phd students edinburgh

• Schools & departments

PhDs and MRes students

Information and advice for research students

Understand yourself

Thinking about what you want and can offer is essential for career decision making and marketing yourself successfully in applications. Find out how.

Discover what's out there

Information and advice on your options including academic careers, research beyond academia and other career options, plus PhD graduate profiles.

Build experience

Find opportunities, including part-time work, to develop employability skills and gain insight into different work environments.

Make it happen

How to market yourself effectively including writing academic CVs and CVs for jobs beyond academia, and performing well at interview.

Become professional

Advice on how to continue developing professional behaviours to help in your research and make an easy transition into the workplace.

PhD Careers programme: events and further resources

Plan ahead to make the most of your PhD. Find out about our PhD Careers programme to help you realise your ambitions.

This article was published on 2024-05-14

• Schools & departments

What is the Doctoral College?

The University of Edinburgh Doctoral College is a coordinating structure for all postgraduate researchers, supervisors and relevant staff at the university, designed to enhance and support the postgraduate student experience. 

For information and resources for research staff, please see the Research Staff Pages:  https://www.ed.ac.uk/researchers

The Doctoral College are holding two welcome events for new Postgraduate Researchers at the University of Edinburgh. These welcome events will give you the opportunity to hear from the Doctoral College leads and representatives from across the University about how the Doctoral College can help you to make the most of your time at Edinburgh.

On Campus Welcome - Tuesday 10th September at 10am. Find out more here  

Online Welcome - Tuesday 1st October at 1pm. Find out more here

PhD stories

Our extraordinary PhD students come from all walks of life and all backgrounds. In this collection of short videos, some of them share their experiences -  PhD Stories

Vision and strategy

The purpose of the Doctoral College, our vision, strategic objectives and our commitment to the improvement of postgraduate research cultures

People and structure

About the Doctoral College leadership and management structure, and the wider Doctoral College team.

Personal and professional development and training

Information about professional, careers and personal development training and opportunities for  UoE   PGR  students.

Researcher Representation and Community

Information on student representation and community

Support for PGR supervision

Information and guidance for staff who supervise research students.

Doctoral training centres

Information on funded PhD training programmes and support for directors and administrators of these programmes.

Essential information for postgraduate researchers

Code of Practice for Supervisors and Research Students (PDF)

College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences - PGR pages

College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine - PGR pages

College of Science and Engineering  (EASE log in required)

Information for prospective postgraduate research students

New student pages

Postgraduate study degree finder

This article was published on 2023-12-07

Schools & departments

PhD Study with Edinburgh Neuroscience

Edinburgh Neuroscience currently has about 250 PhD students working on a wide variety of neuroscience-related projects that cover health and disease across the life course, from early development to old age. Our PhD students are an integral part of our dynamic neuroscience community and we are keen to recruit motivated and collaborative students.  There are a variety of PhD opportunities, advertised throughout the year and, in addition to the numerous individual PhD projects offered via our research centres, we have two PhD programmes.

EdNeuro.PhD is our PhD portal

To find out more about studying for a PhD with Edinburgh Neuroscience, currently available funded studentships and how to apply, please visit our dedicated PhD portal  EdNeuro.PhD

Visit EdNeuro.PhD for all our PhD training information

Our PhD Programmes

SPRINT-MND/MS PhD Programme . Led by Edinburgh Neuroscience, Scottish PhD Research & Innovation Network Traineeships in MND/MS’ is a PhD programme in partnership with the Universities of Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow and St Andrews and promotes research into all aspects of motor neurone disease and multiple sclerosis.

Wellcome Trust 4 year PhD in translational Neuroscience . Our flagship PhD programme  ‘Translational Neuroscience: Lifecourse influences on human brain health’ is a ‘ training to translate ’ programme for non -clinical students that addresses a current global need by focussing on the advancement of knowledge, expertise and skills in clinical translation, drawing on unique Edinburgh research strengths in diseases across the life-course to achieve this goal.

