phd rheumatology uk

We have 42 rheumatology PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships

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rheumatology PhD Projects, Programmes & Scholarships

Determining the biological basis of observed clinical outcomes in juvenile idiopathic arthritis using genetics and multiomics, phd research project.

PhD Research Projects are advertised opportunities to examine a pre-defined topic or answer a stated research question. Some projects may also provide scope for you to propose your own ideas and approaches.

Self-Funded PhD Students Only

This project does not have funding attached. You will need to have your own means of paying fees and living costs and / or seek separate funding from student finance, charities or trusts.

Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology - 4 Year PhD Prize Studentships

Funded phd programme (students worldwide).

Some or all of the PhD opportunities in this programme have funding attached. Applications for this programme are welcome from suitably qualified candidates worldwide. Funding may only be available to a limited set of nationalities and you should read the full programme details for further information.

4 Year PhD Programme

4 Year PhD Programmes are extended PhD opportunities that involve more training and preparation. You will usually complete taught courses in your first year (sometimes equivalent to a Masters in your subject) before choosing and proposing your research project. You will then research and submit your thesis in the normal way.

Defining long term outcomes in patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE)

Clinical and cost effectiveness of ai-enabled vertebral fracture identification fracture liaison services (fls) (ndorms-2025/13), competition funded phd project (students worldwide).

This project is in competition for funding with other projects. Usually the project which receives the best applicant will be successful. Unsuccessful projects may still go ahead as self-funded opportunities. Applications for the project are welcome from all suitably qualified candidates, but potential funding may be restricted to a limited set of nationalities. You should check the project and department details for more information.

Molecular Mechanisms of Resolution of Inflammation

Disease free survival: handling survival and quality of life data in clinical trials (ndorms-2025/2), identification and characterization of disease-specific subsets of antigen-presenting cells (apc) in inflammatory arthritis, osteogenic-angiogenic coupling in fracture repair - why do some patients fail to heal (ndorms-2025/11), addressing shoulder pain: single-cell led repurposing of injectables for subacromial impingement syndrome (ndorms-2025/10), promis scale validation in clinical trials of common musculoskeletal injuries (ndorms-2025/7), engineering resolution – mrna targeting of chronic inflammatory disease, funded phd project (students worldwide).

This project has funding attached, subject to eligibility criteria. Applications for the project are welcome from all suitably qualified candidates, but its funding may be restricted to a limited set of nationalities. You should check the project and department details for more information.

Investigating cross-tissue and cross-disease immune mechanisms using single-cell/spatial multiomics & machine learning/AI-powered language learning tools

Relationship between tumour microenvironment and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease during immunotherapy, harnessing human genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic data to identify novel therapeutic targets, identification of novel therapeutic pathways for lung fibrosis and repair.

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• OxKEN Programme

OxKen Programme

The Oxford Kennedy MB PhD (BM DPhil) Educational Training Program

The Kennedy Trust for Rheumatology Research-funded OxKen programme will fully fund 4 Oxford University medical students each year from 2021-5 to undertake DPhils in the Medical Sciences Division in the fields of musculoskeletal disease, inflammation and immunology. Our vision is to foster a new generation of clinical academics to drive world-leading research into musculoskeletal and inflammatory disease and improve patient care.

Research Themes

• Basic mechanisms of inflammation
• Inflammatory and rheumatic disease
• Patient-reported outcomes
• Clinical trials and in vivo studies
• Epidemiology, computational and data science
• Tissue engineering and remodelling

For further information, please see the Oxford Kennedy DPhil 2025 Intake Booklet .

• How to apply
• Selection Criteria & Eligibility

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Qualification, university name, postgraduate rheumatology.

5 degrees at 3 universities in the UK.

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Rheumatology, Orthopaedics, and Dermatology DM

University of nottingham.

Specific subject titles have included • Dermatology • Academic Rheumatology • Orthopaedic and Accident Surgery • Sports Medicine You can Read more...

• 4 years Full time degree: £5,100 per year (UK)
• 8 years Part time degree

Rheumatology, Orthopaedics, and Dermatology PhD

• 3 years Full time degree: £5,100 per year (UK)
• 6 years Part time degree

Practitioners with a Special Interest–Musculoskeletal Medicine with Rheumatology MSc / PGDip

University of bradford.

This programme enables practitioners to gain a formally recognised standard of competence in MSK with Rheumatology. It is taught and run Read more...

• 18 months Part time degree

Postgraduate Diploma in Rheumatology (Online Delivery)

University of south wales.

All physicians need to be familiar with rheumatologically related conditions. Having specialist knowledge in Rheumatology is an Read more...

• 1 year Online degree: £4,900 per year (UK)

MSc Rheumatology (Online Delivery)

Having specialist knowledge in Rheumatology is an increasingly important role and extra responsibility of medical personnel. Our team of Read more...

• 2 years Online degree: £4,650 per year (UK)

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Centre for Rheumatology and Bloomsbury Rheumatology

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Centre for Rheumatology and Bloomsbury Rheumatology Unit

The Centre has been acknowledged as a Lupus Centre of Excellence by Lupus UK, SLE the patients group. 

Centre Director

Principal investigators.

