Programme in Statistics

The Statistics Section has an international reputation for conducting methodological and applied statistical research at the highest level. Particular areas of current activity include statistical genetics and biostatistics, statistical methods in retail financial services, time series, core statistical methodology, classification and data mining, with many interactions and overlaps between these areas of research.
The Statistics section offers opportunities for PhD research in a variety of areas of statistics, as well as related topics (e.g., probability theory and signal processing). An overview of certain areas that the Section is particularly strong in may be found in the webpages of our research groups, although it is also common for both members of staff and PhD students to pursue research that does not readily fall under one of these headings. 

PhD research can be either full-time, normally taking between three and four years, or part-time, which takes at least four years. PhD candidates fund their studies in a variety of ways.  UK and European Union students are eligible for EPSRC DTA (doctoral training account) awards, of which the Department has a limited number available for offer: these cover College fees and (for UK students) maintenance.  

Research groups:

• Astrostatistics
• Bayesian Methods and Computation
• Dynamic Networks
• Machine Learning, Data Mining and Big Data
• Publications
• Statistical Genetics, Bioinformatics and Biostatistics
• Statistical Theory and Applied Probability
• Statistics in Retail Financial Services
• Time Series, Spatial Statistics and Signal Processing

In order to carry out research in statistics, you have to apply to the College for admission as a research student in the Department of Mathematics, specifying Statistics as your desired field of research.  We do not expect you to arrive with a fully formulated research programme in hand, but you should put some thought into the kind of topic you might be interested in pursuing, for example by checking the current research of the faculty members in the section, as presented on their home pages.  Members of the section are very happy to have informal discussions with you about current research opportunities.

Want to improve your English level for admission?

Prepare for the program requirements with English Online by the British Council.

• ✔️ Flexible study schedule
• ✔️ Experienced teachers
• ✔️ Certificate upon completion

📘 Recommended for students with an IELTS level of 6.0 or below.

Enroll in the course

We maintain close links with industry, and many students have been funded by bursaries provided by external organisations in return for which they spend some time working on projects related to their research.  Other students are funded by scholarships provided by a variety of private foundations, or by funds derived from research contracts. Some candidates are self-funded. 

PhD research can be either full-time, normally taking between three and four years, or part-time, which takes at least four years.