• Schools & departments

Why study at Edinburgh?

How to apply for a phd, what funding is available for your phd study, visiting research students.

• News & Events

Graduate School contacts

• Useful Links
• School of Mathematics
• Studying Here
• Postgraduate Research Studies

Research Degrees (PhD)

Our Graduate School is supervised by internationally-leading researchers spanning a wide spectrum of topics, making our School a world renowned centre of excellence in mathematics.

Watch a recording of the School of Mathematics' Graduate School Virtual Open Day 20-21

The School of Mathematics welcomes applications to our Visitors Programme from research students who are registered at another university.

MAC-MIGS CDT

MAC-MIGS is a prestigious EPSRC-funded PhD programme in Mathematical Modelling, Analysis and Computation, run jointly by Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt universities, as part of the Maxwell Institute Graduate School, that offers fully-funded scholarships.

MAC-MIGS website

The Maxwell Institute Graduate School in Analysis and its Applications (MIGSAA) is a Centre for Doctoral Training that provides high quality instruction in analysis and the applications of analysis to a wide range of areas. MIGSAA has been made possible by a grant from the UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Scottish Funding Council.

MIGSAA website

Graduate School staff

• Schools & departments

Edinburgh Doctoral College Scholarships (EDCS)

The University of Edinburgh offers PhD scholarships for students starting their PhD research in the academic session 2024/25.

The School of Informatics will award one Edinburgh Doctoral College Scholarship (EDCS) for the current academic session. 

The scheme is highly competitive and applicants must be of outstanding academic merit and research potential. Candidates are selected and ranked at School level, based on the strength and quality of their PhD application, research proposal, references and scholarship application.

Candidates wishing to be considered for this scholarship need to submit a separate scholarship application, via the Scholarships Portal, which is located in EUCLID and can be accessed via the MyEd portal.

The deadline for EDCS applications for entry in the academic sessions 2024/5 is 8 February 2024.

For more information, please check the links below:

Edinburgh Doctoral College Scholarships - UK Students

Edinburgh Doctoral College Scholarships - International Students

This article was published on 2024-03-18

School of Social and Political Science

Phd politics, introduction.

Applications for September 2024 entry are now closed.  We expect to open applications for 2025 entry in October. 

We warmly invite candidates to apply for a PhD in Politics

We are delighted that you are interested in doctoral research in our programme. We would like to highlight what's special about doctoral education in Politics (and/or) International Relations - or PIR - at the University of Edinburgh.

Approximately 60 members of PIR academic staff enjoy international reputations for their research and have won numerous teaching, research and advising awards. Their scholarship covers a diverse range of research areas on Scotland, Europe, and the world, and is published in highly-rated journals and books.

The department has a strong tradition of advising, informing and debating policy with key decision-makers at Scottish, UK, European and international levels, and has a notable concentration of political theorists.

Our Politics and International Relations department at the University of Edinburgh is one of the leading centres of research excellence in the UK, ranked in the top 10 in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF). We are one of only three Politics and International Relations departments in the UK to achieve 100% 4* (the top ranking) for research environment. Amongst UK universities, we placed 7th in the 2022 QS World University Ranking by subject.

Our stimulating intellectual community

We have a large, vibrant, diverse, and international community of postgraduate students. We direct active research institutes, including:

• Europa Institute
• Centre on Constitutional Change
• Centre for Science, Knowledge and Policy (SKAPE)
• Centre for Security Research (CeSeR)
• Centre for Ethics and Critical Thought (CRITIQUE)

PhD research in Politics and International Relations at Edinburgh is located in the School of Social and Political Science. The School benefits from the broader University of Edinburgh community of world-class researchers. A flourishing programme of events, seminars, and research groups complements our postgraduate courses and doctoral supervision.

Our dedication to students

We are deeply committed to our students at all levels and offer individualized supervision, mentoring, and support at all stages of the doctoral programme. Many postgraduate students work closely with staff on research and themselves publish independent papers. The department warmly welcomes the participation by our postgraduate community in our research, our working groups and centres and in the daily life of the department.

