Program Overview

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A PhD at Essex makes you a member of the best political science department in the UK. We are renowned especially for our expertise in the areas of political behaviour, comparative politics, ideology and discourse analysis, international relations, and conflict resolution. Whatever the field, politics at Essex is all about moving from opinions to evidence. Always seeking out cause and effect, in our research we cast light on important questions across the political range, and also some that you might never ordinarily connect to politics or government. Our PhD programme provides you with advanced research training and supervision by globally leading scholars. We work with you to analyse and explain significant political outcomes such as war and peace, transitions to democracy, the way governments shape the economy, and the results of the elections. Our dedicated staff don’t just teach you politics; they teach you how to think and write about politics, and our PhD students are successful as a result. They present findings at international conferences, they have published in acclaimed political journals such as the Journal of Politics , International Organization , Electoral Studies , International Studies Quarterly , the Journal of Conflict Resolution , the Journal of Peace Research , and the Journal of Education . They’ve also won a number of prestigious prizes for their work, including the Peace Science Society’s Stuart Bremer Award and the Cedric Smith Prize for Conflict Research). Why we're great.

• Our department at Essex was one of the first of its kind in the UK, and has throughout its fifty years been recognised as setting the highest standard for both the scientific and critical study of politics.
• In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework, we were once again ranked highest in the UK for research in Politics & International Relations – indeed, we have been the highest-rated politics department in the country ever since national assessments began.
• As one of our PhD students, you’re part of an active and prolific research team. Our students attend seminars, present at conferences, question speakers, and debates often continue in the common room, the café, or the bar.

Our expert staff

The support provided by your supervisor is a key feature of your experience as a research student. Your supervisor – or, in some cases, co-supervisors – guides you through the different stages of your research degree. Initially they help you to develop your research topic and plan, and then you participate in regular one-to-one meetings to comment on drafts, resolve problems and to maintain progress on your research. Twice a year you have a supervisory board meeting which provides a more formal opportunity to discuss your progress and agree your plans for the next six months.

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Specialist facilities

We have desk space available for all our PhD students through shared offices and hot desks, with additional office space provided for all those involved in teaching undergraduate classes. You also get exclusive use of a shared computer laboratory of fourteen networked computers feature extensive software for political analysis. Our university library provides access to a variety of political journals and multiple copies of textbooks, e-books, and other materials to support your learning.

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Your future

Many of our graduates secure post-doctoral research or teaching positions within universities. For example, recent graduates are now research fellows and academic staff at Oxford, University College London, Mannheim, ETH Zurich (Switzerland), Amsterdam, and Duke University in the US. Other graduates go on to enjoy influential careers in British, European and international politics. This includes working as political lobbyists or researchers for MPs and MEPs. Our graduates also work in the Civil Service and in local government, for the World Bank, the United Nations, NATO, YouGov, or work in the armed forces, finance, or business.