PhD Modern War Studies

 “We must continually ask questions of the past, even the most recent past, because it holds the key to the future. History must be handled carefully of course, for it is trained experts that must provide the intellectual underpinning for decisions taken by politicians and the senior leaders of the Armed Forces. We need more research and Defence must work ever more closely with academics if we are to make sense of our complex world and so provide practical solutions to knotty problems. We need to know what to change, how to change, when to change and why. We also need to know what not to change. These are not questions for the ill-informed.”

Field Marshal The Lord Bramall, former Chief of the Defence Staff, in an interview with PhD programme director, Professor Lloyd Clark, in April 2018.

The University of Buckingham’s PhD in Modern War Studies and Contemporary Military History seeks to provide the trained minds to which Field Marshal the Lord Bramall was referring, and our programme flourishes with doctoral students currently drawn from four continents and with graduates making their mark around the world. In a world of uncertainty and rapid change, there has never been a more important time to understand why war and how wars are fought, and their influence on politics, economics, society and culture.

The PhD programme is based in London, but its students can be located wherever their research demands and there is a choice full time or part time study. For those based in the UK, full use can be made of well-established relationships with some of the most important research facilities and institutions in the country including:

• The Imperial War Museum
• The RAF Museum
• The National Army Museum
• The Royal Navy Museum
• The National Archives
• The Royal United Services Institute
• Chatham House
• International Institute for Strategic Studies
• The British Commission for Military History
• The Centre for Army Leadership
• Centre for Historical Analysis and Conflict Research

While at The University of Buckingham, students can also enjoy access to:

• The Humanities Research Institute
• The Buckingham University Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies
• The Centre for UN Studies
• Field Marshal The Lord Bramall Archives

Developing Potential

All PhD students benefit from:

Programme Induction

Research Skills Seminars/ Lectures

PhD Research Group Seminars

Specialist Supervision and Tutorials [see below]

Invitations to attend a series of evening seminars held at the Army and Navy Club, Pall Mall and a course research day at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

Seminars 2023-24

Seminar Location: Army and Navy Club, 36-39 Pall Mall, St. James’s. London SW1Y 5JN

Time: Seminars take place from 6.00pm and are followed by dinner.

22 November 2023: Aiden Aslin ‘Putin’s Prisoner-My time as a prisoner of war in Ukraine’ [in Conversation Professor Lloyd Clark] (British citizen who fought as a Ukrainian Marine in Mariupol)

6 December 2023: Dr John Greenacre ‘Scorched Earth: Conflict, Landscape and the Environment (Lecturer in History, University of Suffolk)

17 January 2024: Lt Col (Rtd) Crispin Black ‘8 June 1982-The Falklands War and the most costly day of combat since the Second World War.’ (Author and commentator)

21 February 2024: Professor Joanna Bourke ‘From shell shock to traumatic brain injury. A history of military psychiatry’ (Birkbeck College, University of London)

20 March 2024: Dr Matthew Powell ‘Round pegs in square holes-The perils of Close Air Support in the modern era’ (Teaching Fellow in Strategic and Air Power Studies, University of Portsmouth)

17 April 2024: Professor Lloyd Clark ‘The Last Hurrah! Military raids in 1945 and their operational effectiveness’ (Professorial Research Fellow, University of Buckingham)

Study Day at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst 2024

Study Day Location: The Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, Camberley, Surrey GU15 4PQ

Date: Saturday 18 May 2024

Speakers:

Dr Gary Buck: ‘Operation Market Garden: Cognitive biases and Field Marshal Montgomery’s Decision Making’

Professor David Martin Jones: ‘The Ukraine War and the changing geopolitics of central Europe’ (Honorary Visiting Professor, University of Buckingham)

Mr Andrew Fox: ‘Groupthink and Sunk Cost Fallacy: Task Force Helmand, 2004-10’ (Senior Lecturer, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst)

WO1 Mark Willis: ‘A Perspective on RAF Leadership – 40 Years in the making’ (Warrant Officer, Tedder Academy, RAF Cranwell)

Supervision

Each student is allocated two supervisors. There is a First (or Principal) Supervisor, who is the student’s regular guide during his or her research, and with whom the student meets regularly throughout the year. There is also a Second Supervisor, whom the student may consult on a more limited basis where a ‘second opinion’ on a particular draft chapter may be helpful.

Current supervisors include:

Dr Andrew Boyd – 20^th Century naval history and new security challenges

Professor Lloyd Clark – History of the British Army; military transition and change; lesson learning; leadership and command

Dr Andrew Lownie – Modern British history and espionage

Professor Sir Geoffrey Nice – Human Rights Law

Dr Ife Oakafor-Yarwood – Multidisciplinary approaches to security, the environment and maritime governance in Africa

Dr Gareth Price – Strategy, armed forces, politics and economics in south Asisa

Lieutenant Colonel (retd) Christopher Pugsley – The military history of the Australian and New Zealand armed forces

Major General (retd) William Robbins – Command, leadership and organisational culture.

Professor Matthias Strohn – History of European Armies; fighting methods; doctrine and command, counter-insurgency.

