Doctoral Project Briefs

Falmouth University invites MPhil and PhD project proposals that align with and respond to the Doctoral Project briefs.

About Doctoral Project briefs

Doctoral Project briefs are prospective research calls devised by Falmouth University staff to indicate our priority areas of research interest for research degree applicants.

Each brief considers our overarching Research & Innovation strategy and has been subsequently designed to align with one, or more, of our strategic aims. It's expected that research MPhil and PhD applicants will emphasise the link between their proposed project idea and our Research & Innovation strategy within their application.

Doctoral Project briefs are expressed in the form of challenges and have been designed to elicit a range of creative responses. In each case, it is imperative that applicants are able to demonstrate an imaginative, methodologically robust and independent response to the thematic area.

How to apply

Responding to a Doctoral Project brief is a straight-forward process, simply:

  • Check out the Doctoral Project briefs: we list them below so you can find the challenge you'd like to explore during your research PhD or MPhil.
  • Check out the Department aligned with the Project brief to understand the drivers behind the Project call.
  • Check out our Research & Innovation pages to understand the wider context of the Project briefs.
  • Check out our How to Apply for a research degree page for key dates, and to start your application.

Funding

We have a range of options to help you fund your research degree. Applicants responding to any of our Doctoral Project briefs are eligible to be considered for a Falmouth Doctoral Studentship or to make use of a Doctoral Loan.

List of project briefs

A Creative Events Management student sat behind a music desk
Creative Events Management_2022

A comprehensive evaluation of triggers and catalysts of Word-of-Mouth Marketing for Event Promotion in Event destinations

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

A comprehensive evaluation of triggers and catalysts of Word-of-Mouth Marketing for Event Promotion in Event destinations
BA(Hons) Textile Design Katie Brigginshaw
Katie Brigginshaw, BA(Hons) Textile Design, woven fabrics.

African Portrait Photography Archives

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

African Portrait Photography Archives
Students sitting and under a fern and walking through Falmouth campus greenery.
Falmouth campus students under fern

ANIMAL/LAB 

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

ANIMAL/LAB 
circuit breaking
circuit breaking

Circuit Breaking: Counter-narration in Situated Contemporary Image Practice

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Circuit Breaking: Counter-narration in Situated Contemporary Image Practice
A group of students seated on sofas in a blue room with book cases and art on walls
Lighthouse school of communication students

Cosy Crime: Violent Death and Domestic Comfort From the Golden Age to the Present

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Cosy Crime: Violent Death and Domestic Comfort From the Golden Age to the Present
Students walking towards a gateway between red brick walls on Falmouth campus.
Students walking on Falmouth campus

Creating a Destination Storyworld

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Creating a Destination Storyworld
penryn_campus_exterior_003
Penryn Campus

Death and Dying: Texts, Practices, and Inequalities

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Death and Dying: Texts, Practices, and Inequalities
St Ives
St Ives

Destination Branding for Cornwall: Crafting a Multifaceted Tourist Identity Through Brand Associations

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Destination Branding for Cornwall: Crafting a Multifaceted Tourist Identity Through Brand Associations
Bafta Costume Design
Bafta Costume Design

Digital healthcare interfaces

This doctoral project develops on existing research that utilises 3D scanning technology to capture ...

Digital healthcare interfaces
Falmouth University student immersed up to knees in river, bending down to view though camera on tripod.
BA(Hons) Marine & Natural History Photography 11
Photo by Adrian Brown

ENVIRO/PHOTO

Based within Falmouth’s Institute of Photography, but working with partners locally and globally, ...

ENVIRO/PHOTO
A white building behind greenery
fal campus building

Ethical, Sustainable, Development and Curriculum Design for the Creative Industries

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Ethical, Sustainable, Development and Curriculum Design for the Creative Industries
UG15 p091: Dance Performance
Student performance, BA(Hons) Dance & Choreography

Expertise in creative making processes – what is it? How do you get it?

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Expertise in creative making processes – what is it? How do you get it?
microphone and audio recording screen photo
Podcast recording

Futures of podcasting and audio journalism

We're looking for theoretical and and practice-based doctoral project proposals which explore produc...

Futures of podcasting and audio journalism
View of busy games academy, students working on computers
Games Academy Slideshow 08

Games Education Landscapes

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Games Education Landscapes
Graphic design work presentations suspended in studio at Falmouth University
Graphic Design show gallery exhibition

Graphic Design Urgencies

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Graphic Design Urgencies
A pathway winds between apple trees in full blossom
Walled garden

Grunts and Squeaks and Squawks: Humans and Other Animals

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Grunts and Squeaks and Squawks: Humans and Other Animals
Riviere
Riviere

Housing community resilience

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Housing community resilience
Two students walking past a large building on Penryn Campus
Two students walking on Penryn Campus

Investigating Factors Associated with the Propensity for Sustainable Entrepreneurship

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Investigating Factors Associated with the Propensity for Sustainable Entrepreneurship
Picturesque buildings on Falmouth High street.
Falmouth Town High Street

Investigating the success of SMEs in rural locations

This project builds upon existing staff research on the importance that SMEs contribute to the econo...

