Applications open
Global ACROSS PhD Studentships
Join an international research community working to improve affordable, culturally appropriate and sustainable cardiac rehabilitation across the UK, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Current PhD Opportunities
Four fully funded doctoral opportunities are currently available through the ACROSS programme in Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Cardiac rehabilitation
Co-Adapting Cardiac Rehabilitation for Children and Young People with Congenital Heart Disease
Develop and evaluate age-appropriate, culturally relevant cardiac rehabilitation for children and young people living with congenital heart disease in Pakistan.
Deadline: Thursday, 24 September 2026
Registration: University of Manchester
Research base: Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning
Expected start: January 2027
Biostatistics and trial methodology
Advanced Statistical Methods for Hierarchical Composite Outcomes (Win Ratio)
Develop and apply innovative statistical methods for analysing complex, patient-centred outcomes within a large multi-country randomised controlled trial.
Deadline: Thursday, 15 October 2026
Primary supervisor: Dr Matthias Pierce
Registration: University of Manchester
Research base: Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning
Behaviour change and digital health
Co-Designing Just-in-Time Adaptive Interventions for Sustained Behavioural Change
Explore how personalised and timely support can sustain behaviour change for people experiencing anxiety and depression in cardiac rehabilitation settings.
Deadline: Thursday, 15 October 2026
Primary supervisor: Dr Amy Blakemore
Registration: University of Manchester
Research base: Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning
Health economics
Fully Funded PhD in Health Economics – ACROSS Programme
Undertake internationally relevant health economics research and contribute evidence to inform health policy and healthcare decision-making in Bangladesh.
Deadline: Tuesday, 20 October 2026
Supervisors: Professor Emma McIntosh and Dr Mithila Faruque
Registration: University of Glasgow
Research base: Bangladesh University of Health Sciences
About the ACROSS research environment
Successful students will join the wider Global ACROSS programme and work alongside researchers, clinicians and early-career researchers across the UK, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Students will benefit from academic supervision, mentoring, research training, cross-country learning and wider ACROSS capacity-strengthening activities.
Before applying
Eligibility, funding arrangements and application procedures differ between projects. Read the complete FindAPhD advert carefully and contact the named primary supervisor before applying where instructed.
Further information
Use the supervisor contact details in the relevant advert for project-specific enquiries, or contact the Global ACROSS Research Programme at global-across@glasgow.ac.uk.
Applications closed
Previous ACROSS PhD Opportunities
These opportunities are retained as a record of previous ACROSS doctoral studentships. Applications are no longer being accepted.
Health psychology
Coping Mechanisms and Health-Related Quality of Life in Cardiac Patients in Bangladesh
This project focused on coping strategies among people living with coronary heart disease and their relationship with health-related quality of life.
Registration: University of Glasgow
Research base: Bangladesh University of Health Sciences
Supervisors: Dr B. Jani and Dr Mithila Faruque
Integrated rehabilitation
Development and Scale-Up of a Co-Designed Integrated Rehabilitation Framework for Addressing Multimorbidity
This project focused on developing and testing an integrated rehabilitation framework for people living with noncommunicable diseases and multimorbidity in low-resource settings.
Registration: University of Glasgow
Research base: Bangladesh University of Health Sciences
Supervisors: Dr Grace Dibben-Santillan and Dr Mithila Faruque
Archive note: These projects are displayed for information only. The linked FindAPhD pages confirm that applications are closed.
Funding acknowledgement: ACROSS is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) under Award ID NIHR205540. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care.