University of Reading PhD Studentship in Geography and Environmental Science 2026

This fully funded Studentship focuses on exploring the "Vegetation-fire interactions in Africa during the Holocene". 

The goal of the PhD is to reconstruct vegetation and wildfire regimes across the African continent during the Holocene, and to use these reconstructions to analyse the causes of the observed changes and the relative importance of climate change and human activities as drivers of these changes on different timescales.

The PhD project is expected to start May 2026. The student will be part of the SPECIAL group, an interdisciplinary research team based in Geography and Environmental Science at the University of Reading. The PhD is funded through the Horizon Europe grant to the project “Ecological Archaeologies of the Afrotropics (EcoArch)” and the student will have the opportunity to interact with other members of the project based in the University of Oslo, Penn State University, and research centres across Africa. Although the PhD is computationally based, there may also be opportunities to participate in EcoArch fieldwork activities.

Table of Content

• Summary
• Benefits
• Requirements
• Application Deadline
• How To Apply

Summary

• Application DeadlineMarch 15, 2026
• Study LevelPhD
• SponsorUniversity of Reading
• City to studyReading
• School to studyUniversity of Reading
• Course to studyEnvironmental Science , Geography , Geography and Environment
• Eligible CountryAll Countries

Benefits

Funding for 3.5 years, stipend (£20,780 p.a) and international fees via Horizon Europe, Synergy grant “Ecological Archaeologies of the Afrotropics (EcoArch)”, project 101224871

Requirements

• Open to students worldwide.
• Applicants should have a good bachelor’s degree (minimum of a UK Upper Second (2:1) or equivalent)/master’s degree in environmental sciences or a related discipline.

Check also:
Free Ongoing Fully Funded Scholarships Guide 2026 (Download Now)

Application Deadline

March 15, 2026

How To Apply

Are you qualified and interested in this opportunity? Kindly go to University of Reading on risis.reading.ac.uk to apply

• 1) Please quote the reference ‘DRC26-007’ in the ‘Scholarships applied for’ box which appears within the Funding Section of your on-line application.
• 2) If the application system prompts you to submit a research proposal, please paste in the project title and move on to the next step in the application.

For more details, visit University of Reading Scholarship webpage