Prospective doctoral researchers
We welcome prospective students interested in using eye movements to understand attention, reading and visual cognition. Projects can combine laboratory eye tracking, webcam measurement, large-scale online experiments, computational modelling and open-source tool development.
You do not need to arrive with a fully developed proposal. If your interests overlap with the group, we can develop the research question together.
Current directions
The projects below are deliberately broad. They can be adapted to a student's background and may also be combined with related questions proposed by the applicant.
Develop and validate new approaches to browser-based eye tracking, then use them to study cognition at a scale that is difficult to achieve with conventional laboratory equipment.
Potential questions include how well webcam gaze captures established reading effects, how calibration can be improved, and which new individual-differences questions become possible with much larger samples.
Investigate how moment-to-moment attentional control differs between adults with ADHD and neurotypical controls using eye movements during reading and other visual tasks.
A project can build on an existing laboratory dataset containing 50 adults with ADHD and 50 controls, while extending the work to remote measurement and computational models of attentional state.
Use experimental studies and large eye-movement corpora to understand regressions, return fixations and the relationship between first-pass processing and later rereading.
Questions can focus on when readers decide to move left, what information they seek after a regression, and how these behaviours vary across readers, texts and languages.
Examine how unexpected sounds, background speech and other competing information influence eye-movement planning and ongoing visual cognition.
Projects may connect highly controlled laboratory manipulations with more naturalistic reading, scene viewing or remote experiments.
Student-led proposals are very welcome, particularly where they connect eye movements with attention, language, visual cognition, individual differences, computational methods or scalable measurement.
What the environment offers
Work closely with Martin throughout project development, data collection, analysis and writing, particularly during the early stages of the PhD.
Projects connect with active collaborators across universities and disciplines, providing access to expertise beyond a single laboratory.
Develop practical skills in R and/or Python, mixed-effects modelling, reproducible analysis, Bayesian methods and computational modelling where appropriate.
Several project directions can start from established datasets, paradigms and software, allowing early progress while new studies are developed.
Students interested in methodology can contribute to tools such as OpenEyeTrack and develop outputs that are useful to the wider research community.
Preregistration, reproducible workflows, open code and transparent reporting are integrated into the research process.
Who should get in touch?
Potential applicants may come from psychology, cognitive science, linguistics, neuroscience, data science, computer science or related areas. Previous eye-tracking experience is useful but not essential for every project.
What matters most is a strong interest in the research question, evidence that you enjoy quantitative or experimental work, and a willingness to develop the methods required by the project. Coding experience is particularly useful for computational and OpenEyeTrack projects, but it is not a requirement for all PhD directions.
First contact
Briefly describe the questions that interest you and which project direction seems closest to your interests.
Include your academic background and any relevant research, quantitative, programming or eye-tracking experience.
A strong initial idea is enough for a first conversation. A full proposal can be developed after establishing research fit.
Funded PhD applications often require substantial preparation and internal steps, so early contact is helpful.
Funding
Funding eligibility varies substantially by fee status. The table below summarises the main routes that may fit projects in the group. “International eligible” does not always mean that the full Overseas tuition-fee difference is automatically covered, so check the fee-coverage column carefully. Places and success rates are shown only where reliable figures are published; historical figures are labelled with their year.
