MRC LMS 4-year PhD studentships
The MRC LMS is a core-funded transdisciplinary institute in which scientists and clinicians collaborate to advance the understanding of fundamental biology and its relevance to human health.
What we offer our PhD students
Successful applicants are awarded a PhD studentship that includes:
- A generous, tax-free stipend of £26,500 per year, for four years
- Full coverage of student tuition fees
- Funding for all necessary research consumables
- Visa costs for overseas students
To find out more about our recruitment process, please read this page. To find out more about our PhD programmes, please read our PhD Students page.
PhD positions available
Core PhD Programme:
Engineered proteins to protect plants and animals from parasites
Andre Brown (LMS) & Karen Sarkisyan (LMS)
Fuelling proliferation: how transporters control metabolism in development and cancer
Louise Fets (LMS) & Michelle Percharde (LMS)
The Double-edged Sword of Sex-specific Immune Responsiveness
Matthias Merkenschlager (LMS) & Lila Allou (LMS)
Pluripotency-specific regulation of transposable elements in mammalian development
Michelle Percharde (LMS) & Veronique Azuara (Imperial)
Reading tissue history and exposures using spatial single-cell genomics
Andrew Russell (LMS)
How to find and design bioactive peptides at scale?
Karen Sarkisyan (LMS), David Craik (University of Queensland) & Andre Brown (LMS)
Long-term effects of GLP-1 medicines on immunometabolic fitness
CK Wong (LMS) & Will Scott (LMS)
Spatial and three-dimensional genome regulation during zygotic genome activation
Juanma Vaquerizas (LMS) & Andrew Russell (LMS)
tPhD Programme:
Alexis Barr (LMS), Christopher Dunsby (Imperial) & Susana Ros (AstraZeneca)
Mutate, model, predict: uncovering how regulatory elements encode gene expression dynamics
Vicki Metzis (LMS), Ruben Perez-Carrasco (Imperial) & James Ware (LMS)
Designing peptides to uncover cancer vulnerabilities at telomeres
Christian Speck (LMS), Anna Barnard (Imperial) & Alexis Barr (LMS)
Eligibility and entry requirements
Our PhD programmes are open to applicants of all nationalities.
Applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Hold, or expect to obtain, a first or upper second-class honours degree (or equivalent) in a relevant scientific subject from a recognised academic institution.
- A Master’s degree is preferred. Equivalent research experience (at least one year in total) will be considered.
- Meet the entry requirements of Imperial College London, including the English language requirement.
We welcome applications from individuals with backgrounds in biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, or engineering. We’re looking for candidates who are passionate about advancing our understanding of fundamental biology and its impact on human health and disease.
For more information about the PhD application process or our LMS PhD programmes, please contact our Postgraduate Coordinator at .
Application Timeline for the 2026 PhD programmes
- Application deadline: Wednesday 18th November 2026 (9:00)
- Remote Panel Interviews: Wednesday 6th – Friday 8th January 2027
- Open Event: Thursday 28th and Friday 29th January 2027
- Programme start date: Monday 4th October 2027