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Website Cardiff University
Closing date: 21st October
GW4 BioMed3 offers a funded PhD using advanced MRI to study sleep, brain waste clearance and Alzheimer’s disease mechanisms.
Poor sleep is linked to increased future dementia risk. The SleepBoost study is a £4.3m multi-centre investigation into this link and aims to demonstrate interventions that improve slow-wave sleep can increase waste clearance in the brain, which may slow or even reverse Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology. In this PhD project, advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures of brain blood vessel function and cerebral spinal fluid flow will be implemented to demonstrate the mechanisms by which improved waste clearance can occur. The work will augment the truly revolutionary SleepBoost study that hopes to change the future of AD treatment.
A full description of the project can be found on the gw4biomed.ac.uk
Academic criteria: Applicants for a studentship must have obtained, or be about to obtain, a first or upper second-class UK honours degree, or the equivalent qualification gained outside the UK, in an appropriate area of medical sciences, computing, mathematics or the physical sciences. Applicants with a lower second-class degree will only be considered if they also have a master’s degree (at the University of Bath this must be at least a Merit).
English requirements: IELTS with an overall score of 6.5 with 5.5 in all subskills, or acceptable alternative. Please see our English language requirements – Study – Cardiff University for more details.
How to Apply
A list of all the projects and how to apply is available on the GW4 BioMed website at gw4biomed.ac.uk. You may select up to 2 projects and submit one application per candidate only.
Please complete an application to the GW4 BioMed3 for an ‘offer of funding’. If successful, you will also need to make an application for an ‘offer to study’ to your chosen institution later.
Please note that we may close the application process before the stated deadline if an unprecedented number of applications are received– check the GW4 BioMed website for details and updates.
If you are shortlisted for interview, you will be notified from Tuesday, 22nd December 2026. Interviews will be held virtually on 26th and 27th January 2027. Studentships will start on 1st October 2027.
Funding Notes
These studentships are funded through GW4 BioMed3 MRC Doctoral Landscape Programme and consist of UK tuition fees, as well as a Doctoral Stipend matching UK Research Council National Minimum (£21, 805 p.a. for 2026/27, updated each year).
Additional research training and support funding of up to £5,000 per annum is also available.
GW4 BioMed3 studentships are available to UK and International applicants.
To apply for this job please visit www.findaphd.com.
