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Deadline: Midnight (23:59 GMT), 22nd April 2026 
London, All England
Psychotic disorders—including early-onset psychosis, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and clinical high-risk states—are complex conditions with overlapping symptoms, risk factors, and brain changes. Understanding shared brain mechanisms underlying these conditions is essential for improving diagnosis, prevention, and treatment. However, most mental health research focuses on single conditions which can obscure transdiagnostic patterns that may offer deeper insights into the causes of psychosis. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans may reveal brain structure changes common across these conditions. However, MRI brain scans are expensive, and studies typically include only around 50 participants. This makes it harder to find consistent patterns and understand how brain changes relate to risk factors or cognition (i.e. thinking).
To address this, the ENIGMA and Psy-ShareD consortia— global collaborations—have pooled brain scans from over 5,000 individuals. As part of these consortia, we have recently developed a new method to map brain changes across conditions. We will use this method to identify brain changes shared across psychotic disorders and examine whether they correspond to areas targeted by current treatments, to better understand how medications work and inform future therapies. We will also analyse data from the UK Biobank—a study of over 80,000 people which includes brain scans, cognitive data, and information on childhood abuse, cannabis use, and low birth weight, all known risk factors for psychosis. By integrating these datasets, this PhD will reveal how shared brain changes relate to environmental risks, cognitive difficulties, and treatment targets -ultimately improving understanding of psychosis and guiding future interventions.
Applicants should have (or be expected to obtain) a bachelor’s degree with 2:1 honours (or Overseas equivalent). A 2:2 degree may be considered only where applicants also offer a master’s with Merit.
1 fully funded 4-year John Grace QC PhD Scholarship (MHRUK). Students will be fully funded for four years full time, this includes home tuition fees (studentship not available to Overseas applicants), and annual stipend. This studentship is only available to Home students.
To be treated as a Home student, candidates must meet one of the following criteria:
1st supervisor: Dr. Matthew Kempton
2nd supervisor: Dr. Kelly Diederen
Applicants must complete and submit an online admissions application, via the admissions portal by midnight (23:59 GMT), Wednesday 22nd April 2026.On the ‘Choosing a programme’ page, please select Psychosis Research MPhil/PhD (Full-time). More information on the department and the programme is available at the departmental prospectus page here: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/areas/psychosis-studies-mdres-mphil-phd
In your application, you will be asked to include:
Academic References – all admissions applications require one supporting reference. If the applicant is relying on their referees to submit a reference directly to the College after they have submitted their admissions application, then the applicant must ensure that (1) their chosen referee is made aware of the funding deadline (i.e. 7 days from application deadline) and (2) that the reference needs to be sent from an institutional email address.
In the Funding section, please tick box 5 and include the following reference: MK-IOPPN-MHRUK-2026
Please note there is no need to complete the Research Proposal section in your application as the project has already been set. You are welcome to email Professor Matthew Kempton [email protected] for more information regarding the project and studentship. Further information regarding the project is available at this link https://sites.google.com/view/enigmavbm/home/phd_opportunity
If you have any queries regarding the application process, please contact the Education support team at [email protected].
Closing date – Midnight (23:59 GMT), 22nd April 2026
Interviews will be expected to take place in early May 2026
Home candidates only
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