Dr Andrew Tchie – Security, stabilisation and peace operations in Africa

Dr Paddy Walker – Future warfare/rules; military ethics; military technology

Current PhD Topics include

• Retaining Women: A Review of women in the British Army, 1992-2022
• Re-evaluating Counterinsurgency: The British Army and its Methods during the early years of the Malayan Emergency 1948 –1952
• Strategic Leadership and Change: Generalship in the British Army since 1991
• Framing War: The responses of The Times and The Guardian newspapers and their respective letter writers to the UK Government’s narrative framing of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. 2001-2014
• Private Military Companies and the Fight Against Terrorism, 2001-2014
• Criminal activities in Sahel: The relationship between organized crime and terrorism, and its implications for regional security and development
• India’s Strategic Culture: Understood as a Convergence of Western and Eastern Strategic Culture
• The Military Challenges to the Boko Haram Insurgency Campaign Within Nigeria’s Political, Economic, and Societal Contexts (2002-2020)
• The Cultures of Remembrance: A Comparison of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and the Volksbund deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge, 1945-2020
• Sub Regional Intervention in West Africa. An Analysis of the ECOWAS Military Intervention In The Gambia, 2017-2020
• Facing Cyber Conflict: A Comparative Study of the Doctrinal and Organizational Evolution of NATO’s Top Three Western European Cyberforces (Great Britain, France, Germany), 2009-2019

What our students say

‘My PhD in Modern War Studies experience has been thoroughly rewarding and exceeded my expectations. The world-class academic supervision and opportunities have been second to none, opening doors to networks, excellent research facilities and most importantly drawing out my intellectual curiosity to hone my chosen topic’. (Scott Sherriff)

‘After years of asking myself should I undertake a PhD, I decided to investigate possible universities to undertake a potential PhD in Modern War Studies. I approached various universities only to be given a number of different dates for an open evenings. It was not until I contacted Buckingham that I received a warm welcome. Within days, I talked with a potential supervisor who was willing to support my interests. Over the past 18 months, the support from the academic community at Buckingham has been unwavering. The opportunities you have to meet and discuss your work with experts in your field are extraordinary. The team at Buckingham is always willing to support you and answer any questions you may have.’ (Richard Jones)

‘The Modern War Studies and Contemporary Military History PhD programme has been a formative experience that challenges students to develop their ideas and academic skills. Access to supervisors is excellent and support from the wider academic team and library is readily available online and in-person. The programme has been a superb experience that I can highly recommend to prospective students.’ (Claudia Harvey)

Study period

Students are registered initially for the degree of PhD (Doctor of Philosophy), although their status is probationary until the first Annual Review has taken place, normally between 12 and 18 months from first registration.

The usual period of doctoral study is three years, though the University’s Regulations also permit candidates who make particularly rapid progress to apply to the University Research Committee for permission to submit at the end of their second year of study.

HM Armed Forces Discount

A 20% discount is available on the tuition fees for this programme to all serving members of the British Armed Forces (regardless of rank).

More information

Enquiries should be directed in the first instance to Professor Lloyd Clark Lloyd.clark@buckingham.ac.uk Details can also be obtained from our Admissions Officer (London Programmes) on humanitiespg-admissions@buckingham.ac.uk or by telephone to +44 (0)1280 827514.

In addition to PhD Modern War Studies, we also offer a variety of other PhD programmes.

Entry requirements

Applicants are normally expected to have a first or second class, upper division degree or significant experience. A Master’s degree is preferred.

Mature students

Age is no barrier to learning and we welcome all applications from suitably qualified students.

International students

We are happy to consider all international applications and if you are an international student, you may find it useful to visit our international pages for details of entry requirements from your home country.

The University is a UKVI Student Sponsor.

English levels

If English is not your first language, please check our postgraduate English language requirements. If your English levels don’t meet our minimum requirements, you may be interested in applying for our Pre-sessional English Language Foundation Programmes.

Selection process

Candidates apply online, sending in their supporting documents, and will be assessed on this basis by the Programme Director.  The Programme Director or Admissions Assistant will be happy to answer any enquiries, email admissions@buckingham.ac.uk.

Student Contract for prospective students

When you are offered a place at the University you will be notified of the student contract between the University and students on our courses of study. When you accept an offer of a place on the course at the University a legal contract is formed between you and the University on the basis of the student contract in your offer letter. Your offer letter and the student contract contain important information which you should read carefully before accepting an offer. Read the Student Contract.

PhD students undertake supervised but independent research, at the end of which they submit a thesis embodying the results of that research. This thesis must demonstrate familiarity with, and an understanding of the subject, its principal sources and authorities. It should display critical discrimination and a sense of proportion in evaluating evidence and the judgements of others.  A PhD thesis must embody an original contribution to the knowledge of the discipline either by the discovery of new knowledge or by the exercise of a new and independent critical approach.

Teaching methods

Candidates spend a considerable part of their studies undertaking supervised research, at the end of which they submit a thesis embodying the results of that research. This thesis must demonstrate familiarity with, and an understanding of the subject, its principal sources and authorities. It should display critical discrimination and a sense of proportion in evaluating evidence and the judgements of others. The subject should be dealt with in a competent and scholarly manner.

The University’s Course Directors, students’ supervisors, and the Research Officer and Tutor for Graduate Students are available to discuss students’ post-graduation plans and how they may utilise most effectively the skills acquired during their studies.

The University reserves the right to increase course fees annually in line with inflation linked to the Retail Price Index (RPI). If the University intends to increase your course fees it will notify you via email of this as soon as reasonably practicable.

Course fees do not include additional costs such as books, equipment, writing up fees and other ancillary charges. Where applicable, these additional costs will be made clear.

Postgraduate loan scheme

A system of postgraduate loans for Masters’ degrees in the UK is supported by the UK Government. The loan will provide up to £11,222 for taught and research Masters’ courses in all subject areas. The loans can be used for tuition fees, living expenses or both.

Scholarships

Details of scholarships can be found on our Bursaries and Scholarships page. You should make an application to study at the University and receive an offer letter confirming our acceptance of your application before applying for a scholarship.

You may also find it useful to visit our External Funding page.

Due to the mode of study on this course you will not normally need a room in University accommodation during your degree.

Apply directly

You can apply directly using our online application form – all you need to do is click the ‘apply’ button at the bottom of this page.