Our students are further supported by a range of courses, workshops, and professional development opportunities sponsored by the School of Social and Political Science and the Institute for Academic Development:

• Institute for Academic Development

The degree is based on three to four years of full-time research. Each student follows an individual training programme designed with their supervisor and the Postgraduate Adviser. This programme is reviewed and updated on an annual basis.

In the first year, students acquire a wide range of research skills and formulate their research question and related design, under the guidance of their supervisors. At the end of their course of study students submit a thesis and are examined in an oral examination (viva voce) by two examiners (usually one internal to the University, the other external).

The thesis is a long piece of research on a topic of particular interest to the student and makes an original contribution to the field of politics and international relations.

Research training

All new research students follow a programme of research training, drawn from the MSc by Research courses coordinated by the School of Social and Political Science and Politics and International Relations-specific training.

The programme equips students with professional training to a high standard. After graduating you can expect to be a strong candidate for careers in a wide variety of contexts, including academia, the media, the private sector and a diverse array of public services. Nearly everyone needs good researchers!

Politics and International Relations helps you gain a range of transferable skills above and beyond those required by their specific projects, such as:

• organising seminars and conferences
• learning how to apply for research jobs in and out of academia
• learning how to deliver professional seminar presentations 

Postgraduate researchers also have access to the University and College-wide programme of training in transferable skills and other aspects of professional development, such as specialist careers advice.

PhD students in Politics and International Relations are allocated a supervisor and a co-supervisor, who will advise on the entirety of the research process, from reading and assembling ideas, to fieldwork, analysing empirical or theoretical materials, writing up chapters, completing the thesis, to the viva which rounds off the process. 

Although the first supervisor is based in Politics and International Relations, the second one may be from another discipline in the School or the wider University. This decision depends wholly on your topic and the availability of supervisors.

There is a regular progress review, discuss ideas, review progress and provide help and support where necessary. The Postgraduate Advisor in Politics and International Relations is also available to provide advice. The supervisors and the Postgraduate Advisor facilitate a supportive framework and promote an active and sustaining research culture for our PhD students.

You are encouraged to contact staff with similar interests to yours and discuss ideas prior to application.

Accomplishments

Politics and International Relations postgraduate researchers significantly contribute to the academic community, productivity and acclaim of Edinburgh. Our PhD students are involved in a range of initiatives within the University and beyond, including government and non-profit programmes.

Evidence of the quality and dedication of our students is clear from the awards they receive.  Here are a few examples:

• Judith Sijstermans – UACES & James Madison Charitable Trust Scholarship for fieldwork
• Lukas Slothuus – ESRC Studentship
• Francesco Bertoldi – ESRC Studenship
• Louis Fletcher – Robert L. Platzman Fellowship from the University of Chicago library for archival work
• Kathy Dodworth – Inaugural BISA African Affairs Postgraduate Paper Prize
• Sayra Van Den Berg – ESRC Studentship
• Alexandra Remond – ESRC Studentship
• Tom Charman – ESRC Studentship
• Kathy Dodworth – ESRC Studentship
• Cera Murtagh – ESRC Studentship
• Coree Brown – Principals Career Development Scholarship; Edinburgh Global Research Scholarship

Recent publications

Past and current cohorts of postgraduates in Politics and International Relations have actively sought to publish their innovative research drawn from PhD studies, related work, and collaboration with other academics and organisations.

Some examples of published writing include:  

• Yue Liu (2017) “UK’s participation in the One Belt & One Road Initiative” (Ying Guo Bu Gan Que Xi Yi Dai Yi Lu), World Vision Journal, 2017 NO.22.
• Yue Liu (2017) “The fourth election of Merkel: It is not the God’s preference” (Mo Ke Er Neng Si Lian Ren Bing Fei Shang Di Pian Ai), news.cri.cn , 26 September 2017.  
• Victor Gigleux (2016) Explaining the diversity of small states’ foreign policies through role theory, Third World Thematics: A TWQ Journal, 1:1, 27-45. 
• Francesco Bertoldi (2016), Change beneath the surface: the 2016 Northern Ireland Assembly election, Regional&Federal Studies
• Murtagh, C. (2016) ‘Civic Mobilization in Divided Societies and the Perils of Political Engagement: Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Protest and Plenum Movement,’ Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, 22(2), 149-171.

