EPCC: High Performance Computing, Computational & Data Science, Software Engineering PhD

The PhD in High Performance Computing, Computational and Data Science, Software Engineering trains you as a researcher and allows you to develop advanced techniques and in-depth knowledge in a specialist area. You will develop an all-round knowledge of your discipline, and a broad range of transferable skills.

You will carry out independent research, resulting in an original contribution to knowledge in your chosen area, working under the guidance of your supervisors.

The prescribed period of study is 36 months if studying full-time, or 72 months if studying part-time.

Year 1 of PhD studies is probationary. Your supervisor will identify your training needs, if any, and invite you to attend lectures relevant to your research topic. These lectures may be selected from those offered to MSc students or may be specialist courses and seminars organised by the School's various research groupings.

Towards the end of Year 1, you will be expected to submit a thesis proposal which identifies a specific research topic, reviews the relevant literature, outlines a plan of research to address the topic, and describes progress made so far.

Progress during your PhD is assessed by annual reviews, which formally determine whether you can progress with your PhD. You will be required to complete and pass a PhD annual review at the end of each year of study and a thesis is expected to be submitted at the end of Year 3. Following thesis submission, you will be required to attend an oral examination (or viva) which will be conducted by an external and internal examiner.

You will carry out your research within EPCC under the guidance of a supervisory team.

You will be expected to attend seminars and meetings of relevant research groups and may also attend lectures that are relevant to your research topic. You may also be encouraged to contribute to EPCC's seminar series.

Periodic reviews of your progress will be conducted to assist with research planning.

A programme of transferable skills courses facilitates broader professional development in a wide range of topics, from writing and presentation skills to entrepreneurship and career strategies. With the support of your supervisor, you will conduct an annual Training Needs Assessment, during which you will agree and plan your schedule of complementary training.

You will have full access to the courses delivered as part of EPCC's MSc programmes in HPC and HPC with Data Science. To help further develop your skills, you will be welcome (if not encouraged) to attend any areas of these with which you are unfamiliar. Some PhD students also contribute to teaching, training, and outreach activities at EPCC, including as paid demonstrators/teaching assistants.

Opportunities may also arise to contribute to external or internal hackathon events or to support activities such as the Student Cluster Competition.

EPCC is home to some of Europe’s most advanced supercomputing systems that enable high-level grid computing, data integration, computer simulation and process optimisation. These include national-level facilities used by researchers on behalf of various UK research funding councils:

• ARCHER - UK national supercomputing facility provided by RCUK
• DiRAC - UK national supercomputing facility provided by STFC
• UK Research Data Facility (UK-RDF) - UK national data facility provided by RCUK

Graduates from EPCC have found rewarding employment across an immensely wide range of areas including:

• EPCC and University of Edinburgh
• other major supercomputing centres in the US and Europe
• defence industry
• medical imaging sector
• gaming industry

These entry requirements are for the 2025/26 academic year and requirements for future academic years may differ. Entry requirements for the 2026/27 academic year will be published on 1 Oct 2025.

A UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent, in a subject relevant to your project, typically one of: computational science (physics, biology, chemistry), cognitive science, artificial intelligence, computer science, mathematics, informatics, data science, engineering, or geosciences.

We may also consider a UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent, in fields such as linguistics, philosophy, or psychology if a relevant project is available.

You should be a competent to strong programmer in a language (or languages) relevant to your chosen project, typically at least one of C, C++, Java, Fortran, or Python. Individual projects may contain specific requirements relating to their topic.

International qualifications

Check whether your international qualifications meet our general entry requirements:

• Entry requirements by country

English language requirements

Regardless of your nationality or country of residence, you must demonstrate a level of English language competency which will enable you to succeed in your studies.

English language tests

We accept the following English language qualifications at the grades specified:

• IELTS Academic: total 6.5 with at least 6.0 in each component. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake to meet our English language requirements.
• TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition): total 92 with at least 20 in each component. We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
• C1 Advanced (CAE) / C2 Proficiency (CPE): total 176 with at least 169 in each component.
• Trinity ISE: ISE II with distinctions in all four components.
• PTE Academic: total 65 with at least 59 in each component. We do not accept PTE Academic Online.
• Oxford ELLT: 7 overall with at least 6 in each component.

Your English language qualification must be no more than three and a half years old from the start date of the programme you are applying to study, unless you are using IELTS, TOEFL, Trinity ISE or PTE, in which case it must be no more than two years old.

Degrees taught and assessed in English

We also accept an undergraduate or postgraduate degree that has been taught and assessed in English in a majority English speaking country, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration:

• UKVI list of majority English speaking countries

We also accept a degree that has been taught and assessed in English from a university on our list of approved universities in non-majority English speaking countries (non-MESC).

• Approved universities in non-MESC

If you are not a national of a majority English speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old at the beginning of your programme of study.

Find out more about our language requirements:

• English language requirements

Academic Technology Approval Scheme

If you are not an EU, EEA or Swiss national, you may need an Academic Technology Approval Scheme clearance certificate in order to study this programme.

• Academic Technology Approval Scheme

Award	Title	Duration	Study mode
PhD	EPCC: High Performance Computing, Computational & Data Science, Software Engineering	6 Years	Part-time	Tuition fees
PhD	EPCC: High Performance Computing, Computational & Data Science, Software Engineering	3 Years	Full-time	Tuition fees

Most PhD students in Informatics receive full scholarships to cover their tuition fees and living costs.

Others may use a combination of the following funding to pay their tuition fees and living costs:

• scholarships
• borrowing money
  • taking out a loan
  • family support
• personal savings
• income from work
• employer sponsorship

Explore sources of funding for postgraduate study

Featured funding

EPCC holds multiple EPSRC studentships.

• EPSRC eligibility criteria

• School of Informatics scholarships for research students.

Please note that EPCC PhD applicants may not be eligible for some of the PhD scholarships on offer by the School of Informatics.

• Research scholarships for international students

• University of Edinburgh Graduate Scholarship Scheme

UK government postgraduate loans

If you live in the UK, you may be able to apply for a postgraduate loan from one of the UK’s governments. The type and amount of financial support you are eligible for will depend on your programme, the duration of your studies, and your residency status. (Programmes studied on a part-time intermittent basis are not eligible.)

• UK government and other external funding

Other funding opportunities

Search for scholarships and funding opportunities:

• Search for funding

Search for scholarships and funding opportunities:

• Search for funding