PhD / Research Degrees

Our Research Degrees are distinctive because:

• You will be part of an amazing community of students, academics and professional services where you will be supported and encouraged in your studies
• We have dedicated work spaces for our PGR students, so you can carry out your research and writing on campus
• The additional resources available to you include weekly research seminars and public lectures where speakers and fellow students share their exciting and thought provoking research

Research Centres

Contributing to events run by our specialist research centres will enable you to network and work alongside leading scholars from all over the world. Find out more about our 6 research centres.

Thesis Supervision

In this programme you will be carefully supervised by an individual specialist in your chosen area of study and supported to generate a research question and produce a thesis. With over forty members of staff we are able to offer research supervision over a wide range of legal topics. Before you apply, refer to our staff pages to find members of staff with expertise in your intended research area.

You are welcome to contact our staff directly to see if they can provide any advice on your proposed research, but will still need to submit an application and meet the selection criteria set by the University before any offer is made.

Director of Postgraduate Research - Dr Daniel Matthews

Daniel's primary interests lie in theories of sovereignty and political community. His most recent work examines how both orthodox and critical approaches to sovereignty are being challenged by planetary climatic change and the onset of the Anthropocene. Taking a transdisciplinary approach, his work draws on critical legal theory, political theory, literature, aesthetics and ecology. Find out more about Dr Daniel Matthews.

You will attend a research methods and theory course and meet with your supervisor at least once a month throughout your degree.

Each year postgraduate research students get the benefit of feedback and presentation opportunities, skills workshops, as well as a series of 'masterclass' events led by world-leading researchers. These workshops and events support a self critical assessment of research methods and techniques and allow you to learn from others working in your field. In addition, you will be invited to attend research seminars, public lectures and other training opportunities within the Law School and across the University.

On the PhD Programme, you will be encouraged after your first year to attend a research student seminar, and present your work-in-progress papers and participate in critical discussion of theoretical texts. With permission, you may attend some taught modules offered by the school or other departments.

Our research training will help you:

• Evolve into a well-rounded socio-legal scholar, with the skills and experience necessary to gain employment in tertiary education, or in a national or international organisation
• Develop an informed and wide-ranging understanding of the research process
• Gain an understanding of relevant research methods
• Situate socio-legal research within a theoretical framework which draws upon key philosophical approaches to the social sciences
• To frame and refine effective research proposals
• Enhance your study, presentation and writing skills

Hear from some of our students about their research.