| Funding route | Home applicants | International applicants | Overseas fee coverage | Places available | Success rate / competitiveness | Main fit / notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCL Research Excellence Scholarship (UCL-RES) ↗ | Yes | Yes Any nationality |
Full Home or Overseas tuition covered |
40 Latest published: 2026/27, across UCL |
Overall rate not published Central stage: 40 awards from 120 faculty nominations = 33%; departments screen applicants before this stage |
University-wide competition for outstanding applicants. Includes stipend and research costs; applicants normally need at least a 2:1 or equivalent. |
| UCL Research Opportunity Scholarship (UCL-ROS) ↗ | Yes Eligibility criteria apply |
No | Not applicable | 5 Latest central UCL figure: 2026/27 |
Not published | For eligible UK permanent residents from specified groups under-represented among UCL postgraduate researchers. Covers Home tuition plus stipend and research support. |
| PALS Career Development Studentships / Demonstratorships ↗ | Yes | Normally no | Home-rate tuition only | 7 across PALS Published for 2026/27; includes one UCLIC-linked place |
Not published | Combines PhD funding with a substantial teaching or demonstrating contribution. Number of awards and exact terms vary by year. |
| UBEL ESRC Doctoral Training Partnership ↗ | Yes | Yes, capped Max. 30% of awards |
Conditional ESRC pays Home rate; fee difference needs UCL/other support |
2027 total not yet published 38 studentships were awarded for 2025 entry |
6.1% in 2025 38 awards from 626 applications; historical figure, not a guarantee for 2027 |
Strong fit for psychology, cognition and behaviour. For 2027 entry: pre-registration 30 Oct 2026; preliminary application 9 Nov 2026. |
| Ecological Brain DTP ↗ | Yes | Yes | Depends on linked scholarship | Not separately published Places depend on linked routes such as UBEL, RES and PALS funding |
Not published | Interdisciplinary route for real-world brain and behaviour research. Particularly relevant to scalable, mobile or webcam-based measurement; funding comes through linked schemes such as RES, ROS, PALS or ESRC. |
| UCL–Birkbeck MRC DTP / iCASE ↗ | Yes | Yes | Limited Institutional bursaries may cover the fee difference |
18 DTP + 5 iCASE Published for 2026/27; 2027 total not yet confirmed |
Not published | Best fit for biomedical, mental-health and neurodevelopmental projects, including ADHD-focused work. UKRI itself pays tuition only at the Home rate. |
| UCL EPSRC Doctoral Landscape Award (UELA) ↗ | Yes | Yes, capped Max. 30% of awards |
Full UCL covers the Home/Overseas difference |
Approx. 50 2027/28; maximum 15 International-fee students |
Not published | Potential fit for OpenEyeTrack projects with substantial computational, AI, engineering or methods content. 2027/28 deadline: 8 Jan 2027. |
| LIDo DTP ↗ | Yes | Yes, limited | Up to 7 international awards Other places may cover Home fees only |
26 BBSRC studentships/year Plus additional institutionally funded DTP places |
Final rate not published ~800 applications and 300+ interview offers in 2024/25 (about 38% interviewed) |
Four-year interdisciplinary BBSRC programme spanning biological, computational, engineering and quantitative research. 2027 deadline: 1 Dec 2026. |
| CSC–UCL Joint Research Scholarship ↗ | No | Yes PRC citizens / permanent residents |
Full | Up to 5 cross-UCL Any-subject awards relevant here; separate pools offer up to 10 MAPS + 1 IOE places |
Not published | UCL provides tuition and CSC provides living costs, travel and visa support. Additional CSC eligibility conditions apply. |
| Commonwealth PhD Scholarships ↗ | No | Yes Eligible Commonwealth countries only |
Full | Not published for the 2027/28 PhD competition | Not published CSC describes the scheme as highly competitive and selection occurs after nomination |
Includes tuition, London-rate living costs, travel and other allowances. Applicants must meet nationality/residency and development-impact criteria. 2027/28 deadline: 20 Oct 2026. |
| Project-specific UCL studentships ↗ | Varies | Varies | Varies by project | Varies by call | Varies by call | Research-council, charity, industry and department-funded projects are advertised throughout the year. Check each advert carefully for fee-status restrictions. |
| Other national / employer scholarships ↗ | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies by scheme | Varies by scheme | Often nationality-specific. UCL's Scholarships Finder can identify additional schemes based on nationality, programme and fee status. |
That is normal. Funding fit often depends on how the project is framed. For example, the same broad research programme might fit ESRC when centred on cognition and behaviour, MRC when focused on ADHD or health, or EPSRC when the main contribution is new computational or measurement technology. Get in touch early and we can discuss the most plausible route.
Postdoctoral researchers
We also welcome approaches from early-career researchers interested in developing externally funded fellowship applications where there is a strong fit with the group's research. Early contact is essential because institutional selection and approval often precede funder deadlines.