Deadline: February 17, 2012
We invite applications for a PhD studentship on the economics of food choice and diet quality within the Centre for Diet and Activity Research (CEDAR), a UKCRC funded Centre of Excellence in Public Health Research. CEDAR is a collaboration between Medical Research Council Units in Cambridge and the Universities of Cambridge and East Anglia and is hosted by the Institute of Public Health. The studentship is to commence in October 2012 and will be registered at the University of Cambridge.
CEDAR provides an excellent training environment for the development of transferable academic and generic skills. Our focus is on the social and environmental determinants of physical activity and dietary behaviour in population based, interdisciplinary intervention research. Multidisciplinary collaborations within CEDAR span diet and activity research, epidemiology, biostatistics, health economics, behavioural science, intervention development and evaluation. For more information about CEDAR, please visit www.cedar.iph.cam.ac.uk.
Scope of work: The holder of this studentship would examine economic aspects of food consumption and nutrient intake by adults in the UK. Analyses will be based on the National Diet and Nutrition Survey combined with food price data obtained from government and commercial sources. Other large dietary surveys and economic datasets will be considered. The resulting combined dataset will provide opportunities to address a number of specific research objectives. These may include quantifying the cost of diets in the UK, overall and among certain subpopulations and measuring the association between the economic cost of diets and their nutritional quality. These quantitative observations will provide a basis for understanding social inequalities in diet and the cost of achieving dietary recommendations. These data may also be used for a variety of diet economic modelling studies to inform food and health policy.
This project will be supervised by Dr Pablo Monsivais (University of Cambridge) with additional supervisory input from Prof Marc Suhrcke (UEA) and Dr Susan Jebb (MRC HNR).
Desired Qualifications: We particularly seek candidates with interest in population nutrition and health, health inequalities, health surveillance, economic analyses and food policy. The research project will involve accessing, manipulating, merging and analysing large datasets. Candidates will be expected to have a Masters degree in a relevant field or equivalent experience. A background in nutrition or economics is desirable and candidates should have excellent quantitative skills and experience with large government datasets. Knowledge of at least one major statistical software package is also desirable.
Application requirements: The minimum academic requirement for entry is a first or upper second class degree or equivalent. The studentship includes college and university fees and a stipend. Full funding is available to UK nationals and UK residents. Partial funding is available for EU nationals.
The University values diversity and is committed to equality of opportunity.
The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK. To apply, please send a copy of your CV, contact details of two referees and a covering letter outlining your background, research interests, long-term goals and your strengths relevant to this studentship. Please keep the covering letter to one page or less. Applications should be sent to hac29@medschl.cam.ac.uk, marking the subject line of your email – CEDAR studentship. Applications missing any of the above components will not be considered.
The centre studentship will be administered by the Economic and Social Research Council. You are strongly advised to consult the detailed residential eligibility criteria for studentships in the ESRC Postgraduate Funding Guides, available from the link below.
http://www.esrc.ac.uk/funding-and-guidance/funding-opportunities/looking-for-funding/postgraduate-funding-guide.aspx
