Sport and Exercise Sciences: Fully Funded PhD studentship in Sports Science, Performance Science/Skill Acquisition/Biomechanics & Technology (RS914)

Funding Providers: Faculty of Science and Engineering and The University of Canberra 

Subject area: Sport and Exercise Sciences

Start date: 1 April 2026; 1 July 2026 ** (Please see the note below regarding potential later start dates.) 

Supervisors:

• Swansea University: Prof. Neil Bezodis and Prof. Laura Mason (both Sport and Exercise Sciences) 
• University of Canberra: Prof. Ben Rattray and Dr Michael Maloney (both UCRISE) 

Additional project advisors/wider supervisory team:

• Prof. Joanne Davies (SUSIM, Swansea University) 
• Dr Oliver Runswick (King’s College London) 

Aligned Programme of study: PhD in Sport and Exercise Science

Mode of Study: Full-time

Place of Study: Swansea (Canberra optional)

Project Description:
This studentship aims to develop valid and high-fidelity immersive simulations to support the transfer of performance to competitive sporting environments. Immersive simulation is widely used in healthcare teaching and training, and in 2023 Swansea University opened a new Simulation and Immersive Learning Centre (SUSIM) for this purpose. The Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences have been collaborating with the SUSIM team to explore the potential for applications of immersive wall technology to support skill acquisition, training and testing in performance sport. This proposed collaborative PhD between Swansea University and the University of Canberra aims to complement and enhance an existing project at Swansea University that has scoped similar applications across other domains and is exploring the potential for this technology to elicit realistic emotional responses in simulated sporting environments. The proposed PhD will explore new potential sporting applications, develop new simulations, and evaluate the validity (particularly face and construct) and fidelity of these simulations in order to provide an evidence base to support their implementation into high performance sport. 

The PhD is jointly funded by Swansea University and the University of Canberra. Both universities have committed to match funding the project, and there will be supervisory input from both Universities from the outset. The successful candidate will initially enrol on a Swansea University PhD, and when a formal agreement between the two Universities is finalised, the successful candidate will have the opportunity to transfer enrolment to the PhD programme agreed by both Universities. The studentship will be hosted at Swansea University given the location of the SUSIM Centre. Whilst time at the University of Canberra is not an expectation of this studentship, the student will have the opportunity to spend some time at the University of Canberra if they wish and it is valuable for the project and/or their development, but there is currently no additional funding (to that listed below) allocated to support this travel. 

This is a full-time PhD, and is an interdisciplinary sports sciences project, including input from experts in Performance Science, Skill Acquisition, and Biomechanics & Technology, as well as others as required. 

Applicants for PhD must normally hold an undergraduate degree at 2.1 level (or Non-UK equivalent as defined by Swansea University)

Note for international and European applicants: details of how your qualification compares to the published academic entry requirements can be found on our Country Specific Entry Requirements page. 

English Language: IELTS 6.5 Overall (with no individual component below 6.5) or Swansea University recognised equivalent. For further information, please see the Swansea University English Language Entry Policy. 
If you have any questions regarding your academic or fee eligibility based on the above, please email pgrscholarships@swansea.ac.uk with the web-link to the scholarship(s) you are interested in. 

Due to funding restrictions, this scholarship is open to applicants eligible to pay tuition fees at the UK rate only, as defined by UKCISA (Full list of categories for HE in Wales) 

This scholarship covers the full cost of tuition fees and an annual stipend at UKRI rate (currently £20,780 for 2025/26). 

Additional research expenses of up to £1,000 per year will also be available. 

To apply, please complete the entire application form:

In order to be considered for this scholarship award the following steps are also required. 

1) In section ‘Programme Related Information’ please input the relevant RS Code for the scholarship award i.e. RS914 

2) In section ‘Research’ you will see ‘Proposed project title/studentship title’* (Mandatory) 

• In ‘Proposed project title/studentship title’ please input both:  
  • the RS Code, and 
  • the scholarship title.   
• Please leave Proposed Supervisor field blank 
• Please leave Research Project (if applicable) blank 
• In ‘Do you have a proposal to upload?*’(Mandatory) Please select Yes 
• Then upload copy of advert (you can save the advert by clicking print, and then print to pdf) 

3) In section ‘Funding information’ please choose the option ‘Scholarship Funding’ only. Please ensure no other options are selected.  

*It is the responsibility of the applicant to list the above information accurately when applying, please note that applications received without the above information listed will not be considered for the scholarship award. 

One application is required per individual Swansea University led research scholarship award; applications cannot be considered listing multiple Swansea University led research scholarship awards. 

NOTE: Applicants for PhD/EngD/ProfD/EdD - to support our commitment to providing an environment free of discrimination and celebrating diversity at Swansea University you are required to complete an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Monitoring Form in addition to your programme application form.    

Please note that completion of the EDI Monitoring Form is mandatory; your application may not progress if this information is not submitted. 

As part of your online application, you MUST upload the following documents (please do not send these via email): 

• CV 
• Degree certificates and transcripts (if you are currently studying for a degree, screenshots of your grades to date are sufficient) 
• A cover letter including a ‘Supplementary Personal Statement’ to explain why the studentship particularly matches your skills and experience and how you choose to develop the project. 
• One reference (academic or previous employer) on headed paper or using the Swansea University reference form. Please note that we are not able to accept references received citing private email accounts, e.g. Hotmail. Referees should cite their employment email address for verification of reference. 
• Evidence of meeting English Language requirement (if applicable). 
• Copy of UK resident visa (if applicable) 
• Confirmation of EDI form submission 

Informal enquiries are welcome; please contact Professor Neil Bezodis (n.e.bezodis@swansea.ac.uk) or Professor Laura Mason (l.mason@swansea.ac.uk).  

External Partner Application Data Sharing – Please note that as part of the scholarship application selection process, application data sharing may occur with external partners outside of the University, when joint/co- funding of a scholarship project is applicable. 

*External Partner Application Data Sharing – Please note that as part of the scholarship application selection process, application data sharing may occur with external partners outside of the University, when joint/co- funding of a scholarship project is applicable.

** In exceptional circumstances, and subject to the discretion of the University and/or the relevant funding body, a deferral of offer may be granted to the next available enrolment period. Such deferral will typically not exceed a duration of three calendar months from the originally stipulated commencement date. Please note that only one deferral may be considered, and any such deferral is not guaranteed.