PhD Opportunities
There are many opportunities for suitably-qualified students to do a PhD degree in Meteorology, Atmospheric Physics, Atmospheric Chemistry, Physical Oceanography, Climate Science or related disciplines at Universities in the UK. Brief details and links to Departmental and Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP) websites for some of these are given below.
Research opportunities are also posted on the RMetS Jobs Board.
If you would like your department or DTP to be added to the list, please contact education@rmets.org.
UK Research Centres
The following research centres also employ meteorologists:
Doctoral Training Partnerships (DTPs)
A partnership (2025-2033) between the Universities of Sheffield, Liverpool and York, the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH), the Natural History Museum (NHM), and the National Oceanography Centre (NOC) providing doctoral training in the Environmental Sciences.
AI for the study of Environmental Risks led by Cambridge University with the British Antarctic Survey.
Environmental Research led by the University of East Anglia in partnership with the Universities of Essex, Kent, Plymouth and Royal Holloway.
The Central England NERC Training Alliance (CENTA), is a consortium of research-intensive Universities and research institutes led by the University of Birmingham that are working together to provide excellence in doctoral research training in Earth and Environmental Sciences
NERC Climate system and biodiversity science for Challenges, Risks, and Opportunities – Collaborating in Understanding and Solutions.
It is a partnership is led by the University of Reading with Swansea University, UKCEH, BGS, NOC, Kew, NHM, IoZ, NCAS and NCEO.
The University of Edinburgh, Scotland's Rural College and the Scottish Association for Marine Science led environmental research.
Lancaster University is leading the initiative for environmental research which links the Universities of Nottingham and Bangor, the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, the British Geological Survey and Rothamsted Research.
A collaboration with Cardiff and Strathclyde Universities and the National Centre for Atmospheric Science.
Iapetus is a partnership that joins the leading research universities of Durham, Heriot Watt, Glasgow, Newcastle, St Andrews and Stirling, together with the British Antarctic Survey, British Geological Survey and the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, for doctoral research and training in the science of the natural environment.
Enabling Next Generation Environmental Research and Innovation
The University of Southampton, the National Oceanography Centre, Natural History Museum, British Antarctic Survey and the Marine Biological Association
Interdisciplinary Life and Environmental Science Landscape Award
A large collaboration led by the University of Oxford.
University of Oxford led Centre for Doctoral Training in AI for the Environment.
Centre for Doctoral Training in the Mathematics for our Future Climate: Theory, Data and Simulation is a collaboration between Imperial College, London and the Universities of Reading and Southampton.
Cambridge Research Experience and Advanced Training for Environmental Scientists NERC Doctoral Landscape Award
University of Cambridge and British Antarctic Survey
Satellite Data in Environmental Science – Centre for Doctoral Training is a collaboration between the Universities of Edinburgh, Leeds, the National Oceanography Centre and the British Antarctic Survey.
Environmental research led by Birkbeck, Brunel, Queen Mary and Royal Holloway (University of London), Kew, King's College London, NHM, University of Portsmouth and the ZSL.
Led by the Universities of Leeds and Exeter and University College London to reduce the risks associated with rapid climate change.
A partnership between the University of Leeds, the University of York and the National Centre for Atmospheric Science for environmental research.
Relevant University Departments
Centre for Atmospheric Science
Departments of Chemistry, Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics and Geography
The Centre for Atmospheric Science has a very active research programme in all aspects of atmospheric chemistry and dynamics.
For more details of our areas of research and PhD opportunities, please visit their website or those of the individual departments.
School of Environmental Sciences
The School of Environmental Sciences is one of the longest established, largest and most fully developed Schools of Environmental Sciences in Europe. In the most recent Research Assessment Exercise, the School was rated 'double 5*', the highest possible research ranking and in the most recent Teaching Quality Assessment, it was awarded an 'excellent' rating.
The School offers MSc by Research, MPhil and PhD courses.
See their website for details.
School of Geosciences, Global Change Research Institute
The Global Change Research Institute at the University of Edinburgh offers postgraduate training (PhD and MRes) in a number of topics in atmospheric science. Information about PhD opportunities can be found here.
Department of Physics, Space and Atmospheric Physics Group
A description of current research and post-graduate opportunities in Space and Atmospheric Physics at Imperial College, London may be found on this webpage.
Atmospheric Science Research Group
PhD positions are occasionally available here. For further details visit their webpage.
Institute for Climate and Atmospheric Science, School of Earth and Environment
Projects are available in the research areas of atmospheric dynamics (especially mesoscale meteorology), atmospheric chemistry, and aerosols and clouds. Our research covers fieldwork, modelling and laboratory studies from the boundary layer to the stratosphere. See here www.see.leeds.ac.uk/study/phd/index.htm for more information.
School of Earth and Environmental Science, Centre for Atmospheric Science
The Centre for Atmospheric Science studies processes important to climate change and air quality in the troposphere and lower stratosphere – the lowest 20 km of the Earth’s atmosphere. They are one of the largest such groups in UK universities, and have extensive collaborative links with leading atmospheric sciences groups world-wide. They have a strong experimental programme, with a range of state-of-the-art facilities for field and laboratory measurements. Potential applicants are referred to the Centre's web pages for further information.
Department of Physics, Sub-Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics
Each year there are opportunities for doctoral research in some of the following areas: space and ground-based experiments for observing the Earth and its atmosphere; space experiments for observing the planets; climate change; modelling of the Earth's atmosphere; atmospheric modelling of other planets; laboratory fluid dynamics. For details see here.
Department of Meteorology
The department carries out research in both dynamical and physical meteorology with a broad range of topics covering field work, lab work, theoretical and numerical modelling.
For details of PhD research in the Department, see here.