The Department of Architecture's research portfolio is varied, covering the vast area between buildings and cities performance analysis, assessment and design. Our research staff bring to this area a rich tapestry of specific interests and expertise which our PhD students complement and help expand.
We are keen to receive applications from prospective students that match both our current areas and individual expertise. We are also interested in receiving proposals that bring new questions to the table.
The research and innovative expertise of the Department of Architecture spans:
Our research reflects the multi and trans-disciplinary nature of architecture and urbanism. It focuses on real-world problems and improving peoples’ lives. We're leading the way to a more sustainable future in response to government, industry and societal needs and we are at the forefront of research on how people and cities interact in a rapidly urbanising climate-changed world.
This exciting 42-month project will be part of the Strathclyde Centre for Doctoral Training (SCDT) in ‘Energy-efficient Indoor Climate Control for Optimised Health (EICCOH)’. The aim of this interdisciplinary SCDT is to meet the needs of the fast-growing green construction industry to optimise building performance and deliver net-zero buildings whilst promoting occupant’s health and wellbeing.
For the academic year 2025-2026, the St Andrew's Society for the State of New York is offering two scholarships to Scottish students wishing to study for a postgraduate Masters in the United States. Each studentship will have a maximum value of $45,000 USD.
Preference will be given to candidates who have no previous experience of the United States and for whom a period of study there can be expected to be a life-changing experience. Selection will be based on an all-around assessment, including character, experience academic achievement, and need.
The selection process is conducted by the Scholarship Committee of the Saint Andrew’s Society of the State of New York.
John Anderson Research Studentship Scheme (JARSS) doctoral studentships are available annually for excellent students and excellent research projects.
There are two main sources of funding:
The JARSS 2025/26 competition will open in October 2024 and students successful in this competition will commence studies in October 2025. Faculties will set their own internal deadlines for the competition.
Academics/Supervisors make the applications for this scheme and there are various deadlines across Departments and Faculties, therefore, in the first instance, all interested students should contact the Department where they would like to carry out their research.
We are pleased to announce a call for an EPSRC Doctoral Prize funded by the EPSRC Doctoral Training Partnership grant. The award provides funding for one year of salary to support an outstanding researcher in further developing their research activities following completion of a PhD. To be eligible, candidates must have received EPSRC funding for their PhD or EngD programme, successfully passed their PhD viva voce exam, and submitted the final version of their thesis by the start of the Doctoral Prize project (expected between May and October 2025).
For the 2025 call, each Faculty is limited to two applications and should conduct an initial faculty-led selection process to identify their top two candidates for submission to the central panel. The deadline for each Faculty will be communicated internally.
Our students come from a range of International and national Universities and practices, providing a vibrant jigsaw of viewpoints and bringing to the table really interesting and important challenges. This is what makes our postgraduate research cohort so special.
Anosh travelled from Pakistan to study his Masters degree at Strathclyde. Watch his story in the video below to find out why he stayed to do a PhD in Architecture!
Any student who comes in, they are part of a research community and a thriving research culture, which is supported by professional development programs, research workshops and courses that are offered by the Department of Architecture.
Below you can explore some of our postgraduate students' research. This small exhibition features students at different stages of their progress as well as some more established ‘journeys’.
Heat storage in lightweight structural concrete with a low carbon footprint
Building Information Modelling (BIM) For Existing Building: Proposed Methodologies To Assess Thermal Mass In Existing Reinforced Concrete Buildings
Adaptive Façades for Residential Buildings
Sustainable Management of Public Parks in Cairo
Developing a Transdisciplinary Collaboration Framework (TCF) for Nature-Based Design (NBD) of Sustainable Buildings
Risk Mitigation for Free Port Settlement Planning and Development in the Context of Global Trade Network Reorganisation
Impact of vertical farming and its indoor air quality on food production. (Solution for food security).
Cultural identity preservation: a theoretical framework for the preserving of the cultural identity of heritage buildings and architectural identity in a society overtaken by modernisation
Classification and Evaluation Methods of Modern Urban Industrial Heritage Landscape: A Case Study of Shaanxi Province, China
"Instant Cities": Is building new greenfield cities a viable strategy to mitigate for accelerating urbanization and climate change challenges?
