Sarah Halligan

[From £21,805 per year, plus up to £2,000 per year for research costs and training, and £300 per year for travel or conference attendance.] PhD Studentship at the University of Bath in the NIHR Mental Health Research Group, focused on how stress reactivity develops in young people and how it may be measured and improved. This project explores the links between everyday stress responses and later mental health difficulties in adolescents and early adults, particularly in young people who have experienced adversity in childhood. The research aims to improve understanding of how stress reactivity can be captured at physiological, psychological, and behavioural levels, and to test whether dysregulated stress responses can be modified through small-scale intervention approaches. A major feature of the project is its methodological emphasis. There is currently no universal gold standard for measuring stress reactivity, so the PhD will compare existing tools and methods with a novel wearable, blood-free microdialysis approach (U-RHYTHM) for ambulatory cortisol and biomarker measurement. The studentship will also use Experience Sampling Methods to better model stress responses in everyday life. The first phase of the PhD will focus on measurement science and consensus-building around the most robust and reliable tools for young people. The second phase will move to feasibility and pilot work, exploring whether interventions such as exercise or mindfulness could credibly help modify dysregulated stress reactivity in at-risk youth aged 16–25. The supervisory team includes Professor Pamela Jacobsen, Professor Sarah Halligan, and Professor James Betts at the University of Bath, together with Dr Thomas Upton at the University of Bristol. The successful candidate will be based at the University of Bath within a wider network that includes strong links to Exeter and Bristol, and will join a team investigating outcomes for young people exposed to childhood adversity. Funding is provided at £21,805 per year, with additional support of up to £2,000 annually for research costs and training, plus £300 per year for travel or conference attendance. The application deadline is 21 October 2026. This is a strong opportunity for applicants interested in youth mental health, stress physiology, wearable sensing, and intervention research. For more information, the advert directs applicants to the Bath Mental Health Research Group website and the GW4 BioMed application page.

[Stipend from £21,805 per annum, plus up to £2,000 per year for research costs and training and £300 per year for travel or conference attendance.] PhD studentship at the University of Bath on stress reactivity and mental health in young people. This project examines how young people respond to everyday stress at the physiological, psychological, and behavioural levels, and how those responses may contribute to later mental health difficulties. The research is based within the NIHR Mental Health Research Group at the University of Bath, with links to the University of Exeter and the University of Bristol. The supervisory team includes Professor Pamela Jacobsen, Professor Sarah Halligan, Professor James Betts, and Dr Thomas Upton. The studentship addresses a key challenge in the field: there is no universally accepted gold standard for measuring stress reactivity. The project will explore novel approaches, including ambulatory blood-free cortisol measurement using the wearable U-RHYTHM microdialysis device, alongside other stress reactivity measures and Experience Sampling Methods. This combination is intended to improve understanding of how stress responses are expressed in daily life and how different measurement approaches converge or diverge. The first phase of the PhD will focus on methodological issues, including the feasibility of using U-RHYTHM to measure ambulatory cortisol in at-risk young people aged 16-25. The second phase will move toward small-scale piloting of interventions that may help modify dysregulated stress responses, such as exercise and mindfulness. The overall goal is to inform preventative strategies for reducing vulnerability to mental health difficulties in adolescence and early adulthood. Funding is advertised at from £21,805 per year, with up to £2,000 annually for research costs and training, plus £300 per year for travel or conference attendance. Applicants with an interest in mental health, stress physiology, biomarkers, and intervention research may find this project especially relevant. The deadline is 21 October 2026.