Conference papers and presentations

A number of our PhD students attend workshops and conferences at universities and other events.

Examples of conference papers include:

• Francesco Bertoldi (2017), Segregated Narratives: Communal Separation and Political Campaigning in Northern Ireland, presented at the PSA Annual Conference, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow .
• Yazmin Morlet Corti (2017) “Data protection a mixed public policy model in Mexico".  AMIC Conference  "Communication and democratic crisis in Mexico".  Guanajuato, Mexico.
• Lukas Slothuss (2017), ' Disobedience Reinforcing the Status Quo? A Critique of Dominant Accounts of Civil Disobedience , Empire, Capital, and Transnational Resistance: Centre for Applied Philosophy, Politics and Ethics 12th Annual Conference, University of Brighton.
• Jeremy Armon (2016), "Ethiopian Political Economy: Current Features, Possible Futures", presentation delivered at the Royal College of Defence Studies, London.
• Ritumbra Manuvie (2016) "Politics of Disaster and Mobility in Assam' paper presented at the 9th International Geographical Union Conference, New Delhi.
• Jeremy Armon (2016) "Can political settlements analysis help us better understand change in Africa?", Africa Working Group Workshop, University of Birmingham.

Many of our postgraduate researchers also undertake a number of professional and voluntary positions outwith the University. 

Examples include:

• Lukas Slothuus – A member of the Research School on Peace and Conflict at PRIO, Oslo.
• Anthony Salamone – Local Organising Committee Member, Council for European Studies – 24th International Conference of Europeanists (Glasgow 2017)
• Cera Murtagh – Research Assistant to Professor Fiona Mackay, Gender Politics, University of Edinburgh.
• Anthony Salamone – Lead Educator, Towards Brexit? The UK's EU Referendum (University of Edinburgh free online course), May-June 2016
• Sayra Van Den Berg – Member of the Research School on Peace and Conflict, Peace Research Institute, Oslo
• Francesco Bertoldi – European Relations Policy Support Officer, Scottish Government
• Jeremy Armon – Senior Governance Adviser, UK Department for International Development
• Ritumbra Manuvie – Visiting Scholar, National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam, India.

Applying for this PhD

• Identify potential supervisors suited to your research interests
• Write a draft research proposal
• Contact the Postgraduate Advisor with your research proposal and list of potential supervisors
• Once discussed with the Postgraduate Advisor, formally submit your application on EUCLID

Postgraduate Advisor

School of Engineering

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We have 306 PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships in Edinburgh

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PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships in Edinburgh

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Edinburgh Law School

Funded phd programme (students worldwide).

Some or all of the PhD opportunities in this programme have funding attached. Applications for this programme are welcome from suitably qualified candidates worldwide. Funding may only be available to a limited set of nationalities and you should read the full programme details for further information.

Law Research Programme

Law Research Programmes present a range of research opportunities, shaped by a university’s particular expertise, facilities and resources. You will usually identify a suitable topic for your PhD and propose your own project. Additional training and development opportunities may also be offered as part of your programme.

Geotechnical Seismic Isolation Technology for Global Earthquake Resilience and Environmental Sustainability

Phd research project.

PhD Research Projects are advertised opportunities to examine a pre-defined topic or answer a stated research question. Some projects may also provide scope for you to propose your own ideas and approaches.

Self-Funded PhD Students Only

This project does not have funding attached. You will need to have your own means of paying fees and living costs and / or seek separate funding from student finance, charities or trusts.

Study History, Classics and Archaeology at the University of Edinburgh - funding opportunities available

Humanities research programme.

