PhD in Environment and Politics
Source: https://www.york.ac.uk/politics/study/postgraduate-research/environment-and-politics-phd/ Parent: https://www.york.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/courses/all?mode=research
Contribute to innovative environmental and political research across two departments renowned for the quality of their impact.
Politics supervisors
Environment supervisors
Funding
Our research
UK fees
International fees
| Length | Start dates (semester dates) | |
|---|---|---|
| PhD | 3 to 4 years full-time 6 to 8 years part-time Apply for PhD | September |
By combining the study of politics and environment, you'll utilise expertise across disciplines. You'll uncover new solutions to environmental challenges and how to bring those solutions to life through public policy.
Your research
This interdisciplinary PhD enables you to study and research across both the Department of Politics and International Relations and the Department of Environment and Geography. Both departments have strong research cultures and are highly ranked for the quality of their research.
You'll be jointly supervised by a member of staff from each department. You'll receive one-to-one academic advice, mentoring and guidance. You'll also benefit from the advice and support of other academic staff in both departments who will be involved in your Thesis Advisory Panel and in overseeing your progression through the PhD. Each have their own research interests and specialisms, with political research clusters and environmental challenge areas.
They'll support your integration into both departments and help you build your research presence. They'll also ensure you benefit from the intellectual debates, skills training and social events offered in both departments. You should identify a supervisor from both departments before applying.
- Supervisors in Department of Politics and International Relations
- Supervisors in Department of Environment and Geography
The focus of your work will be an independent, original research project. You'll work towards a monograph-style thesis or a thesis-by-papers. You'll also complete an oral viva examination after submitting your thesis.
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Related links
Ranked in the UK top ten for the quality of our politics research outputs and our research environment in the Times Higher Education’s ranking of the latest REF results (2021).
Strong environmental research impact
Ranked joint second in the UK for impact, according to the Times Higher Education’s ranking of the latest REF results (2021).
Funding
Find funding for postgraduate researchers in the Department of Politics and International Relations.
Politics supervisors
Explore the expertise of our staff and identify a potential supervisor.
Environment supervisors
Explore the expertise of the staff in the Department of Environment and Geography and identify a potential supervisor.
Training and support
We'll help you develop a wide range of research skills, including qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods, to support your growing expertise.
You'll receive disciplinary and professional development training from the department and the York Graduate Research School.
You'll also have access to cross-university interdisciplinary training and experience opportunities via the White Rose Doctoral Training Partnership.
Course location
This course is run by the Department of Politics and International Relations, based in Derwent College on Campus West. Most of your training and supervision meetings will take place here, though your research may take you further afield. Within the Department, you'll also have access to a designated postgraduate study space and social and kitchen areas.
Careers and skills
Our PhD courses are designed as structured, flexible and individual preparation for becoming a professional researcher. They help you to develop the core and specialised skills of a professional researcher which are highly valued by both academic and non-academic employers.
Our dedicated careers team offer specific support including a programme of professional researcher development and careers workshops and one-to-one career support sessions. They will help you to build up your employability portfolio and to engage in activities that will build up your skills and experience within and outside of your research work.
Career opportunities
- Higher education lecturer or researcher
- Research or policy officer in organisations such as think tanks, NGOs, central and local government, international organisations
- Civil servant
- Management roles in the public, private and non-profit sectors
Entry requirements
Admission to the PhD programme is normally based on a good performance at undergraduate level (usually a 2:1 or a First) and a Masters degree with a minimum 60% award mark; at least one of these will be in a social science-related subject. In exceptional cases, the Department may consider students from non-social science backgrounds, where the student can clearly demonstrate equivalent experience and knowledge and this is supported by academic references.
English language requirements
Applicants whose first language is not English may need to satisfy language requirements.
Check your English language requirements
Applying
Apply for the PhD in Environment and Politics
Take a look at the supporting documents you may need for your application.
Find out more about how to apply.
Before being admitted, you'll also attend an application interview. An interview is offered when the Director of Postgraduate Research and your potential supervisors have reviewed your application and are satisfied that you meet the minimum entry requirements.
Research proposal
The research proposal is the main way in which we evaluate the quality of your research plans.
A PhD thesis makes a substantive contribution to knowledge or understanding in the chosen field. When applying, you should take care to indicate as clearly and fully as possible the nature and scope of the proposed research, outlining why you think it's both original and important. You should aim to make your proposal about 1,500-2,000 words long.
Previous students' theses have included:
- Discursive democracy and the use of fire in forestry management in Queensland
- The effectiveness of international environmental regimes: the Mediterranean Action Plan
- Power and common property resources in community forestry in Mexico
- Institutions in natural resource management. Ecological and socio-economic implications for the management of valuable tree species in agroforestry parklands
You should not use generative AI to write any aspect of your application as per the University of York's policy on research degrees.
In your proposal, you should consider the following:
- The title. The title indicates the overall question or topic of the PhD. It should include any key concepts, empirical focus, or lines of inquiry that you aim to pursue. It should be concise and descriptive.
- What are the questions or problems for politics or international relations that you are trying to understand and solve? In explaining these, it will be helpful to spell out what else we need to know in order to understand why you are framing the problem this way.
- In answering these questions, what will your research project do? What will it shed light on or help us to understand that we don’t really understand better?
- Why this project? Explain why your project is interesting, what its broader implications are, and – if you think this is relevant – why you are particularly well placed to tackle it. It is also valuable to reflect on who has worked on the topic before and to provide a brief literature review. Are there any good approaches to the topic, or particular articles or books, that you are drawing on or bad ones you want to push back against?
- What are the sources you plan to use to answer your research questions? These will vary according to the nature of your research but may include study of particular texts, interviews, published or unpublished data, archival or policy documents, or field site visits, among others. Try to be as specific as you can and assess the possibility of access to relevant sources.
- Think about the research methods you will use to analyse empirical sources (e.g., sampling, survey or interview design, data collection, discourse analysis) but may also include setting out the kind of theoretical framework you will employ or your approach to history or political ideas. What prior knowledge and skills do you bring to the project? What extra training may you need?
- Include a provisional chapter structure and timetable to completion, covering the three years of the full-time programme or six years of the part-time programme, as appropriate.
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