Research Degree Projects

Select from the below research areas to browse over 300 projects that are on offer. Alternatively, you can apply with your own project idea.

CB-7: Research degrees – Studying in 2025/2026

Thinking of studying soon?

2025

Ready to start your research degree in 2025? You can apply to the University of Adelaide or UniSA now before continuing on to the new Adelaide University in 2026. When the time comes to transfer, we’ll be here at every step, ensuring you’re well supported with personalised advice.

2026

Planning to start your research degree in 2026? You can apply to Adelaide University directly. Applications are currently open for international students and will open for Australian students in August 2025.

How to apply

Defence Trailblazer Industry Research Program

Project updates (HDR supervisors only)

Health
Business
STEM
People and Society
Adelaide-Nottingham Alliance

All Health Projects

Adolescence

Affective science

Aging Frailty and Mobility

Animal disease models

Bioinformatics

Biomechanics

Biomedical

Blood cancer predisposition

Cancer biology

Cardiac respiratory and vascular health

Cell biology

Chemistry neuroscience

Child and Adolescent Mental Health

Clinical oncology research

Cognitive flexibility

Cognitive psychology

Computational biology

Computational fluid dynamics

Computer science

Critical illness

Dementia

Developmental biology

Early origins of health

Genetics and genetic disorders

Genetics

Genomics

Immunology and infection

Infant child and adolescent health psychology

Innovative therapeutics

Intelligent health

Machine learning

Materials engineering

Mechanical engineering

Musculoskeletal health

Nanotechnology

Neurobiology

Neurodegeneration

Neuroscience behaviour and brain health

Nutrition and metabolic health

Occupational health

Oral health

Perinatal and infant mental health

Pharmacogenomics

Pharmacogenomics precision medicine

Photonics and applied physics

Surgical and health systems innovation

Translational health outcomes

Virtual reality education health

All Business projects

Corporate finance

Entrepreneurship

Finance and accounting

Finance and business analytics

Innovation management

Strategic management

Supply chain management human rights

Supply chain management resilience

Supply chain management sustainability

Advanced manufacturing

Advanced materials

Aerodynamics / Boundary layer turbulence

Aerospace engineering

Aging frailty and mobility

Agriculture food and wine

AI for space

Analytical and environmental chemistry

Analytical chemistry

Animal behaviour

Animal disease models

Animal infectious diseases

Antibiotic-resistance

Applied math

Applied physics

Applied sciences

Architecture and built environment

Astrophysics

Bacterial genetics

Biochemistry

Biodiversity and pest control benefits

Blood cancer predisposition

Boundary layer

Cancer biology and clinical oncology research

Cancer biology and gene regulation

Civil environmental and mining engineering

Climate change

Cognitive psychology

Computational astrophysics

Computational biology

Computational fluid dynamics

Computer science

Conservation biology (marine)

Conservation genetics / eDNA

Construction management

Early gastrointestinal tract cancer detection and treatment

Earth sciences

Education and science

Electrical and electronic engineering

Electronic vehicle

Energy and energy resources

Engineering

Entomology

Environment

Environmental management

Environmental remediation

Evolutionary biology

Experimental particle physics

Fish ecology

Fluid flows

Freshwater ecology

Genetics and genetic disorders

Gravitational waves (physics)

Human-AI interaction

Immunology and infection

Infectious disease

Innovative therapeutics

Inorganic chemistry

Intelligent health

Land management, restoration, pastoral management

Machine learning

Machine learning and robotic vision

Marine ecology

Materials chemistry

Mathematical modelling

Mathematical sciences

Mathematics

Mechanical engineering

Medical machine learning

Music technology and performing arts

Nanophotonics

Neurobiology

Neuroscience behaviour and brain health

Optics lasers and photonics

Oral health

Palaeoecology and ancient DNA

Pathogenesis

Pharmacogenomics

Photonics and applied physics

Physical chemistry

Physical chemistry and food

Plant synthetic biology

Precision agriculture

Reservoir and hydrology

Theoretical chemistry

Transcriptomics

Turbulence

Veterinary public health and veterinary science

Veterinary sciences

Virtual reality

Virology

Virulence, reproductive impacts, vectors, transmission, natural host, spatial variants

Viticulture

Wind engineering

Wine chemistry

All People and Society projects

Agriculture food and wine

Applied animal behaviour, animal welfare

Architecture and built environment

Computer science

Corporate law

Education

Educational technology

The effect of AI on education

Environmental economics

Equality laws and law reform

Global food and resources

International relations

Media, cultural studies, humanities

Migration

Music

Music technology and performing arts

Political sociology

Terrorism

Virtual reality

Philosophy (phenomenology) Education

Social anthropology, medical anthropology, gender studies, public health and ethnography

All Adelaide-Nottingham Alliance projects

All health projects

Architecture and built environment

Cell communication in yeast

Chemical engineering, advanced materials industrial chemistry

Crop salinity

Global food systems

Intelligent health

Lactic acid bacteria biotechnology

Medical biochemistry

Molecular biology

Non-yeast fermentation

Omics and sensory science

Orchard soild and almond production

Plant architecture to mitigate climate change

Plant roots and the search for water

Population modelling

Public health

Signalling compounds in plant growth

Sustainable futures

Yeast biotechnology and biofilms

Defence Trailblazer

Study with us and you’ll be primed for an exciting position in academia, government and the defence industry.

With a $50,000 annual tax free scholarship, no tuition fees, and the opportunity to work with industry specialists and world leading academics, you'll enjoy benefits unheard of in regular degrees.

Learn more

Explore projects

Further information

Email research_degrees@adelaide.edu.au to find out more information about these projects, supervisor availability, or developing your own PhD research project.

How to apply