Humanities Research Programmes present a range of research opportunities, shaped by a university’s particular expertise, facilities and resources. You will usually identify a suitable topic for your PhD and propose your own project. Additional training and development opportunities may also be offered as part of your programme.

Choose from 20 PhDs in literatures, languages and cultures at Edinburgh

Social sciences research programme.

Social Sciences Research Programmes present a range of research opportunities, shaped by a university’s particular expertise, facilities and resources. You will usually identify a suitable topic for your PhD and propose your own project. Additional training and development opportunities may also be offered as part of your programme.

Barocaloric organic ionic plastic crystals and prototype development

Competition funded phd project (students worldwide).

This project is in competition for funding with other projects. Usually the project which receives the best applicant will be successful. Unsuccessful projects may still go ahead as self-funded opportunities. Applications for the project are welcome from all suitably qualified candidates, but potential funding may be restricted to a limited set of nationalities. You should check the project and department details for more information.

Combined experimental and computational study of high-pressure order-disorder transitions in soft crystalline materials

Funded phd project (uk students only).

This research project has funding attached. It is only available to UK citizens or those who have been resident in the UK for a period of 3 years or more. Some projects, which are funded by charities or by the universities themselves may have more stringent restrictions.

Unlocking Organic Chemical Reaction Prediction with Limited-Data Machine Learning

New approaches to the turnover of main-group catalysts for a circular chemical economy, the dr david summers trust scholarship in scottish literary culture, synergistic experimental and data-driven catalyst development for sustainable synthesis, modular power electronics for mega-pto, funded phd project (students worldwide).

This project has funding attached, subject to eligibility criteria. Applications for the project are welcome from all suitably qualified candidates, but its funding may be restricted to a limited set of nationalities. You should check the project and department details for more information.

Spatial decision support analysis for sustainable mobility policies

Make your phd extraordinary, phd opportunities.

PhD Opportunities highlight some of the specific PhD projects, programmes or other information currently available from a university.

Elucidating molecular transport mechanisms through atomistic simulations

Awaiting funding decision/possible external funding.

This supervisor does not yet know if funding is available for this project, or they intend to apply for external funding once a suitable candidate is selected. Applications are welcome - please see project details for further information.

Design of microflyers for environmental monitoring

Funded phd project (european/uk students only).

This project has funding attached for UK and EU students, though the amount may depend on your nationality. Non-EU students may still be able to apply for the project provided they can find separate funding. You should check the project and department details for more information.

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PhD in Financial Technology

Building on our established PhD in Management programme, we have developed an innovative new doctoral programme in the field of Financial Technology.

PhD in Financial Technology allows students to pursue their own research topic in the area of Financial Technology or apply for specific industry projects, where students will be able to address complex industrial challenges to gain real-world experience.

This programme aims to prepare students for a diverse array of careers in finance. Approximately 50% of students who pursue the industry pathway, can expect to build on the networking opportunities available to them from studying at the international partners' premises during their study and move into a permanent career in that company, or the industry after graduation.

PhD in Financial Technology at a glance

• Study over three years full-time or six years part-time, with an additional 'writing-up' year available to all.
• Develop advanced techniques and in-depth knowledge in the field of Financial Technology.
• Study an independent research topic or participate in fully funded opportunities working with leading industry partners.
• For those on the industry pathway, study both at the University of Edinburgh campus and at an industrial partner's location, with guidance from academic colleagues and industry specialists at all times.
• We encourage our students to aim higher, presenting papers at prestigious conferences and submitting articles for publication.
• Access to a wide range of professional and personal development opportunities during your studies.
• While we invite students from around the globe to join our community, we don't offer this programme online or by distance learning.

Entry requirements

Find out our academic, English language, and application requirements for the PhD in Financial Technology.

Programme overview

View the learning outcomes and a typical training course schedule for a first-year student.

Fees and living expenses

When budgeting please consider associated administration fees and expenses as well as our funding support.

