements | A First/Second class Honours Grade 1 Bachelors Degree or a First/Second class Honours Grade 1 Masters Degree in Geography or cognate discipline |
| Bursary | The PhD Bursary covers EU fees (currently €5,800 per annum) for a four-year period and provides an annual stipend of €2,500. For non-EU applicants, a partial fee waiver of €5,800 will be available to cover part of the non-EU fee (a difference of approximately €7,100 p.a.). |
| Applications | Applications can be made by submitting: (1) a current two-page academic CV and (2) a draft PhD proposal (using the application form here) to History.Geography@ul.ie with the subject ‘PhD Bursary’. The documents should be submitted in PDF format. Closing date: 29 May 2026, 5pm (Irish Standard Time). |
| Evaluation | Applications will be evaluated on the following criteria: Quality of the research proposal (including originality, potential research contribution and impact, clarity with which project elucidated and the overall scope); feasibility of the proposed research; strength and suitability of the candidate; and match with the proposed supervisor and School. Interviews may be conducted as part of the process of evaluation. The School of History and Geography reserve the right not to make an award. |
| Queries | Queries may be addressed to the History.Geography@ul.ie |
In advance of submitting this application, applicants must discuss the research proposal with a member of academic staff in the School.
All sections of this form must be completed, and the form emailed to history.geography@ul.ie before 5pm on 29 May 2026.
Contact the School of History and Geography