Investigating the success of SMEs in rural locations
Facilities: Penryn Campus 2
Penryn Campus

Kernow Computes

This research will help provide an evidence-led approach to computing education in secondary-level s...

Kernow Computes
Landscape shot of the Cornish coast - the ocean and cliffs are visible
120 years landscape 2

Landscape stories: diverse narratives and perspectives for landscape justice

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Landscape stories: diverse narratives and perspectives for landscape justice
View down onto Penryn campus foyer and people walking and chatting.
Birds Eye Penryn Campus

Living Heritage and the Ethics of Participation

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Living Heritage and the Ethics of Participation
Birds eye shot of the Games academy
Game Jam

Ludomancy: The Magic of Play

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Ludomancy: The Magic of Play
LAAA Deaf attendees using haptic floor (1).jpg
LAAA Deaf attendees using haptic floor (1).jpg

Musical Responses to Haptic Technologies (MRHT)

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Musical Responses to Haptic Technologies (MRHT)
Barney Wilczak Restored Forest
Barney Wilczak- restored forest at dawn, Kenya.

Nature, Magic, and Myth: The Dark Arts in Cornish Writing

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Nature, Magic, and Myth: The Dark Arts in Cornish Writing
Art student working in studio with large window on Falmouth campus and person walking past and looking in.
UG14 Page 023: Fine Art Studio
Art studio, Falmouth Campus

Radical Spaces of Making

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Radical Spaces of Making
Fine Art summer shows 2023 work by Deborah Bunce
Fine Art summer shows 2023 work by Deborah Bunce

Work by Deborah Bunce

Re-thinking diagnosis: an artistic approach to diagnosis in mental health

The aim of this practice-led research project is to contribute to existing knowledge surrounding...

Re-thinking diagnosis: an artistic approach to diagnosis in mental health
Students sit and read on the grass outside the Stannary
Students on grass

Right support, right place, right time: Effective transitions for SEND students

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Right support, right place, right time: Effective transitions for SEND students
Social Sustainability
Social Sustainability

Social Sustainability: Convergence between theory and practice at place-based events

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Social Sustainability: Convergence between theory and practice at place-based events
Edit Page Sonic Political Agency and the Environment
Edit Page Sonic Political Agency and the Environment

Sonic Political Agency and the Environment

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Sonic Political Agency and the Environment
Two students talking in the Lighthouse
Lighthouse_01

Sport Literature: Body, Society, Self

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Sport Literature: Body, Society, Self
Surfer inside the tube of a wave
Surfer on wave

Surfing & Sustainability

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Surfing & Sustainability
Student at mixing deck adjusting controls
Creative Music Technology_Main

Sustainable Practice in the Music Business

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Sustainable Practice in the Music Business
Panoramic view of Penryn Campus with buildings and trees
Penryn Campus Pano 2021

Textiles and Sustainable New Technology as a form of protection and shelter in natural disaster and conflict settings: A Design Response

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Textiles and Sustainable New Technology as a form of protection and shelter in natural disaster and conflict settings: A Design Response
Aerial view of an estuary with sandy beaches and fields
Sustainable Tourism Management_2022

The Ethics of Dark Tourism

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

The Ethics of Dark Tourism
Student on cliffs
Student on cliffs

The Role of Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in supporting sustainable business in Cornwall

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

The Role of Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in supporting sustainable business in Cornwall
Business Students Banner Image
Business Students Banner Image

The role of entrepreneurship to accomplish sustainable tourism

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

The role of entrepreneurship to accomplish sustainable tourism
Facilities: Fashion Textiles 2
Fashion & Textiles Institute facilities

Unseen: examining underwear dress techniques and practices around the Textiles and Dress Collection’s Men’s Bodywear Collection and/or Ivy Leaf Corsetry Collection

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

Unseen: examining underwear dress techniques and practices around the Textiles and Dress Collection’s Men’s Bodywear Collection and/or Ivy Leaf Corsetry Collection
An image of a large garden on a sunny day
Fox Hill

‘Colliding voices’: Discovering, Transforming and Enacting Cornwall’s Poetics

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

‘Colliding voices’: Discovering, Transforming and Enacting Cornwall’s Poetics
School of Film & Television 15 - Set

‘Speak up’: Screen & Identity

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of resea...

‘Speak up’: Screen & Identity