Fully Funded PhD at the Aston Institute of Forensic Linguistics

Prospective Start Date: 1 October 2025

Key words: Forensic Linguistics, Language and Law, Forensic Data Science  

The Aston Institute for Forensic Linguistics (AIFL) is inviting applications for a fully-funded PhD scholarship commencing in October 2025 and tenable for three years. 

Founded in 2008 as the Centre for Forensic Linguistics, and substantially expanded in 2019 following receipt of a £5.5m UK Government grant, AIFL has a focus on language use in legal and forensic contexts. We produce academically rigorous, high-impact research using insights and methods from diverse areas of linguistics to improve the delivery of justice.

Your project proposal can be in any area of Forensic Linguistics, Language and Law or Forensic Data Science. Please submit your own Research Proposal with your application in order to be considered. 

The successful candidate will be offered wide-ranging training opportunities from AIFL and as part of the Doctoral Training Programme at The Aston Graduate School. 

PhD supervision at AIFL is offered by Dr Andrea Mojedano Batel, Dr Lucia Busso, Dr Emily Chiang, Prof Tim Grant, Dr Krzysztof Kredens, Dr Geoffrey Stewart Morrison, Dr Ralph Morton, Dr Tahmineh Tayebi, Dr Nicci Macleod and Dr Felicity Deamer. Their research interests can be found on Aston Research Explorer. 

We strongly recommend approaching your preferred supervisor and discussing your proposal with them before submitting your application. 

Interviews will likely take place the first week of May 2025.  

This studentship includes a bursary to cover the home fees rate, an annual maintenance allowance, and a conference fund of £1000 per year to attend national or international conferences at which you will be presenting.

Overseas students are welcome to apply for this position.

The successful applicant should have been awarded, or expect to achieve, a Masters degree in a relevant subject with an overall degree classification of at least Merit (or an equivalent qualification from an overseas institution) in a relevant subject.

Contact the AIFL Director, Dr Krzysztof Kredens at k.j.kredens@aston.ac.uk.

We can only consider applications that are complete and have all supporting documents. Applications that do not provide all the relevant documents will be automatically rejected. Your application must include:

1. English language copies of the transcripts and certificates for all your higher education degrees, including any Bachelor degrees.
2. A Research Proposal your proposed research, including an outline of the topic, what is novel about the proposed research, your main research questions, and the methods you intend to use.
3. A personal statement which outlines any further information which you think is relevant to your application, such as your personal suitability for research, career aspirations, possible future research interests, and further description of relevant employment experience. 
4. Two academic referees who can discuss your suitability for independent research. References must be on headed paper, signed and dated no more than 2 years old. At least one reference should be from your most recent University. You can submit your references at a later date if necessary.
5. Evidence that you meet the English Language requirements. If you do not currently meet the language requirements, you can submit this at a later stage.
6. A copy of your passport. Where relevant, include evidence of settled or pre-settled status.

Apply online via the above ‘Apply’ button.

Closing Date: 4^th April 2025 [23:59 GMT]

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