Social and Spatial Implications of Battery Energy Storage Installations in Scotland
Culture and Space Transformation – A Decolonial Approach
Adoption of Digital Twins and Outcome-Based Policies to Bridge the Building Energy Performance Gap
The Role of Urban Form in the Perception of Density
An urban management framework based on the spatial analysis of global economies A retrospective of urban form through Urban Morphometrics analysis
Facilitating the Navigation for Older People with Sensory Impairment Through Accessible Design of the Built Environment
All fees quoted are per academic year unless otherwise stated.
Entrants may be subject to a small fee during the writing up period.
Fees may be subject to updates to maintain accuracy. Tuition fees will be notified in your offer letter.
All fees are in £ sterling, unless otherwise stated, and may be subject to revision.
Students on programmes of study of more than one year (or studying standalone modules) should be aware that the majority of fees will increase annually. The University will take a range of factors into account, including, but not limited to, UK inflation, changes in delivery costs and changes in Scottish and/or UK Government funding. Changes in fees will be published on the University website in October each year for the following year of study and any annual increase will be capped at a maximum of 10% per year.
| Scotland | £4,786 |
|---|---|
| England, Wales & Northern Ireland | £4,786 |
| Republic of Ireland |
If you are an Irish citizen and have been ordinary resident in the Republic of Ireland for the three years prior to the relevant date, and will be coming to Scotland for Educational purposes only, you will meet the criteria of England, Wales & Northern Ireland fee status. For more information and advice on tuition fee status, you can visit the UKCISA - International student advice and guidance - Scotland: fee status webpage. Find out more about the University of Strathclyde's fee assessments process. |
| International | £23,850 |
| Funding | Each studentship covers the tuition fee for Scottish/EU students, or international fee for many awards, and provides a maintenance grant of at least £13,836 a year, for up to three and a half years. Take a look at our funding your postgraduate research web page for funding information. You can also view our scholarships search for further funding opportunities. |
| Postgraduate research opportunities | Search for all funded and non-funded postgraduate research opportunities. |
| Additional costs | International students may have associated visa and immigration costs. Please see student visa guidance for more information. |
Please note: the fees shown are annual and may be subject to an increase each year.
My journey at Strathclyde University is not only about facilities, courses, and awards, it is about challenges and opportunities that only come through thoughtful, talented, friendly, and outstanding people. I wholeheartedly encourage you to join our PhD programme. You will have incomparable lifetime research and academic experience.
| Supervisor | Interests |
|---|---|
| Tim Sharpe |
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| Stirling Howieson |
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| Pieter de Wilde |
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| Grainne McGill |
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| Sonja Oliveira |
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| Linda Toledo |
|
| Alejandro Moreno-Rangel |
|
| Lori McElroy |
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| David Grierson |
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| Mike Grant |
| Supervisor | Interests |
|---|---|
| Ombretta Romice |
|
| Sergio Porta |
| Supervisor | Interests |
|---|---|
| Cristina Gonzalez Longo |
|
Supervisors:
When you arrive as a newly enrolled student, you'll receive a set of inductions organised by the University via the Doctoral School, the Faculty and the Department. These will help you familiarise yourself with the city and the campus facilities, and the process of conducting research with us.
As part of the PhD, you will be required to complete, over the 3 years, a PgCert in Researcher Development.
The University Also offers an exciting range of activities and courses which you can select to build up both your specialist and general skills for research. From this year, with the help of past students, we have decided to tailor it to Architecture and the Built environment, and also include a set of activities aimed at involving you proactively into the life of the Department of Architecture.
As part of your PhD degree, you'll be enrolled on the Postgraduate Certificate in Researcher Professional Development (PgCert RPD).
This certificate is designed to support you with your research and rewards you for things you'll do as a research student here.
It'll help you improve skills which are important to professional development and employability:
All you have to do is plan these activities alongside your doctorate, documenting and reflecting your journey to success along the way.
The University Careers Service can help you with everything from writing your CV to interview preparation.
From financial advice to our IT facilities, we have a wide range of support for all students here at Strathclyde. Get all the information you need at Strathlife.
Students conduct the majority of their work in the Postgraduate Research Suite, where each has a dedicated desk with IT facilities and comfortable personal space. Communal areas allow for research group meetings, shared presentations and discussions, both formal and informal. The University also offers a wider range of teaching and meeting spaces which our students use regularly.
