PhD Researcher in Sociology

Location: Department of Sociology, School of Social Sciences and Philosophy, Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland

Reports to: Associate Professor Camilla Devitt

Stipend: Maintenance stipend of €25,000 per annum, tax-free, plus full tuition fees (EU/non EU) for 4 years.

Closing Date: 23:00 (GMT), 30th October 2026

Post Summary

The candidate will join the PhD programme at the Department of Sociology of Trinity College Dublin, Ireland’s leading university which is located on a historic campus in the heart of Dublin. The Department will provide all logistic, academic and intellectual support and integrate the successful candidate into a vibrant doctoral programme at TCD. PhD students at the department are embedded in the interdisciplinary context of the School of Social Sciences and Philosophy which also includes economics, political science, and philosophy.

PhD students in Sociology enjoy a wide range of training opportunities. For example, students participate in a research training programme in the department and have the opportunity to join masters level courses (including courses on research methods). Moreover, our PhD students are supported to attend high-quality international workshops and summer schools.

PhD students are expected to collaborate closely with their supervisors and will produce a PhD based on four papers of a publishable standard. PhD students may also have the opportunity to gain teaching experience by providing support within our undergraduate programme (up to 4 hours per week during term time, subject to availability). All teaching-related work is paid separately in addition to the stipend.

This PhD position in Sociology, starting in March 2027, forms part of an interdisciplinary research programme at Trinity College Dublin (TCD) involving sociology, psychology, clinical cardiology, cellular biology, advanced biomedical engineering, and imaging technologies. Work Package 3 (Sociology) focuses on how individuals and families understand, narrate, and manage inherited cardiac risk. Hereditary cardiac conditions are among the leading causes of sudden cardiac death (SCD) in children, adolescents, and young adults. The abruptness of SCD in otherwise healthy individuals creates profound psychological, social, and cultural reverberations for surviving relatives, as well as the surrounding communities. These conditions represent both a clinical and human challenge, situated at the intersection of physiology, identity, family life, and social relations.

The successful candidate will achieve a PhD in Sociology and join an interdisciplinary research environment with Primary Investigators (PI) representing social sciences, psychology clinical cardiology, biomedical engineering. The PI’s are key experts in their fields of research and based at TCD, St. James’s University Hospital, Children’s Health Ireland, Crumlin and the clinic for hereditary cardiac conditions (Cardiac Risk in The Young, CRY) at Tallaght University Hospital.

Work Package 3: Lived Experience and Socio-Cultural Contexts takes advantage of a large collection of affected families which have already been clinically and genetically characterised. It focuses on how individuals and families understand, narrate, and manage inherited cardiac risk, which can have a significant impact on their quality of life and disease outcomes. Using qualitative/mixed methods, we will examine how cultural norms, family dynamics, and social relations shape experiences of diagnosis, surveillance, and lifestyle restrictions. This includes attention to cultural narratives of illness, intergenerational responsibility, and identity formation under genetic risk. The experiences of various social groups will be analysed to understand how socio-demographic characteristics such as socio-economic status, ethnicity and migratory background might influence norms, beliefs, attitudes, behaviour and experience. It will investigate the social origin of norms, beliefs, attitudes and behaviour including the role of social networks and lived experience with healthcare systems. Semi-structured interviews will also be conducted with relevant healthcare professionals to gain an understanding of their perspectives on the risk management of various groups.

Qualifications

• MA, MSc or MPhil in Sociology, Social Policy or in any cognate fields (thesis should be either defended or submitted)

Application Instructions

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€25,000 stipend per annum