PhD in Synthetic Chemistry

This 4-year PhD project is fully funded, and home students are eligible to apply./nThe successful candidate will receive an annual tax-free stipend set at the UKRI rate (£20,780 for 2025/26) and tuition fees will be paid./nThis fully funded PhD project will develop a new generation of biocatalysts capable of performing challenging nucleophilic aromatic substitution (SNAr) reactions with exceptional selectivity. Building on recent breakthroughs in the Green group (Nature 2025, 639, 375) this project will focus on the development of SNAr enzymes for regio- and stereoselective couplings involving alcohol, amine and thiol coupling partners —transformations that underpin the synthesis of many modern pharmaceuticals./nWorking at the interface of chemical biology, protein engineering and synthetic chemistry, the student will receive comprehensive training in biocatalysis, enzyme design and engineering, organic synthesis, structural biology, computational chemistry and analytical chemistry within a vibrant, multidisciplinary research environment./nLed by The University of Manchester in collaboration with AstraZeneca, The Universities of Bristol and York alongside other leading industrial partners, BioProcess aims to train the next generation of scientists in the skills needed to realise full the potential of biocatalysis, protein engineering and biomanufacturing for the UK bioeconomy./nLocation: Manchester.