If you like the work we do and have a relevant research background, we are always happy for you to get in touch. It's helpful to include a brief CV in your email, and a short summary of your main research interests - perhaps you liked a recent paper we published, or enjoyed a recent seminar we gave.
We are open to applications from all career stages. Depending on your career stage (undergraduate, MSc, PhD, Postdocs), the information below might be helpful.
If you're an undergraduate interested in a short summer project or a final year student considering doing an Hons dissertation project with us, please get in touch. We have supervised dozens of undergraduate students over the years (have a look at the group members page) and all have done excellent work that has often been published. We take mentoring younger researchers very seriously, and we are committed to providing you with an exciting and supportive research environment.
For summer projects, there may be occasional opportunities for small amounts of funding to cover your internship. These are awarded competitively and are usually advertised around Jan/Feb for projects starting the following summer - so get in touch early.
For Hons projects, we usually advertise projects in late August, and you should receive a list of projects that you can rank by preference. However, if you'd prefer to propose your own project, please get in touch before the summer so that we have time to discuss this.
We frequently supervise Master students either for the full duration of their Masters research (e.g. MRes in Infectious Diseases) or for research rotations as part of the MSc (for example, MSc. Biomedical Science or Wellcome Trust Program in Hosts, Pathogens, and Global Health). These projects are usually advertised directly within each program, but if you have any queries or would like to propose a project, please get in touch.
If you're interested in pursuing a PhD in my group, there are a number of Doctoral Training Programs (DTPs) with annual calls for applications. The process to apply for these is often unclear (to most of us!) so here is a brief outline of the process.
1. Get in touch with me first. Before anything, it's helpful if you get in touch with a short CV and a brief description of your research interests, and why you want to do a PhD in our lab. We can then arrange to have an informal conversation about your interests, your motivation to do a PhD, and how you see yourself working in our lab.
2. Application. After we've chatted and we both agree you should apply, you need to apply directly 1. to the University via EUCLID and 2. to the funding source/ DTP - we will discuss this in detail during our conversation. To apply for a PhD in Edinburgh there is an official recruitment process that students must apply to. During this process, all group leaders advertise projects in November / December that applicants may apply for, aiming for a start in Sept/Oct of the following year (so you need to be thinking about this about a year in advance).
3. Shortlisting and interview. The PhD application process is competitive, and each group leader will usually put forward one candidate only for each project. These candidates are then shortlisted based on their CVs, and some are then interviewed. Only a few of the interviewed candidates are then offered a funded position which covers tuition, stipend, and sometimes a small amount of research funds. There is more information about this process generally here:
https://www.ed.ac.uk/biology/study-with-us/postgraduate-research/apply-for-a-phd/phd-funding.
We currently have no funded postdoctoral positions.
However, I am always happy to discuss project ideas and applications for fellowship or grant funding with you. For example, I would be happy to discuss and support the writing of applications for postdoctoral fellowships including Royal Society Newton International Fellowships (for non-UK applicants - deadline in March); Marie Sklodowska Curie fellowships (deadline in September), or any other similar scheme you may be aware of.
We are especially interested in questions related to:
1) the drivers of individual host heterogeneity in pathogen transmission;
2) the evolutionary ecology of behavioural responses to infection;
3) pathogen evolution in response to host heterogeneity.
But I am always open to exciting and persuasive ideas!