The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is a member of UBEL, the UCL, Bloomsbury and East London Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP). This is a government-funded grouping, via the Economic and Social Research Council, that brings together six leading institutions (London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, University College London, School of Oriental and African Studies, Birkbeck, University of East London and University of Greenwich) to offer PhD studentships each year.
UBEL is one of the largest ESRC-funded Doctoral Training Partnerships in the UK, offering studentships over a wide range of pathways in areas that span the social sciences and economics. In order to organise so many interdisciplinary and cross-institutional studentships, the DTP comprises 30 different pathways, in 6 groupings across these 6 London institutions.
Studentship pathways
LSHTM is currently pathway lead for 2 of the 30 pathways.
- Health and Wellbeing pathway
Contacts
- LSHTM Pathway Leads: Suping Ling and Ruth Willis. Email: [email protected]
- Birkbeck Pathway Lead: Jonathan Smith. Email: [email protected]
Health and Wellbeing Pathway
The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine’s (LSHTM) research and training agenda is responsive to existing and emerging health priorities in both high income and low and middle income settings. By its very nature, this pathway is multidisciplinary, and supports a wide range of social science approaches.
Details on the Health & Wellbeing pathway can be found on the ESRC UBEL DTP web pages.
Routes
Two routes at LSHTM are available:
- Health Economics: This pathway provides multidisciplinary training in public health and health economics. Studentships in this area will contribute to knowledge and understanding in the fields of economic evaluation or the application of health economic methods to health policy or decision analysis, with reference to high-, low- and middle-income countries. Students on a 1+3.5 route will undertake the MSc Public Health - Health Economics stream.
- Social Science Approaches in Public Health and Health Services Research: This pathway reflects a formal strategy to consolidate and extend social science as applied to public health relating to any relevant topic. Consequently, rather than be defined by subject, studentships in this area will not only contribute in terms of complementary methodologies that address health topics (such as the utilisation of qualitative techniques), but also to the development and/or application of relevant social theory – for example, Practice Theory, STS & ANT, Critical Realism, Complexity and Systems Theory. Students choosing the 1+3.5 route will undertake MSc Public Health - Health Services Research stream.
A third route in Psychological Approaches to Health and Wellbeing is available at Birkbeck, University of London.
Topics
This is an open competition for ESRC studentships on any topic that falls within the remit of the pathway. In order to progress through the preliminary and final selection process you will need to have contacted a relevant staff member at the School who would be willing to be your supervisor and support your application.
To make direct contact with prospective supervisors you can search for staff members and their interests via the School’s website. The majority of social scientists (anthropologists, sociologists, economists, etc) are based in the Faculty of Public Health and Policy.
Applicants for LSHTM-based routes on this pathway are encouraged to discuss possibilities with the pathway leads Suping Ling (quantitative projects) and Ruth Willis (qualitative projects) in the first instance, via the shared email address [email protected].
- Population and Health pathway
Contacts
Pathway Leader: José Manuel Aburto. Email: [email protected]
Team Member: Alice Goisis. Email: [email protected]
For a full list of team members and details of the Population and Health pathway, please see ESRC UBEL DTP web pages.
The Population and Health pathway
LSHTM is one of the UK’s leading universities for research in demography and population health and hosts a highly interdisciplinary and internationally renowned group of researchers working on a range of population issues in both low- and high-income contexts.
LSHTM has strong programmes of research in maternal, reproductive and sexual health, mortality and health inequalities, mathematical modelling of population dynamics, family demography, evolutionary demography, and historical demography. Our methods span quantitative techniques, including advanced demographic and statistical methods, and qualitative work; we work on both basic and applied research, and incorporate critical approaches to demography and reproductive and sexual health.
ESRC-funded PhD scholarships are available in population research at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, to start in autumn 2027. These scholarships are offered in both Demography and Reproductive and Sexual Health training routes. Scholarships may be taken up either as a stand-alone PhD (a +3.5 award); or as a programme which includes first taking additional taught courses before starting the PhD (please see Structure of Awards on the UBEL website for further information on all the different routes available.)
We welcome any topic from candidates in the fields of demography or reproductive and sexual health. We recommend potential applicants first contact potential supervisors: the websites of the Population Studies Group and MARCH (Centre for Maternal, Adolescent, Reproductive and Child Health) provide information on staff members at the School with appropriate research interests who may be potential supervisors.
As part of their scholarship, students may spend a year at the European Doctoral School of Demography (EDSD) and following successful completion of this year, can progress to 3 years of PhD funding at the School. We also welcome applications from students interested in using Advanced Quantitative Methods (AQM).
Routes
The +3.5 award provides funding for 3.5 years of PhD study, and is available to any student who already holds a suitable MSc.
The 1+3.5 award provides core research methods and core subject specific training through established Masters programmes: the MSc Demography & Health or the MSc Reproductive & Sexual Health Research. On successful completion of the relevant MSc, the student will then progress to 3.5 years of PhD funding.
