Sport

Supervisors / contacts: Dr Gavin Ward

Building upon previous funded research with British Universities and College Sport (BUCS), this research project will aim to support delivery of report recommendations aimed at university sport provision. Following lines of investigation that track the implementation of other report recommendations made for both BUCS and universities will be a key feature of this project. This includes the development of specifically designed policies that drive practices to improve care and safeguarding for students whilst they train, participate, and compete in sport and physical activity. Using established networks, the candidate will work to support the sharing and piloting of best practice across BUCS member institutions and evaluate the adaptation of these practices at a case study level.

The skill sets developed through the completion of this project will demonstrate a proven track record of developing communities of practice and project management in the promotion, development, and evaluation of practices at an institutional and student level. By working to promote, refine, and evaluate practices that support improved social justice, the candidate will demonstrate the usefulness and power of research to support partner working to impact improved practice.

Supervisors / contacts: Dr Ross Cloak

Are you passionate about football and dedicated to advancing the field of sports science? We invite applications for a Ph.D. position at the intersection of Football Academy and Sports Science. This exciting opportunity is ideal for individuals who aspire to make a meaningful impact on the performance, health, and well-being of football players through cutting-edge research.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to contribute to the scientific understanding of various aspects related to football performance and athlete development. Potential research topics include, but are not limited to:

Physiological and biomechanical analysis of football-specific movements

Injury prevention and rehabilitation strategies for football players

Nutritional interventions for optimizing football player performance.

Integration of technology in monitoring and enhancing football training programs

The research will be conducted within a vibrant and supportive academic environment, collaborating with leading experts. The selected candidate will have access to state-of-the-art facilities, cutting-edge technology, and a collaborative network of local clubs.

Supervisors / contacts: Dr Ross Cloak

Join our dynamic and cutting-edge research group in Combat Sport Sports Science at The University of Wolverhampton. We are committed to advancing knowledge in the field of combat sports, exploring interdisciplinary approaches to enhance performance, optimize training methodologies, and promote athlete well-being. The PhD candidate will have the opportunity to contribute to research in one or more of the following areas:

Physiological responses and adaptations to combat sport-specific training.

Cognitive and psychological factors influencing performance in combat sports.

Injury prevention and rehabilitation strategies for combat sport athletes.

Work with a team of experienced researchers, practitioners, and coaches dedicated to pushing the boundaries of knowledge in combat sports.

Supervisors / contacts: Professor Matthew Wyon

The School of Sport is a world-leader in the area of dance science. As part of its continuing examination into the link between dancers’ physical fitness and characteristics, their training demands and dance performance three themes are proposed to widen the evidence beyond western theatrical dance with foci on African Disapora and South Asian dance genres and wheelchair dance.

Supervisors / contacts: Professor Matthew Wyon

Adolescent pre-professional dance schools has to mix academic studies with dance training. The project will look at the physiological and psychological demands of this training and how interventions could possibly have an effect on injury incidence and performance outcomes.

Supervisors / contacts: Dr Ian Lahart

Our past work in our research centre has focused on establishing the effectiveness of exercise as an therapeutic intervention for those awaiting surgery for cancer, people receiving chemotherapy for cancer, and those who have completed cancer-related treatment. We have specific interests in examining the effects and underlying mechanisms of exercise on cardiometabolic health and inflammation in people diagnosed with cancer; the feasibility of exercise in more challenging cancer populations; and the association between muscle loss and cancer treatment-related toxicity.

Supervisors / contacts: Dr Ian Lahart

Our work in this area investigates the potential benefits of exercise to help reduce and manage the adverse effects and symptoms related to polycystic ovary syndrome. Potential projects in this population could explore the effects of different modalities of exercise, such as resistance exercise; how exercise effects may vary according to polycystic ovary syndrome phenotype; and the effectiveness of exercise to reduce insulin resistance in women with polycystic ovary showing signs of pre-diabetes.

Supervisors / contacts: Dr Tina Smith

Parkinson’s disease is characterised by movement disorders which can impact on quality of life. Symptoms of the disease can affect many aspects of movement including the ability to perform activities of daily living, such as walking and turning, balance and fine motor skills. Further research is required to more fully understand how movement is affected in people living with Parkinson’s disease at various stages of disease progression and develop specific interventions to improve movement and quality of life. Various types of physical activity and exercise programmes have been shown to benefit people living with Parkinson’s disease. However, there remains scope to explore novel physical activity modalities and exercise prescriptions and understand their potential benefits and mechanisms in relation to this population from a quality of life and biomechanical perspective.

We are seeking to recruit to projects that will further explore movement characteristics in people with Parkinson’s disease alongside methods to quantify and understand disease progression, and physical activity-based interventions to improve movement and quality of life. Movement characteristics will be measured using 3D motion capture technology, integrated with measures of ground reaction force and EMG. There will also be scope to use additional technologies from our well-equipped laboratories such as accelerometers, inertial sensors, DXA and ultrasound imaging commensurate with the agreed project aims. Analysis of data will be carried out using Matlab and other specialist software, as required.

This is an opportunity for potential candidates to develop their own project around the above themes. The project will be housed within the Sport and Physical Activity Research Centre (SPARC). We are interested to hear from candidates with a strong interest and background in biomechanics, or those from a relevant area of engineering, maths or physics interested in applying their knowledge to human movement.

Please contact for more information.