Ready to apply?

Review our application checklist and make your application to the PhD in Financial Technology.

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• Schools & departments

How to submit the final version of your PhD thesis

At the end of the examination process all successful PhD and MPhil candidates are required to submit the final version of their thesis to the appropriate College Postgraduate Office.

COVID-19 Update

The requirement for one hard copy thesis to be submitted has been waived during the current circumstances which require remote working for most staff/students. Submission of PhD theses will be electronic only.  A signed declaration is not required in the final version when the submission is deposited in Pure.  This concession from the regulations about physical thesis submission will continue for the foreseeable future, and will be reviewed by Academic Services once the pandemic is over. 

Before you submit your thesis

The University has an expectation that a PhD thesis is a document available for public consultation. As such, unless a legitimate reason for restricting access to the thesis exists, all PhD theses will be made publicly available on the internet via the Edinburgh Research Archive (ERA).

It is highly recommended that you discuss with your primary supervisor the implications of publishing your thesis online in ERA . If your thesis contains confidential or sensitive data it may not be appropriate to make the full text freely available online. Similarly if there is the intention to publish the whole, or extracts from, your thesis you may want to restrict access to the electronic version.

Submitting the PDF version

• Go to Pure and log in with your EASE account
• Click on the green ‘Add new’ button on the top right and select ‘Doctoral Thesis’, or alternatively click on ‘Student theses’ on the left-hand-side navigation bar followed by ‘Doctoral Thesis’
• The record should be auto-populated with most of your thesis award information. Please check for completeness, and add in the title of your thesis in the appropriate box.
• Upload your electronic thesis files by clicking on the ‘Add document’ button. If you require an embargo for the PDF add the date and reason in the appropriate boxes. The initial embargo length is one year from date of graduation. The date will be checked by Library staff and changed if a different value is added without permission.
• Please remove any signatures, personal postal and email addresses from the PDF version.
• Upload your Access to Thesis form alongside your thesis files.
• Supplementary data can be added alongside the thesis text. Change the ‘Type’ to ‘Supplementary materials’ and upload the files as described above. The record Visibility needs to be set to ' Backend - Restricted to Pure users ' 
• To finish, set the status to ' Entry in progress ', click the blue ‘Save’ button at the bottom of the screen and the submission is ready for validation by college office staff.

Submitting the final hardbound version is not required

Submission of PhD theses is now electronic only - see the steps above.

Data preservation and sharing

If your thesis has supplementary data (for example images, videos, source code or analytical data) we would like to store a copy of this data alongside the thesis text. We do this to try and preserve the fullest record of the work as possible. Datasets should be supported by good accompanying documentation which is appropriate to your subject discipline. The UK Data  Service offers some specialist advice in this area. We do not routinely allow public access to this data; however, if you wish to share your data with others we recommend the Edinburgh DataShare service.

Edinburgh Datashare

If you have a lot of supplementary files - for example lots of images, data in multiple spreadsheets or video formats - we don't recommend depositing them in PURE. Instead, contact the Scholarly Communications Team and we can advise the best way to send them to us.

Redacting material from your thesis

If you wish to make your thesis available to the public to consult, but there are  problematic elements that cannot be openly shared then it is possible to submit a redacted version. We typically recommend partial thesis redactions are suitable for the following scenarios:

Third-party copyright

Where third party copyright has not been obtained, students may submit an edited thesis, as an alternative to requesting an embargo. 

Sensitive material 

If the thesis contains confidential or sensitive information, e.g. transcripts of interviews, which cannot be shared or anonymised.

Photographs

If your thesis contains photographs of people and you do not have their permission to publish their image online.

It is possible to design your thesis in a way which means the problematic material is easy to remove. For example, if you are planning to use a large number of photographs, you could layout your thesis with the photographs in a separate appendix which can be  easily removed.

