PhD Egyptology

Our PhD Egyptology programme offers you the chance to make a genuine scholarly contribution to the field through your thesis. You may undertake your PhD either full-time or part-time.

Egyptology at Manchester has a long history dating back to the late 19th century, and we have a broad range of world-class resources which you can use as part of your research programme, including the following.

• The Manchester Museum Ancient Egypt and Sudan Collection : Numbering more than 18,000 artefacts from Egypt and Sudan, ranging from the Neolithic to the Islamic Period, the museum offers students access to a large and well-provenanced collection of research materials.
• The John Rylands Library : The Library holds an enviable collection of ancient texts, including hieratic, demotic and Coptic papyri, which can also be made available to researchers.

Egyptological research at Manchester is characterised by several themes:

• the role of women in ancient Egypt;
• new Kingdom and Late Period material culture;
• ancient Egyptian ceramics and ceramic analysis;
• Amarna Period royal ideology;
• the reception of ancient Egypt from the Medieval Period to modern times.

Egyptology is part of the Department of Classics, Ancient History, Archaeology and Egyptology and, as such, our doctoral students will be able to participate in a vibrant academic environment and engage with specialists across a wide range of disciplines. For a comprehensive list of our research interests, please click here

Papyrological research is also conducted within Ancient History, and projects focused on the papyrus resources located in the Manchester Museum and the John Rylands Library would be welcomed.

At the end of your time at Manchester, you will produce and submit an 80,000 word thesis and defend it in an oral examination (a viva).

Find out what it's like to study at Manchester by visiting us on one of our  open days .

Apply online

Please ensure you include all required supporting documents at the time of submission, as incomplete applications may not be considered. A Personal Statement is NOT required to be submitted. You should select 'Supporting Statement is not required for this programme'.

Application Deadlines

Admission to studying for a PhD is highly competitive, so please allow as much time as possible to prepare your application, browse our research pages and academics' profiles, and familiarise yourself with the application process and any important deadlines.

To be considered for all funding sources, you need to apply far enough in advance of the relevant funding competition deadlines, which are usually much earlier than the programme deadline listed below. For studentships within the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures (including AHRC NWCDTP and ESRC NWSSDTP), you must submit your completed programme application by Friday 13 January 2023 unless specfied otherwise in the funding competition information at www.alc.manchester.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/opportunities/

If you are applying for or have secured external funding (for example, from an employer or government) or are self-funding, you must submit your application before the relevant deadline to be considered. You will not be able to apply after these deadlines have passed.

• For September 2023 entry: 30 June 2023
• For January 2024 entry: 30 September 2023

We recommend all research applicants attempt to find a suitable supervisor here at Manchester by browsing the  subject website  and looking at the  staff list . 

Find out more on the  how to apply  page.

Please note that we do not teach evening classes or offer distance learning courses.

Our PhD Egyptology programme offers you the chance to make a genuine scholarly contribution to the field through your thesis. You may undertake your PhD either full-time or part-time.

Egyptology at Manchester has a long history dating back to the late 19th century, and we have a broad range of world-class resources which you can use as part of your research programme, including the following.

• The Manchester Museum Ancient Egypt and Sudan Collection : Numbering more than 18,000 artefacts from Egypt and Sudan, ranging from the Neolithic to the Islamic Period, the museum offers students access to a large and well-provenanced collection of research materials.
• The John Rylands Library : The Library holds an enviable collection of ancient texts, including hieratic, demotic and Coptic papyri, which can also be made available to researchers.

Egyptological research at Manchester is characterised by several themes:

• the role of women in ancient Egypt;
• new Kingdom and Late Period material culture;
• ancient Egyptian ceramics and ceramic analysis;
• Amarna Period royal ideology;
• the reception of ancient Egypt from the Medieval Period to modern times.

Egyptology is part of the Department of Classics, Ancient History, Archaeology and Egyptology and, as such, our doctoral students will be able to participate in a vibrant academic environment and engage with specialists across a wide range of disciplines. For a comprehensive list of our research interests, please click here

Papyrological research is also conducted within Ancient History, and projects focused on the papyrus resources located in the Manchester Museum and the John Rylands Library would be welcomed.

At the end of your time at Manchester, you will produce and submit an 80,000 word thesis and defend it in an oral examination (a viva).

We aim to:

• further your development as a scholar, and help you achieve your academic career ambitions as part of a vibrant, wide-ranging and vibrant research community;
• provide a supportive and inclusive environment for all students;
• encourage you to publish relevant research and participate in conferences and workshops as part of your academic development;
• encourage you to undertake undergraduate teaching where appropriate, with guidance and support throughout.

Graduate School

All of our postgraduate students become members of the Graduate School when you start at Manchester. It has dedicated facilities for students and offers opportunities to collaborate with other postgraduates.

The Manchester Museum

Egyptology enjoys close cooperation with the Ancient Egypt and Sudan collections of the Manchester Museum, and you will have the opportunity to volunteer in different roles within the museum to expand your skill-set and employability.

At Manchester, you will have a supervision team consisting of a primary supervisor, a co-supervisor and an independent reviewer.

This panel will meet biannually to discuss research progress, participation in conferences, publication strategies and setting realistic and achievable objectives.

Students will also receive support from the Postgraduate Research Officer on more general terms.

As part of your PhD, you will be able to undertake generic research training through programmes of talks, workshops and events running throughout the academic year, exploring approaches to research, research methods and the dissemination of research 

The Manchester Museum houses a wide-ranging collection of artefacts from Egypt and Sudan spanning the Neolithic to the Islamic Period.

The John Rylands Library holds significant collections of hieratic, demotic and Coptic papyri, and the Whitworth Art Gallery holds a large collection of Coptic textiles from Egypt.

Some of our academic staff have associations with organisations such as the International Association of Egyptologists, the Egypt Exploration Society and various Egyptological societies and groupings both nationally and internationally, as well as working relationships with organisations such as the British Museum and National Museums Liverpool.

Postgraduate students wishing to undertake fieldwork in Egypt, or archival research in other institutions as part of their thesis, may wish to engage with these organisations during your time on the programme.

Manchester houses one of the UK's five National Research Libraries - one of the best-resourced academic libraries in the country.

Every student is registered for email, file storage and internet access. If more demanding computer access is required, our specialist computing division can provide high-end and specialist computing services.

We also have one of the largest academic IT services in Europe - supporting world-class teaching and research. There are extensive computing facilities across campus, with access to standard office software as well as specialist programmes, all connected to the campus network and internet.

The Graduate School offers dedicated state of the art facilities to research students, including common rooms and workstations.

As world-leading specialists in distance learning, Egyptology at Manchester also offers students the chance to learn about cutting edge pedagogical methodologies within the field of distance education.

Your supervisory team will help you explore and utilise opportunities for building up your CV through participation in staff research projects, fieldwork, museum exhibition work, contributing to public outreach and engagement, and publishing aspects of your research in relevant forums.

In today's job market, employers often look for sets of variable skills, in particular the kinds of investigate abilities and critical thinking which a PhD in Egyptology would foster. The PhD requires you to assess and analyse large data sets, often assemblages either archaeological or textual which are incomplete or poorly preserved requiring a great deal of originality in terms of approach. These skills are not only useful within the confines of academia or the heritage sector, but also more broadly in business and law.

Whatever area of employment you chose, a PhD in Egyptology will provide you with a number of desirable transferable skills and abilities which would enable you to function effectively on the job market, as well as enhancing your own intellectual and personal development.