Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) PhD scholarship in the School of Health and Social Care: Adapting and evaluating Daylight anxiety and worry app in diverse perinatal populations, at Sheffield Hallam University, commencing 1 October 2025.

The scholarship is for 3.5 years full-time study and covers home PhD fees, currently £4,786, pays an annual stipend at the standard Sheffield Hallam PhD stipend rate (this is aligned with the net Real Living Wage and the current rate for academic year 2024/25 is £20,974 per annum). This stipend payment will increase annually based on the living wage rate for the duration of the scholarship. 

GTA scholarships are designed to develop the next generation of academics, providing structured opportunities for training, development and practical experience in learning, teaching and assessment or other areas of academic practice. As part of this academic development, GTA scholarship holders will receive training and undertake up to 180 hours’ teaching-related activity, or other academic practice, per academic year. This activity forms part of the scholarship holder’s training. There is no additional payment for it. See the Overview of the Graduate Teaching Assistant scheme for applicants for more information. 

Project Title: Adapting and evaluating Daylight anxiety and worry app in diverse perinatal populations

 About the project

Women from migrant backgrounds have been demonstrated to have a higher incidence of poor perinatal mental health especially anxiety (Marvin-Dowle & Soltani 2023). Additionally, Black and Asian women feel they do not have access to appropriate support and are less likely to engage with perinatal mental health services (Watson & Soltani 2019, Watson et al 2019).

One potential solution is Daylight. This is a Digital Mental Health Treatment for anxiety and worry, which is a fully automated CBT-based program developed specifically for smartphone delivery. It is a voice-led experience in which a virtual therapist guides the user through CBT skills while providing empathic support and personalised feedback. It includes four core modules around stimulus control, applied relaxation, cognitive restructuring, and imaginal exposure. Robust randomised controlled trials (RCTs) have shown this app to be safe and effective at reducing symptoms of worry, anxiety, depression and sleep difficulties within the general population (Carl et al 2020; Miller et al 2021). This doctoral project focuses on understanding the application of Daylight in women with anxiety from diverse maternity populations especially women from ethnic minority and migrant backgrounds, to ensure acceptability, usability and uptake across all populations who may traditionally struggle with access treatments such as CBT. Women’s feedback will be used within the project to inform implementation strategies for this digital treatment, with potential adaptations to promote uptake. This allows adoption, implementation and evaluation of Daylight within underserved maternity populations which ultimately provides mental health support options beyond medication during pregnancy and after birth for diverse populations.

Strong qualitative and quantitative research skills are required (e.g., as evidenced by a relevant MSc. or 2:1 or above at Bachelor’s degree level). The project will involve close collaboration with local NHS Trusts, charities, healthcare professionals and maternity user stakeholders, therefore a keen interest in co-production and community engagement are essential.

 We strongly advise all applicants to contact the Director of Studies: h.soltani@shu.ac.uk prior to application. 

 Applicants should hold: a BSc (2:1 or above, or equivalent) degree qualification in Health and Social Care, or other relevant areas. An MSc degree qualification in a relevant area is desirable. Professional qualifications and background in Health and Social Care is desirable, but not essential. Applicants without a professional qualification should have a strong academic background in Health and Social Care related discipline. 

 We welcome applications from all members of the community and are particularly encouraging those from diverse groups, such as members of the LGBTQIA+, ethnic minoritised and disabled communities. 

 GTA scholarships involve full-time PhD study and a requirement to teach or complete project related work at the University. This means that successful applicants must have completed all study and any employment by the start date of the scholarship, which is 1 October 2025. 

 International / EU applicants – Please read the following information carefully and see the funding notes section of this advert for important fee information. 

Sheffield Hallam University has a mandatory English language requirement of IELTS 7, or equivalent language qualification, for all applicants from countries not included in the UKVI exemption list: https://www.gov.uk/english-language/exemptions. This qualification must have been taken within the last two years, with a score of at least 6.5 in all test areas. The qualification may be required even if you have previous qualifications from UK institutions. Please check with Health-PGR-admissions@shu.ac.uk prior to application, as we cannot consider applications if this essential qualification is not submitted. 

 To apply for the scholarship 

Please complete the formal application form, which can be accessed via the following link: https://www.shu.ac.uk/courses/health-and-social-care-management/phd-health-and-social-care/full-time/2025 and choose the October 2025 start date option. Please add the project title of the scholarship you are applying for clearly in the Personal Statement field of application form. 

Applicants should also ensure that they upload a detailed 1,500-word research proposal addressing the project title and all essential certificates and reference information with their application form. We cannot consider applications where a research proposal and any other essential attachments have not been uploaded to the application system before submission. If you experience issues submitting your online application, or for general enquiries, please contact: Health-PGR-admissions@shu.ac.uk. 

This application form must be submitted by the deadline of 14 May 2025 (12 noon). Late applications will not be accepted.  

Interviews 

Applicants that are successful following our shortlisting process, will be invited to interview in the weeks commencing 9 & 16 June 2025. Please note, we are unable to offer alternative interview slots once allocated to shortlisted candidates. 

GTA scholarships involve full-time PhD study and a requirement to teach or complete project related work at the University.