PhD studentship with Newcastle Red Bulls and Newcastle University - Understanding Contact Training Load and its Effects in Professional Rugby Union

Home fee status (UK and EU applicants with pre-settled/settled status and meet the residency criteria) are eligible to apply.

Award Summary

100% of home tuition fees paid and an annual stipend (living expenses) of £21,805.

Overview

Contact events, including player collisions and static exertions, define rugby union and set it apart from other field-based team sports. Despite their importance, practitioners have limited ability to accurately quantify contact training load and understand how it affects recovery, adaptation and injury risk. This creates significant challenges to those responsible for optimising performance, safeguarding player health and adhering to governing body training regulations in elite environments. This PhD project aims to advance our understanding of contact training load and its effects in professional rugby union.

The ideal candidate will have a strong background in biomechanics and modelling biological systems. Working within an elite, high-performance sport setting, you will bridge the gap between biomechanical science and applied practice to inform evidence-based contact management strategies.

Number Of Awards

1

Start Date

1st February 2026

Award Duration

The funding covers a three-year PhD

Application Closing Date

11th December 2026

Sponsor

Newcastle University, Faculty of Medical Sciences and Newcastle Red Bulls

Supervisors

Professor Emma Stevenson (Professor of Sport and Exercise Science, School of Biomedical, Nutritional and Sport Sciences, Newcastle University)

Dr Shaun McLaren (Senior Strength & Conditioning Coach, Newcastle Red Bulls)

Dr Iain Spears (Senior Lecturer in Biomechanics, School of Biomedical, Nutritional and Sport Sciences, Newcastle University)

Dr Judd Kalkhoven (Senior Scientist, CircuCare Inc. External)

Eligibility Criteria

You must have, or expect to achieve, at least a 2:1 honours degree or international equivalent, in a subject relating to Sport and Exercise Science. Further qualifications such as an MRes or MSc is advantageous.

This studentship is only available to applicants with a Home fee status (UK and EU applicants with pre-settled/settled status and meet the residency criteria).

How To Apply

To apply for a studentship, you must register and apply through the University’s Apply to Newcastle Portal

Once registered select ‘Create a Postgraduate Application’.

Use ‘Course Search’ to identify your programme of study:

you can search for the ‘Course Title’ using the programme code: 8853F

• please leave the ‘Research Area' field blank
• select ‘PhD School of Biomedical, Nutritional and Sport Sciences (FT) as the programme of study

You will then need to provide the following information in the ‘Further Details’ section:

• a ‘Personal Statement’ (this is a mandatory field) - upload a document or write a statement directly in to the application form. The personal statement must state the title of the studentship, quote reference code PH068 and state how your interests and experience relate to the project
• the studentship code PH068 in the ‘Studentship/Partnership Reference’ field
• when prompted for how you are providing your research proposal - select ‘Write Proposal’. You should then type in the title of the research project from this advert - you do not need to upload a research proposal.

In the ‘Supporting Documentation’ section please upload:

• your CV

You must submit one application per studentship, you cannot apply for multiple studentships on one application.

Contact Details

For further details about the studentship, please contact:

Professor Emma Stevenson

School of Biomedical, Nutritional and Sport Sciences

E-mail: emma.stevenson@ncl.ac.uk

Dr Shaun McLaren

Performance Department, Newcastle Red Bulls

E-mail: shaun.mclaren@newcastleredbulls.com

£21,805 per annum and 100% of home tuition fees paid