The 2+3.5 or 1+3.5 routes, include one year at the European Doctoral School of Demography which is an eleven-month program that is offered every year, with the goal to provide students in the first year of their doctoral studies with an appropriate high-level education in demography. Applicants with a suitable MSc can apply for a 1+3.5 award, where the first year is spent at EDSD; applicants without a suitable MSc can apply for a 2+3.5 award, where the first year is spent on MSc Demography & Health and the second at EDSD.
This means that LSHTM is likely to be the primary institution to apply through for a studentship in this area.
The School is also a member of the Quantitative Social Science pathway.
- Quantitative Social Science pathway
Contacts
Pathway Leader: Lorraine Dearden. Email: [email protected]
Team Member: Ruth Keogh. Email: [email protected]
For a full list of Team Members and details of the Quantitative Social Science pathway, please see the ESRC UBEL DTP web pages.
Quantitative Social Science Pathway
LSHTM is a leading global centre for quantitative research. The Quantitative Social Science pathway at LSHTM has a focus on Longitudinal Analysis and Design. We welcome any project topic falling under this broad remit, including projects in medical statistics, epidemiology, clinical trials and beyond. Projects can involve development of statistical methodology for analysis of longitudinal studies, can focus on a substantive application involving longitudinal data, or may focus on the design and conduct of longitudinal studies.
PhD students on the Quantitative Science Pathway can be based in any faculty, but have tended to be based in the Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health or the Faculty of Public Health and Policy. The Faculty of Epidemiology & Population Health is home to the largest grouping of epidemiologists in Europe with research expertise ranging from clinical trials, statistical analysis genetic epidemiology, large-scale observational studies and field trials through to the design and evaluation of clinical and public health interventions in low, middle and high-income countries. The Faculty of Public Health and Policy is the largest multi-disciplinary public health group in Europe and encompasses the disciplines of epidemiology, public health medicine, economics, political science, international relations, anthropology, sociology, history, psychology, statistics and mathematics.
Application procedure
Funding is available for 3.5 years of doctoral study, and applicants will typically already have completed a Master’s degree, such as MSc in Medical Statistics, Health Data Science, Epidemiology or a related field with a strong quantitative component. Please see the Structure of Awards on the ESRC UBEL DTP website for further information on different routes available in 2027.
This is an open competition for ESRC studentships on any topic that falls within the remit of the pathway. In order to progress through the preliminary and final selection process you will need to have contacted a relevant staff member at LSHTM who would be willing to be your supervisor and support your application.
Interested students should contact the DTP representative, Ruth Keogh for an initial discussion.
Students with specific project ideas may also approach potential supervisors at the School for discussion. To make direct contact with prospective supervisors you can search for staff members and their interests via the Department of Medical Statistics on the School’s website.
In addition, you can apply to any other pathway for funding and still have your first or second supervisor at LSHTM, but your application will be reviewed by a panel led by another institution.
Available routes
The standard model for funding is 3.5 years (for students who already have a Masters), with 1+3.5 (for those who do not already hold a Masters qualification).
In addition to the above, full funding will also be provided for an extra three months for training throughout the PhD, and a further 3 months to enable students to participate in a new placement scheme.
Further information about each route available for 2027 entry can be found via the Structure of Awards on the UBEL website.
Awards available
Please refer to the UBEL ESRC DTP website and the Preliminary Application Guidance for full details.
Across the scheme, studentships for 2027-28 are open to all applicants (both 'Home' and 'Overseas' fee status), with up to 30% of the total awards available to international applicants.
Successful applicants with 'Home' fee status will receive a full studentship. Successful ‘Overseas’ applicants will be expected to top up the award with an alternative scholarship or funding arrangement to cover the higher cost of overseas fees, unless they qualify for the LSHTM International Fee Bursary. Priority will be given to applicants who are nationals of, and residents in, low income countries and lower middle income countries (LLMICs). Only one LSHTM International Fee Bursary is available per academic year for this scheme. As outlined on the ESRC UBEL website, awardees may not use family/personal funds or their ESRC living cost stipend to cover the necessary top up for fees.
How to apply
You should follow the steps below before submitting a preliminary application:
- Contact the leading academic(s) for the pathway of your choice.
- Together with the pathway lead you will be expected to contact relevant members of academic staff in order to discuss your research ideas and identify two potential supervisors. Do search the LSHTM’s website to find relevant staff and contact them directly. Potential supervisors have to complete parts of your ESRC preliminary studentship application form, so you will need to find academics who are interested in your research ideas.
- Only ONE application per applicant for an ESRC studentship beginning in 2027 may be submitted to the UBEL DTP.
- Complete the pre-registration process by 30 October 2026.
- Please ensure you complete ALL questions on the preliminary application which apply to you.
- The application process itself is being conducted centrally by the ESRC UBEL DTP. Further information can be found here.
The deadline to submit a preliminary application is Monday 9th November 2026 (23:59 GMT).
Successful applicants will then need to complete a full application, which will include a clear proposal of the intended research.
By submitting an application for this funding applicants agree to its Terms and Conditions.
If you have more general enquiries regarding the ESRC UBEL at LSHTM, then please contact Simon Cohn in the first instance.
Please note that all applications will only be reviewed and processed after the deadline. All applications that are submitted before the deadline will be considered equally, regardless of submission date. Incomplete applications will not be considered for this funding.