Program Overview

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Wolfson Sensory, Pain and Regeneration Centre MPhil/PhD, MD(Res)

Key information

Award:

MPhil

PhD

MDRes

Study mode:

Full time

Part time

Campus:

Guy’s Campus

Programme Description

The Wolfson SPaRC (Sensory, Pain and Regeneration Centre) is part of the Division of Neuroscience within the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN). Research focuses on the maintenance of a healthy nervous system during aging, by understanding how its activity changes during damage to nerves and the surrounding tissues, and investigating new techniques to repair damaged neurons. Our long-term goal is to improve the quality of life of patients affected by lifelong and age-related diseases of the nervous system. Our research is geared towards i) understanding physiological and molecular mechanisms that drive disease conditions and ii) harness our scientific knowledge to develop new therapeutic strategies to restore normal sensory function and to better repair injury.

Currently, our 4 major research themes are:

1. Chronic Pain: Delineating new pathways and mechanisms of chronic pain to allow us to identify innovative targets in neurons and non-neuronal cell.
2. Regeneration: Aiming to restore function after CNS injury by developing regenerative therapies that target the ongoing inflammation and glial scar to facilitate endogenous repair mechanisms.
3. Hearing: Studying the genetics of age-related hearing loss in humans and mice to understand the pathological mechanisms that drive this process.
4. Migraine: Delineating the underlying mechanisms and novel therapeutic targets for migraine and related primary headache disorders from bench to bedside and back.

Researchers in all 4 themes are actively seeking PhD students to join their projects.

We specialise in using electrophysiology and imaging techniques (e.g. patch-clamp; fMRI/micro-PET; genetic indicators of neuronal activity; in situ hybridization; in-vivo electrophysiology) with sequencing and bioinformatics (e.g. RNAseq, microarray, machine learning) on translational models of human disease (e.g. neuropathic pain, migraine, stroke, spinal cord injury, Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, arthritis, fibromyalgia) to better understand disease processes. The results of these studies then inform a drug discovery process to develop innovative therapeutics.

Key benefits

• Interaction with internationally renowned neuroscience researchers both within the Wolfson SPaRC and as presenters at our research seminars.
• Friendly and collaborative research environment
• Partnerships with hospitals, industrial collaborators and other research centres
• PhD students have the opportunity to develop their research skills in the Wolfson SPaRC, and also have access to transferable skills training through the KCL Centre for Doctoral Studies
• We encourage our PhD students to develop their education skills through involvement in tutorials and laboratory demonstrations for undergraduate and taught post-graduate students in the departments of Biochemistry, Neuroscience, Pharmacology and Physiology

How to apply

1. Finding Supervisors
   • You will need to find supervisors to work with you in this capacity.
   • You can search through our research portal to find supervisors who work in your chosen research area.
   • Applicants are expected to contact academics directly.
2. Arranging funding
   • Unless you are applying for a studentship or can self-fund your studies, you will need to arrange for funding before you make the application.
   • The following pages are useful:
     • Funding Database
     • Funded Research Opportunities
3. Make an online application
   • Next you need to make your online application.
   • This application will be assessed by the Admissions team to assess your references, fee status as well as your eligibility in terms of education and experience.
   • Guidance on how to apply can be found here.
4. Submit a Project Approval Form
   • The project approval form (PAF) is used to assess your project in terms of planning, feasibility and appropriateness for a PhD.
   • It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the form is completed but it is recommended that applicants work closely with the supervisors.
   • Make sure you complete all sections, answering all questions fully, and signatures from all supervisors and student are included.
   • There is no need to collect the signatures from the Head of Department/Business Manager and Sub-Committee Chair at this point.

Application Closing Date

We encourage you to apply as early as possible so that there is sufficient time for your application to be assessed. We may need to request further information from you during the application process. In addition, if you receive an offer, this programme requires all non-EU/EEA/Swiss nationals (with some exceptions) to have an ATAS certificate before they can enrol at King’s and this can take some time. We therefore advise applying as soon as possible to avoid any delay in obtaining this certificate.

The final application deadlines are detailed below; on these dates, the programme will close at 23:59 (UK time) and we will open for the corresponding intake in 2026 soon after the same intake has passed in 2025.

• February 2025 entry – 20 October 2024 for Overseas fee status and 20 November 2024 for Home fee status
• June 2025 entry – 20 March 2025 for Overseas fee status and 11 April 2025 for Home fee status
• October 2025 entry – 25 July 2025 for Overseas fee status and 25 August 2025 for Home fee status
• February 2026 entry – 20 October 2025 for Overseas fee status and 20 November 2025 for Home fee status
• June 2026 entry – 20 March 2026 for Overseas fee status and 11 April 2026 for Home fee status

Please note that funding deadlines may be earlier than the application deadlines listed above.

Fees or Funding

UK Tuition Fees 2024/25

• Full time tuition fees: £7,950 per year
• Part time tuition fees: £3,975 per year

International Tuition Fees 2024/25

• Full time tuition fees: £30,240 per year
• Part time tuition fees: £15,120 per year

UK Tuition Fees 2025/26

• Full time tuition fees: £8,500 per year
• Part time tuition fees: £4,250 per year

International Tuition Fees 2025/26

• Full time tuition fees: £32,400 per year
• Part time tuition fees: £16,200 per year

These tuition fees may be subject to additional increases in subsequent years of study, in line with King's terms and conditions.

Study environment

Base campus

Guy’s Campus

The Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine, Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences, and the Institute of Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience are based at the riverside Guy's Campus, next to the Shard.

Students work alongside staff researchers, are supervised by two members of academic staff and overseen by a divisional research co-ordinator. Students' progress is monitored closely and reported on every six months.

Postgraduate training

All students are regularly notified about skills development opportunities through a monthly Postgraduate Research Newsletter.

Career Prospects

Of the last 20 PhD students who left the Wolfson SPaRC, all finished their PhDs within the allotted time and either carried on as an early career researcher (postdoctoral research associates and fellows: 57%), continued in scientific careers beyond academia (38%) or found a career outside science (5%). Of those that chose to continue as a postdoctoral academic researcher, 75% stayed at UK university, and 25% went to a non-UK university.

Entry requirements

UK requirements

• A minimum 2:1 undergraduate Bachelor’s (honours) degree

If you have a lower degree classification, or a degree in an unrelated subject, your application may be considered if you can demonstrate significant relevant work experience, or offer a related graduate qualification (such as a Masters or PGDip).

Equivalent International qualifications

Select a country to view the equivalent qualifications.

English language requirements

English language band: D

To study at King's, it is essential that you can communicate in English effectively in an academic environment. You are usually required to provide certification of your competence in English before starting your studies.

Nationals of majority English speaking countries (as defined by the UKVI) who have permanently resided in this country are not usually required to complete an additional English language test. This is also the case for applicants who have successfully completed an undergraduate degree (of at least three years duration), a postgraduate taught degree (of at least one year), or a PhD in a majority English speaking country (as defined by the UKVI) within five years of the course start date.

For information on our English language requirements and whether you need to complete an English language test, please see our English Language requirements page.