Applications are invited for this full-time PhD studentship commencing 1st October or as soon as possible thereafter.  This is offered as part of the Wellcome Trust Biomedical Ethics Strategic Award programme 'The Human Body, its Scope, Limits and Future'  (a collaboration between the Universities of Manchester and Edinburgh).

The student will be based in the University of Edinburgh Centre for Research on Families and Relationships (CRFR; www.crfr.ac.uk), and associated with the Centre for Population Health Sciences (CPHS; www.chs.med.ed.ac.uk/cphs/), as well as having close links with Institute for Science, Ethics and Innovation at the University of Manchester (iSEI; www.isei.manchester.ac.uk). This Wellcome Trust Strategic Award is a five-year programme led by Professor John Harris and colleagues at iSEI and by Professor Sarah Cunningham-Burley at CRFR. This multidisciplinary programme follows five strands of innovative research: 1. Human biomaterials; 2. Genethics; 3. Reproduction; 4. Enhancement; 5. Methods in Bioethics

Students are invited to think about possible projects on the sociology of health-related enhancement, and include their ideas for the empirical research in their cover letter.

The project will be supervised by Professor Sarah Cunningham-Burley (CRFR and CPHS), Dr Martyn Pickersgill (CPHS) and Dr Gill Haddow (Innogen).  CRFR has a thriving postgraduate research community and close links with CPHS and the Division of Community Health Sciences (www.chs.med.ed.ac.uk), and the School of Social and Political Science (www.sps.ed.ac.uk).

Applicants must have achieved a 2:1 or higher in their first degree in sociology or a related social science discipline, and preferably have a relevant MA or MSc. The award provides a maintenance grant (£13, 590) and full fees.  To apply please submit the following:
.  A two-page cover letter outlining your interest in and suitability
for this project (including brief project proposal)
. An up-to-date CV
. Two academic referees
. Degree certificate/transcript (notarised copies are acceptable).

Please send your application to Vivien M Smith, CRFR Business Manager, 23 Buccleuch Place, Edinburgh, EH8 9LN (Vivien.Smith@ed.ac.uk) by the closing date of Friday 6th August 2010.  Interviews for shortlisted applicants will be held towards the end of August.  Informal inquiries can be made to Sarah Cunningham-Burley (sarah.c.burley@ed.ac.uk) before 30th July 2010, or Martyn Pickersgill (martyn.pickersgill@ed.ac.uk) before 4th August.