Research Proposal
To apply for a PhD position in Trinity College Dublin, it is essential to identify a potential academic supervisor whose expertise aligns with your proposed research area.
Once you have successfully secured a supervisor, you may proceed with your formal application, and your identified academic can assist you in developing a suitable research proposal for uploading on the online application form.
Requirements in relation to the research proposal vary significantly by School so it is necessary to ensure as an applicant that you are familiar with the specific requirements relevant to your own application. Please see below each School with link to their research proposal guidelines for this stage of the process:
Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
School of Business: Applying for a PhD at Trinity Business School (PDF, 202KB)
School of Creative Arts: https://www.tcd.ie/creativearts/courses/
School of Education: https://www.tcd.ie/media/tcd/education/SoE-Research-proposal-template-and-guide.docx
School of English: Ph.D. and Research degrees - School of English - Trinity College Dublin (tcd.ie)
School of Histories and Humanities: https://histories-humanities.tcd.ie/assets/pdf/postgraduate/Research%20Proposal%20Guidelines.pdf
School of Languages, Literatures and Cultural Studies: https://www.tcd.ie/langs-lits-cultures/postgraduate/how-to-apply/index.php and https://www.tcd.ie/langs-lits-cultures/postgraduate/writing-your-proposal/proposal.php
School of Law: https://www.tcd.ie/law/programmes/postgraduate/research/admissions/index.php
School of Linguistic, Speech and Communication Sciences: Link to follow
School of Psychology: https://www.tcd.ie/psychology/courses/postgraduate/programme-by-research-phd/
School of Social Sciences and Philosophy: https://www.tcd.ie/ssp/postgraduate-research/
School of Social Work and Social Policy: https://www.tcd.ie/swsp/postgraduate/phd-programme/apply.php
School of Religion, Theology, and Peace Studies: https://www.tcd.ie/media/tcd/religion/pdfs/RTPS-Writing-a-Research-Proposal-for-your-PhD-Application.pdf
Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
School of Biochemistry and Immunology: https://www.tcd.ie/Biochemistry/postgraduate/phd/
School of Chemistry: https://chemistry.tcd.ie/Study/current_students/postgraduate/
School of Computer Science and Statistics: https://www.tcd.ie/scss/courses/postgraduate/phd-programme/learn-more/
School of Engineering: Research Proposal Engineering
School of Genetics and Microbiology: Link to follow
School of Mathematics: Link to follow
School of Natural Sciences: Use Template Below
School of Physics: How to Apply - School of Physics | Trinity College Dublin (tcd.ie).
Faculty of Health Sciences
School of Dental Science: https://www.tcd.ie/courses/postgraduate/postgraduate-research/health-sciences/school-of-dental-science/
School of Medicine: https://www.tcd.ie/courses/postgraduate/postgraduate-research/health-sciences/school-of-medicine/
School of Nursing and Midwifery: https://www.tcd.ie/nursing-midwifery/research/research-students-hub/student-research-opportunities/
School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences: Link to follow
If there is no specific guidance from your School below is a template you can use:
Research Proposal Template General