Available PhD positions
We have several PhD projects available for passionate individuals who are ready to contribute to our ongoing projects.
These projects offer excellent opportunities to work with experienced researchers and contribute to impactful studies.
Explore the opportunities below and find the project that aligns with your interests and aspirations.
University of Queensland
Upcoming PhD project
Frailty detection in primary care using real-world data: Development and validation of a digital tool
Principal supervisor: Dr David Ward
Location: University of Queensland (Brisbane)
This PhD opportunity is part of a research project funded by an MRFF Multidisciplinary Models of Primary Care Stream 2-3, which aims to integrate frailty measurement into primary care systems in Australia and deliver novel decision-support tools to enable comprehensive frailty management.
This PhD project may involve:
- Generating new knowledge on the intersections of ageing and frailty and their applications to improving health care
- Using routinely collected data from patients using primary care in the Gold Coast Primary Health Network to develop an electronic frailty index
- Undertaking a comprehensive validation of newly derived frailty index scores using a variety of cross-sectional and longitudinal quantitative approaches
- Contributing to the development of a digital dashboard that presents electronic frailty index scores to health care professionals to guide clinical decision making
- Identifying and analysing the socioeconomic determinants of frailty across the life course using large-scale primary care data, providing insights into health inequalities and informing targeted interventions for at-risk populations.
This program of work will directly lead to better clinical practice, patient experience, and health outcomes for older people in Australia’s primary care system.
The PhD candidate will have the opportunity to develop expertise in ageing, frailty, and primary care, as well as skills in data exploration, visualisation, and quantitative data analysis. The candidate will be supported by experts in ageing and geriatric medicine, statistics, and primary care research.
Knowledge of quantitative data analysis and its application to human health and ageing would be of benefit to someone working on this project. A background in psychology, epidemiology, and/or biostatistics, and a working knowledge of R, is desirable.
This is an upcoming project with an estimated start in 2026. Please note that this project is only available to domestic applicants (Australia and New Zealand).
For enquiries, or to submit an EOI, contact [email protected].
