Coco Huggins, (Mar. 26, 2026)Doing a PhD at Cambridge was undoubtedly the most transformative thing I’ve ever done. When I joined the Department of Geography, I think it’s fair to say I didn’t have much confidence in my abilities, despite having topped my degree programme at Durham. Throughout my time here, the 1:1 care from my supervisor, combined with the excellent support from Cambridge’s college system, has radically changed the way I view myself. The nurturing of my talents through opportunities to supervise and lecture, as well as funding to go to conferences and undertake fieldwork, has made a dramatic difference to my life; not just to my skills, which have developed enormously, but also to the way I appreciate those skills and how I am able to use them. Doing a PhD is challenging, but the community of people in the Department of Geography at Cambridge— from the weekly coffee gatherings, to the informal lunch groups run by students and range of seminar series— made it feel much more manageable. I’m hugely grateful to the Department for the opportunities it has given me and would recommend doing PhD there wholeheartedly.
Grace Mueller, (Mar. 25, 2026)I came to the PhD in Geography from an MSc in International Development and without formal training in the discipline. I was slightly unsure if it would be the right discipline, and how I would fit into the Department and my cohort. Four years later, I can emphatically recommend this degree to anyone interested in questions of inequality and power within economic, social or environmental domains. Geography as a discipline is expansive, with a core body of work to draw upon across the many sub disciplines. It stands out among other disciplines for the diversity of research you will find in the Department, the relaxed and collaborative environment, and the privileged opportunity to spend long periods in fieldwork that are supported by a generous Departmental fieldwork fund.
During my time in the Department, I have received mentorship from senior and junior faculty who make an effort to create an inclusive and welcoming space. Despite my supervisors’ busy schedules, we met between two and four times a month, though this frequency differs based on the student and faculty preferences. My peers across the doctoral cohorts were some of my most frequent collaborators, complementing long periods of independent research with reading groups and informal feedback. I found my doctoral cohort to be supportive, rather than competitive, and one of the most important sources of connection and growth within my overall experience.
The wider Cambridge environment also offers an unlimited number of talks, societies, and college events that expose PhD students to other disciplinary debates and literatures. I have always found professors are open to brief chats about my research and are quick to connect me with others who may be doing similar work. If you are self-motivated, able to navigate the uncertainty that comes with any doctoral research, and open to embracing a range of new ideas and approaches to viewing the world, I can’t suggest a better place for doctoral research than in Geography at Cambridge.
Hafsah Siddiqui, (Apr. 4, 2022)Undertaking a PhD at the Department of Geography has been a satisfying and enjoyable experience. Students applying for this degree can expect to enter a welcoming community where they will spend the next few years being supervised and mentored by exceptional scholars. Over the past three years, I have been offered the chance to polish both my academic and professional skills by participating in various Departmental workshops, which cover everything from research ethics to exploring possible career paths. I also benefitted from the University’s Researcher Development Programme, as well as the Social Science Research Methods Programme in my first year. The Department offers a range of regular interdisciplinary seminar series, where experts speak about their newest research findings. Attending the City Seminar sessions was one of the highlights of the week and allowed me to meet other researchers from different departments who were interested in similar topics. For students like myself whose work necessitates fieldwork, securing research funding is not a problem; several generous Departmental and University-wide grants are available to support your work as well as your chance to participate in conferences. The staff and students in this Department have been a continuous source of guidance and assistance for me throughout my time here.