As part of the PGR cohort, you will be often invited to attend wider Departmental events, such as our recent workshop on Urban Morphometrics. These will tend to reflect the research interests within the Department and related stages of development.
Our PGR cohort is extremely active in bringing a range of opportunities to our doorstep, reaching out to the many available across and outside the University, and tailoring them to their particular needs. For example, we have organised sessions on career development, writing effective CVs, Sustainable Development Goals, architectural history, coding, and urban analysis… in fact, we have a fantastic rich calendar of events, again produced and managed by our super talented students.
As part of the postgraduate research (PGR) cohort, you will be often invited to attend wider Departmental events, such as our recent workshop on Urban Morphometrics. These will tend to reflect the research interests within the Department and related stages of development.
Our PGR cohort is extremely active in bringing a range of opportunities to our doorstep, reaching out to the many available across and outside the University, and tailoring them to their particular needs. For example, we have organised sessions on career development, writing effective CVs, Sustainable Development Goals, architectural history, coding, and urban analysis… in fact, we have a fantastic rich calendar of events, again produced and managed by our super talented students.
We want our PGR students to disseminate and discuss their work right, front and centre! This is why are encourage them to attend and be involved in the organisation of conferences, put together their own events, and take part in national or international opportunities with colleagues.
As a department, we offer a contribution toward both conferences, which can be matched by the University Travel Fund, and some support towards student-led activities.
Seabo Morobolo attended the 14th SANORD 2022 International Conference in Polokwane, South Africa in December, 2022 under the theme "Finding Solutions: The nexus between SDGs and South-North Partnerships." She presented a paper titled " Integrating Indigenous Knowledge Systems: possibility or illusion, under the subtheme of Indigenous Knowledge Systems: merging epistemologies."
Dalia Aly attended Sustainability GEN-4 Post COP 27 Conference in Cairo, Egypt in January 2023 with the presentation “The application of facilities management in the management of public parks: the case of Cairo”.
Dalia Aly has also recently won the first prize (Outstanding) in an international competition organised by Building & Cities for videos of their research, to explain ‘why it matters’. Anosh Butt, Madhavi Patil, and Krishnokoli Dutta also had entries. View all the videos at the Buildings & Cities website.
The Strathclyde Doctoral School offers a vibrant, student-centred research and training environment, dedicated to supporting both current and future research talent.
Bringing together all four of our faculties, it is committed to enhancing the student experience, increasing research outputs and opportunities, and ensuring that training is delivered at the highest standard.
As a postgraduate researcher, you will automatically become a member of the Strathclyde Doctoral School.
We've a thriving international community with students coming here to study from over 140 countries across the world. Find out all you need to know about studying in Glasgow at Strathclyde and hear from students about their experiences.
You'll need a first-class or upper second-class UK Honours degree, or overseas equivalent, in any discipline.
Previous research or industrial experience isn't necessary but is advantageous.
During the application you'll be asked for the following:
If you're applying as an international student, you'll also need to provide:
By filling these details out as fully as possible, you'll avoid any delay to your application being processed by the University.
Your proposal should clearly identify:
Research supervisors are assigned to you by the Department of Architecture. Let us know in your application who you'd like to work with, but the Department will team you up with the best supervisor to support your project.
Once we've received your application, your research proposal is passed to potential supervisors for consideration. If it's not compatible with the researcher's current projects and they are unable to supervise, it will be passed along to another for consideration. If they can supervise you, they'll confirm and nominate a potential second supervisor.
As soon as a second supervisor is confirmed, an offer of study will be sent to you through Pegasus, our online application system.
When you accept our offer, you'll receive a full offer in writing via the email address you'll have provided.
Once you've accepted our offer, we'll need you to fulfil any academic, administrative or financial conditions that we ask.
If you're applying as a UK or EU student, you'll then be issued with your registration documentation.
An ATAS (Academic Technology Approval Scheme) clearance certificate is a mandatory requirement for some postgraduate students in science, engineering and technology.
Telephone: +44 (0)141 548 3023
Email: contact-architecture@strath.ac.uk
James Weir Building
75 Montrose Street
Glasgow
G1 1XJ