Students who have chosen to submit a redacted version of their thesis would also need to submit a full unedited copy which will be securely kept stored by the Library. This is important to preserve the integrity of the academic record of the University. Both versions of the files should be uploaded to the Thesis Module in Pure with the files clearly named to differentiate between the two. We recommend the following file naming convention:

<Last name><First initial>_<Year>_COMPLETE    

<Last name><First initial>_<Year>_REDACTED

e.g. SmithJ_2023_COMPLETE.pdf  

Reasons for requesting an embargo period

If the redaction option is not possible then students are permitted to embargo their thesis under certain conditions described below:

Planned publication

Normally a longer embargo period may be granted when there are firm publication plans in place, e.g. where a manuscript has been submitted to a publisher and is in a formal stage of publication (submitted, accepted, in press). Vague plans for publication are not normally accepted.

Commercial confidentiality

There may be contractual restrictions imposed by a sponsor, which could include industrial sponsors or governmental agencies.

Patent application

Patent applications can be rejected by the premature publication of research. Where the research might lead to a commercial application or patent then we recommend that the Intellectual Property needs to be protected.

Contains personal data

Where a thesis contains personally identifiable or ethically sensitive data or where material obtained in the thesis was obtained under a guarantee of confidentiality we would consider placing an embargo. These issues should have been addressed at an early stage of the research project.

Where third party copyright has not been obtained, students may submit an edited thesis, as an alternative to requesting an embargo. They would also need to submit an unedited hard copy which will be secured kept.

Publication could endanger health and safety or prejudice national security

The thesis contains sensitive material (political or otherwise) which could put at risk the authors or participants if made openly available. These issues should have been addressed at an early stage of the research project.

How to request a Thesis Restriction

How to request a 12 month embargo.

You can restrict access to the electronic version of your thesis for one year without any special permissions. If an embargo is required, this must be indicated on the Access to Thesis form, otherwise, the thesis may be made publicly available. This form should be deposited in Pure alongside the full text of the thesis.

At the end of the embargo period, the University is under no obligation to contact you about extending the period of restriction. If towards the end of your embargo period you have any concerns that the forthcoming public availability of your thesis would be problematic please contact the Library ( [email protected] ) and the Scholarly Communications Team will be able to help.

Embargo requests longer than 12 months

Requests for embargoes that exceed 12 months starting from the date the work is added to the Library’s collection require Head of School approval and must be accompanied by a clear rationale as to why a longer period is required. Complete Section 2 of the Access to a Thesis form to request an extended embargo. Extended embargoes beyond five years will not normally be approved unless there are very exceptional reasons. Normally any relevant evidence to support a request for an extended embargo should be attached to the request, e.g. publishing contract or correspondence from industrial sponsors.

Click here to download the  ACCESS TO THESIS & PUBLICATION OF ABSTRACT FORM  , or visit the general  Doctoral Thesis Submission webpages for more information.

Further help and information

Scholarly Communications Team

Contact details.

• Email: [email protected]

Availability

This article was published on 2024-08-21

• Schools & departments

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Fees and funding

Tuition fees, studying costs and financial support.

Scholarships and loans

Tuition fees

Events and visits

Student-led tours, virtual visit and open days. Join us!

Chat to our students

No matter if you're interested in on-campus or online postgraduate programmes, talk to our current students about their experiences.

Research degrees

Learn about our different types of research degree, how to find a research supervisor, and where to look for funding opportunities.

Taught degrees

Our taught degrees enable you to expand your field of knowledge, or acquire expertise in an area that you haven’t studied before.

Online learning

Study anywhere in the world, at times that suit you, for an internationally recognised postgraduate certificate, diploma or masters degree.

Student life

Accommodation

Academic support

Student views

Advice for ...

International applicants

European Union applicants

Online students

New students

Quick links

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Terms and Conditions of Admissions

Request a postgraduate prospectus

Our postgraduate guide offers an introduction and overview to postgraduate study at the University and includes general information on living and studying in Edinburgh.

Help improve our services

We pay students to take part in a range of research activities to help us work out how best to improve our services. Register your details if you would like to take part.