Course summary
Staff and postgraduate students in the Department of German pursue research across a diverse and dynamic spectrum of German studies, covering many aspects of language, linguistics, literature, culture, history, and translation, from the early modern period to the present day. We are committed to supporting a positive and collaborative research culture, developing together exciting and innovative research that helps shape, and reshape, our discipline. We offer expertise in German-language literature and culture in its national, transnational, and comparative contexts (including the novel, poetry, theatre and performance, film, visual cultures, and translation), with particular strengths in the classical age, the long 19th century, the 20th century, and the post-Wende and contemporary periods. Our research makes cutting-edge contributions to fields including Comparative and Transnational German Studies; Exile Studies; German-language Cultural and Literary Studies; and Memory Studies. We also have specific expertise in historical and modern sociolinguistics (in particular in language variation and change, vernacularisation and standardisation, and in language attitudes and language policy), as well as in the history and politics of Germany and Austria since 1800 (including the political East). We benefit from strong links with partner universities and research centres in Germany and Austria, and further research connections around the world. We warmly welcome applications from graduates wishing to pursue research programmes with us. Interdisciplinary, comparative, and cross-language research is also particularly encouraged and supported in German and across the School of Modern Languages and the wider faculty. Our postgraduates are fully integrated into a professionally and personally supportive departmental and school community. You will be encouraged to present your work at departmental and school-level research events, and at colloquia elsewhere within the faculty, and beyond. We will help develop your full range of academic skills, including publication, and we may be able to offer opportunities for some undergraduate teaching experience after your first year. Possible start dates are September 2026 and January 2027. Please see the programme page on our website for more information.
Assessment method
https://www.bristol.ac.uk/study/media/postgraduate/admissions-statements/2026/phd-german.pdf
How to apply
International applicants
The University of Bristol welcomes applications from international students and accepts a wide range of qualifications for postgraduate study. If you study or have studied at a university outside the UK, please select the relevant page for further information on qualifications, scholarships and education representatives in your country/region: bristol.ac.uk/international/countries.
Entry requirements
A master's qualification, or be working towards a master's qualification, or international equivalent. Applicants without a master's qualification may be considered on an exceptional basis, provided they hold a first-class undergraduate degree (or international equivalent). Applicants with a non-traditional background may be considered provided they can demonstrate substantial equivalent and relevant experience that has prepared them to undertake their proposed course of study. See international equivalent qualifications on the International Office website: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/international/countries/
Fees and funding
Tuition fees
| England | £5106 | Year 1 |
| Northern Ireland | £5106 | Year 1 |
| Scotland | £5106 | Year 1 |
| Wales | £5106 | Year 1 |
| Channel Islands | £5106 | Year 1 |
| EU | £21900 | Year 1 |
| International | £21900 | Year 1 |
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .
Additional fee information
Fees are subject to an annual review. For programmes that last longer than one year, please budget for up to an 8% increase in fees each year.
For more information, please view the programme page on our website.
Sponsorship information
For information on funding opportunities, including University-funded studentships, please see the Faculty of Arts, Law and Social Sciences funding pages: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/arts-law-social-sciences/postgraduate-research/ Further information on funding for prospective UK and international postgraduate students: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/students/support/finances/
Provider information
University of Bristol
Beacon House
Queen’s Road
Bristol
BS8 1QU