Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences PhDs
By undertaking a PhD at Loughborough, you will be joining the number 1 ranked university in the world for sport related subjects (QS World University Rankings 2017-2022).
The quality of research across the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences has seen Loughborough University ranked 1st in the UK for research power (GPA x volume) in Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.
Our internationally renowned academic staff have expertise in a wide variety of areas, ensuring our diverse research portfolio covers: biomechanics, cellular and molecular biology, coaching, economics, medicine, nutrition, pedagogy, physiology, psychology, sociology, sport management, and more.
Our current PhD opportunities
Our current PhD opportunities are listed below, these projects already have a specified topic and allocated supervisor. Discover more about the project, funding and how to apply by clicking on the opportunity that sparks your interest.
-
PhD Carbon emissions from grass roots to youth sport: a gendered analysis
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Funded
Application deadline: 28 April 2023
-
PhD Drivers of malnutrition in women, infants and young children in Peru
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: October 2023, January 2024
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Physiological and nutritional interventions for effective acclimation strategies in a climate-changed world
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Funded
Application deadline: 26 April 2023
-
PhD Testing the efficacy and mechanisms of the 'gravitostat' as a tool to support long-term weight loss in people with obesity
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode:
Start date: October 2022, January 2023, April 2023, July 2023, October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 July 2023
-
PhD Outsourced and exclusive? Examining young people’s experiences of outsourced physical education
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 July 2023
-
PhD Boys will be boys? Exploring boys’ embodied identities within physical education
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Forest School for young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) in secondary schools
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Geography and Environment
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: April 2023, July 2023, October 2023, January 2024
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 July 2023
-
PhD Gut microbiome-derived metabolites and their protective effect on metabolic health and immunity
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: July 2023, January 2024
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Practical real-world optimization of heat acclimation/acclimatization and/or cooling for elite sport training and competition
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: April 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Investigating skeletal muscle sex differences and the effects of gender transition
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: April 2023, July 2023, October 2023, January 2024
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 December 2023
-
PhD Investigating the effects of milk lipid bioactives in cardiometabolic and cognitive health
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Modelling skeletal response to exercise
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: July 2023, October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Musculoskeletal loading from a minimal wearable sensor system during rehabilitation
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: July 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 7 May 2023
-
PhD Examining the potential of Physical Education for promoting Social and Emotional Learning
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: January 2023, April 2023, July 2023, October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 July 2023
-
PhD Co-constructing ‘Pedagogies for Voice’ within Physical Education
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: January 2023, April 2023, July 2023, October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 July 2023
-
PhD Physical literacy, the early years, and the importance of the outdoor natural learning environment
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: January 2023, April 2023, July 2023, October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 July 2023
-
PhD Physiological signatures of task failure during high-intensity exercise
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Genetic mechanisms for postprandial metabolism across the lifespan
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: July 2023, October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 May 2023
-
PhD Teacher - pupil health and well-being and the role of schools in enhancing both
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 July 2023
-
PhD Reimagining physical education and school sport for inclusion
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: January 2023, April 2023, July 2023, October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 July 2023
-
PhD Working towards improved musculoskeletal rehabilitation outcomes following Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) syndrome in endurance athletes
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: July 2023, October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 7 May 2023
-
PhD Spinal cord injury and remote ischaemic conditioning: Improving physical capacity, health and wellbeing during inpatient rehabilitation
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Sport and the remaking of ‘race’ during the Black Lives Matter Movement
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-timePart-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Self-funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
-
PhD Investigating the relationship between differences in sensory processing and paranormal experiences
Campus: Loughborough
Department(s): Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Study mode: Full-time
Start date: October 2023
Funding status Funded
Application deadline: 31 March 2023
Can't find what you're looking for? Register for email alerts and we'll notify you when opportunities become available in your chosen research area.
Why study a research degree with us
Excellent facilities
Benefit from more than 50 dedicated research and teaching laboratories for the study of exercise physiology, DNA analysis, muscle function, disability sport, nutrition, sleep and recovery, and more.
Your personal development
Receive support from at least two academic supervisors with different, but related, research expertise, and work with a range of academic staff and students through research forums, seminars and involvement in research groups.
Access to the experts
Benefit from expertise at: the Leicester Biomedical Research Centre; the National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine; the Peter Harrison Centre for Disability Sport; and The Centre for Lifestyle Medicine and Behaviour.
A vibrant community
Join our thriving PhD population of around 220 full-time and part-time UK and international research students, and be surrounded by elite athletes, sports organisations and national governing bodies on campus.
Meet our supervisors and researchers
Meet Dr Stacy Clemes
Dr Stacy Clemes, a Reader in Active Living and Public Health in the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences talks about her research, which centres around encouraging people to sit less and move more.
Further information
For further information about funding and writing your research proposal, please see our dedicated web pages below.
