The MOAC Doctoral Training Centre is a community of multidisciplinary researchers working at the physical/life sciences interface. Students thriving at MOAC typically have a very good degree in a science subject, a passion for multidisciplinary ideas, an ability to assimilate knowledge quickly, and the willingness and skill to transfer ideas between related disciplines.
MOAC academics are based in departments across the Faculties of Science and Medicine, providing a dynamic multi-disciplinary community to support the training and research of our students. MOAC’s central location on campus and its well-designed facilities make it the ideal venue for fostering cross-discipline interactions including lunch-time discussions, meetings, conferences, and workshops. The Centre forms part of a local, national and international network which connects with researchers in many parts of the world. There are strong links with other EPSRC-doctoral training centres and related research centres in Europe and elsewhere. Most of our students have research links with industry via their PhD projects.
Research Groups
MOAC’s research programme develops physical sciences tools to enable us to solve biological sciences problems that are currently intractable. To this end, both the physical sciences and biological sciences areas we cover are diverse, but the underlying thought processes are common so the MOAC community can profitably interact, share ideas and research expertise. The unifying theme of all of our activities is to make progress by combining development in both physical and life sciences.
The skills set for biomolecular assembly research includes:
Mathematical and computational modelling; Sensors, interfaces and imaging; Spectroscopy; Data analysis; Instrument design and development.
The biomolecular assembly application areas of particular interest to MOAC are:
Nucleic acid-protein interactions; Membrane proteins; Fibres, fibrils and tubules – the structural architecture of the cell; Analytical neuroscience.
Research Degrees
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Mathematical Biology and Biophysical Chemistry
Standard Duration: 3 years full-time
This is an interdisciplinary programme which is usually offered as a four-year MSc + PhD programme at the interface between Mathematics, Chemistry, Life Sciences, Physics and Computing.
MOAC students have a good track record in internal and external competitions relating to communicating their science. We expect all of our students to publish a number of papers during their PhD and to continue on to exciting science-based careers when they leave MOAC. Our alumni community is growing and is of great benefit to current students.
Taught Master’s Degree
MSc in Mathematical Biology and Biophysical Chemistry (MBBC)
Duration: 1 year (October start)
Places: 10 EPSRC -funded (available for 1-year MS c + 3-year PhD route only). Self-funding students are also encouraged to apply.
The MSc in Mathematical Biology and Biophysical Chemistry will provide you with a working knowledge across several disciplines: chemistry, biology, physics, statistics and mathematics, which will help you to become a key player in numerous multi-disciplinary teams. The MSc may be taken as a stand-alone degree to prepare you for work at the interface between disciplines. Alternatively, you may continue on to take a PhD. The MSc and PhD aim to bridge the gap between the life sciences, the physical sciences and mathematical sciences.
MOAC alumni have gone on to a range of jobs in academia, industry and related fields, including post-doctoral researcher positions, roles in science communication, jobs in industry, and teaching.
MSc in Chemistry with Scientific Writing (CSW)
Standard Duration: full-time: 1 year, part-time: variable
The MSc provides an excellent learning environment in which to advance personal scholarship through the study of chemistry with particular emphasis on scientific writing for different target audiences. It will enable you to advance your knowledge and develop a broad range of key skills, transferable to a wide range of career destinations. You will develop and demonstrate your capacity to communicate science concepts and results, and to interpret these. The MSc allows you to contribute to emerging areas in cuttingedge chemical research with an emphasis on writing effectively about these advances.
This MSc will prepare you for a career in research, scientific writing, education or science communication with particular emphasis on preparing for careers relating to chemistry.
MSc in Scientific Research and Communication (SRC) and MSc in Communicating Multidisciplinary Science (CMS)
Standard Duration: full-time: 1 year, Part-time: variable
These programmes provide an excellent learning environment in which to advance your personal scholarship through the study of a diverse range of scientific disciplines. Particular emphasis is placed on gaining research skills and communicating the results of your science. This is achieved by providing you with an advanced knowledge in a number of areas of science together with the ability to write coherently about these areas. The Master’s will allow you to develop a broad range of key skills which are transferable to a wide range of career destinations in research, scientific writing, education or science communication.
Postgraduate Award (PGA)
PGA in Scientific Research and Communication
Standard Duration: 8 weeks
There are four main learning outcomes of this PGA, namely understanding the scientific background to a research area; planning a project; presenting your work; and working with colleagues.
Successful completion of this 8-week summer programme leads to the award of a Postgraduate Award in Scientific Research and Communication from the University of Warwick.
The first half of the programme is delivered by the Centre for Applied Linguistics (CAL) and focuses on English for specific purposes as well as study skills such as searching for information, synthesising source texts and referencing.
The second half of the programme will be delivered by the MOAC Doctoral Training Centre and will focus on training you in transferable scientific research skills, including how to produce and communicate first class research. You will also have a unique opportunity to shadow current postdoctoral researchers or senior postgraduate researchers from departments across the Faculties of Science and Medicine.
For more information please go to www.warwick. ac.uk/go/moacsummerprogramme
