Public Policy Doctor of Philosophy - PhD

The PhD in Public Policy at Queen’s University provides an exciting and rewarding programme of independent research with an established team of academics working in the discipline.

The PhD in Public Policy programme is managed within the School of History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics, where scholarship and education are driven by a concern to encourage innovative and critically incisive ways of thinking about a wide range of problems that citizens and governments encounter in the modern world.

We pride ourselves on our global outlook within the School. This is reflected in our wide range of international partners and in the diverse nationalities represented across the staff and student bodies. The School hosts international visitors and speakers throughout each academic year and students benefit from the wide range of national and international topics being discussed and researched within the school.

The PhD in Public Policy programme is an important element of the new Centre for Public Policy and Administration (CPPA) in QUB. PhD students undertaking the programme with work closely with Fellows of the Centre and benefit from their international networks and resources. They will also undertake Modules in their first year from the MSc in International Public Policy programme, including research methods.

About the Programme
The aim of the programme is to produce PhD students who are fully-fledged independent researchers making a contribution to the growing disciplines of academic public policy and public administration. From the outset, students are given encouragement to engage in relevant training, disseminate their work at seminars and conferences, and to aim to publish their work in high-quality locations. The programme culminates in the submission of an 80,000-word dissertation.

Some of the existing research in the CPPA concerns:


• Knowledge brokering between academia and public sector organisations



• Public sector reform in Gulf states



• The effects of AI and digitalisation on public services



• Changing modes of government transparency



• Environmental policy post-Brexit



Important and pioneering work has been published by members of staff and major projects of research are ongoing. In addition, the School is committed to the supervision of high-quality research students in all areas.