Key information
- Funding
- Self-funded
- School
- Textiles and Design
- Location
- Scottish Borders
- Award
- PhD
- Delivery type
- Full-time, Part-time
- Start date
- September
The Design PhD can be supported in any design-related topic covered by a supervisor's expertise and the school's facilities - which include Adobe suite software, traditional and rapid prototyping facilities, and laser pattern cutting etc. While the Design PhD follows similar principles to all other forms of PhD, its distinguishing feature is that it uses design processes as one of its main primary research methods and that some of its outcomes will be physical or digital artefacts - which will be documented in your thesis alongside other findings and methods.
Previous Design PhDs have included biophilic design of health spaces, co-design, exploring the relationship between heritage and innovations in traditional products, design to optimise sustainability and minimise harm, the impact of surface design on size perception etc.
Entry requirements
Candidate criteria
Contact the School to discuss. You should also refer to our PhD pages for advice on undertaking a research degree and developing your research proposal.
Funding information
| Status | Full Time | Part Time |
|---|---|---|
| Scotland | £5,006 | £2,503 |
| England / Wales / N Ireland | £5,006 | £2,503 |
| International | £19,816 | £9,908 |
- Status: Your residency status is usually defined as the country where you have been ordinarily resident for the three years before the start of your course.
- International: 'International' includes applicants from European Union countries who do not hold Pre-Settled or Settled status in UK. (This does not include students from the Republic of Ireland - see above).
We offer a number of competitive funded scholarships for research degrees. Full or partial support may be available for well-qualified candidates from UK research councils, research pools, charities or industry.
View our full range of scholarships.
Why Heriot-Watt
We're the top university in Scotland for graduate outcomes which means that more of our graduates are employed or in postgraduate education than any other institution in the country and we ranked 5th in the UK.
We're also rated number one in the UK for CEO or MD roles, meaning more of our graduates go on to become CEOs or MDs than any other university in the whole of the UK. On top of that, we have beautiful campuses, across the globe, so you'll get a truly international education. Our Edinburgh Campus is home to Oriam, Scotland's National Sports Performance Centre combined with plenty of wellbeing resources, prioritising fitness and mental health for all students. Our Global Research Institutes look at solving real world issues such as climate change and saving our oceans as well as working on the next medical technological breakthrough and the future of AI and robots.
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