• Professor Jo Cambridge
• Dr Coziana Ciurtin
• Professor Michael Ehrenstein
• Professor Ian Giles
• Professor Elizabeth Jury
• Professor Anisur Rahman
• Dr Pedro Machado
• Dr Venkat Reddy  
• Dr Maria Leandro

The centre undertakes clinical and basic research to increase our understanding of the cause of musculoskeletal diseases and improve their management.

The Centre undertakes a comprehensive undergraduate student teaching load and an intense weekly postgraduate training programme for our junior doctors and overseas visitors

Our group publishes well over 70 original and review articles per annum, many in high impact factor journals.

Our laboratory has the broadest range of immunological techniques and devices immediately available including one of only six Image Stream scanners in the UK.

Rheumatology Bloomsbury is part of the Division of Medicine

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THE KENNEDY INSTITUTE OF RHEUMATOLOGY IS A BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH CENTRE UNIQUELY BRINGING TOGETHER DISCOVERY SCIENCE AND EARLY-STAGE CLINICAL RESEARCH TO DEVELOP TRANSFORMATIVE NEW THERAPIES FOR CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY AND MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS.

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Professor Karim Raza BA, BMBCh, FRCP, PhD

Institute of Inflammation and Ageing Professor of Clinical Rheumatology

Contact details

Karim Raza is Professor of Clinical Rheumatology in the Rheumatology Research Group within the Institute of Inflammation and Ageing at the University of Birmingham. 

Professor Raza has an active NHS clinical practice having worked as an Honorary Consultant Rheumatologist at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust until September 2023 and from October 2023 as a Consultant Rheumatologist at Hywel Dda University Health Board, based in Aberystwyth.

Professor Raza qualified from Oxford in 1993 and achieved Membership of the Royal College of Physicians in 1996. From 2000-2003 he worked as an Arthritis Research UK clinical training fellow studying the regulation of leukocyte apoptosis in early inflammatory arthritis. Following the award of a PhD, he was appointed as Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant in Rheumatology in 2004. In 2009 he was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and was awarded the prestigious Michael Mason Prize by the British Society for Rheumatology. He was promoted to Reader in 2011 and Professor in 2013.

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Qualifications

• PhD, University of Birmingham, 2004
• BMBCh, Oxford University, 1993
• BA (Physiological Sciences), Oxford University, 1990

Positions have included:

• Lead for Rheumatology for the University of Birmingham's MBChB programme (2019-2023).

Postgraduate supervision

• Academic Representative on the West Midlands Clinical Rheumatology Training Committee (2017-2023)
• Lead for the Kenedy Trust funded Birmingham MB PhD programme lead (2020-2023)

Professor Raza’s research focuses on rheumatoid arthritis, the most common of the chronic inflammatory joint diseases. Within this disease area, his research addresses pathogenic mechanisms, biomarker development and strategies to enhance clinical outcomes for patients with a new onset of disease. Specifically he is interested in:

• Mechanisms driving the molecular basis for the switch to disease persistence and the timing of this switch in early arthritis.
• Predictors of outcome in patients with early inflammatory arthritis.
• Novel anti-inflammatory mechanisms that may be useful in the control of persistent inflammation, including vitamin D and endogenously generated glucocorticoids.
• Management pathways for patients with early rheumatoid arthritis, including the development of strategies to facilitate rapid patient assessment.
• Perspectives of patients and members of the public about RA and the concept of ‘risk’ in relation to RA to facilitate informed engagement with predictive and early treatment strategies.

Other activities

Positions of responsibility have included:.

• Director of Research and Development at Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust (2014-2018).
• Head of the Rheumatology Research Group at the University of Birmingham (2021-2023).

Committee membership

• Member of the Arthritis Research UK Clinical Studies Central Progress Review Committee (2009- 2013), the Arthritis Research UK Research sub-committee (2013-2017) and the Versus Arthritis Fellowship Committee (2022-2023).
• ‘EULAR recommendations for the standardised content and structure of minimum data collection to harmonise observational research in rheumatoid arthritis’ (reported 2016).
• ‘EULAR classification criteria for arthralgia that is clinically suspect for progression to rheumatoid arthritis’ (reported 2016).
• ‘Update of the 2007 EULAR recommendations for the management of early arthritis’ (reported 2016).
• EULAR Points to Consider for conducting clinical trials in individuals at-risk of rheumatoid arthritis (reported 2021).
• EULAR Recommendations for the use and interpretation of laboratory diagnostic tests for the management of systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (current).
• EULAR tools to predict RA in clinically suspect arthralgia patients (current)

Editorial Board membership

Member of the Editorial board for Rheumatology (2011-2015) and for RMD Open (2017-present)

Publications

Highlight publications.

Wei, K, Korsunsky, I , Marshall, JL , Gao, A, Watts, GFM , Major, T , Croft, AP , Watts, J, Blazar, PE, Lange, JK, Thornhill, TS , Filer, A , Raza, K , Donlin, LT, Accelerating Medicines Partnership Rheumatoid Arthritis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (AMP RA/ SLE) Consortium, Siebel, CW, Buckley, CD, Raychaudhuri, S & Brenner, MB 2020, ' Notch signalling drives synovial fibroblast identity and arthritis pathology ', Nature , vol. 582, no. 7811, pp. 259–264. https://doi.org/ 10.1038/ s41586-020-2222-z

Nijjar, JS, Morton, FR, Bang, H, Buckley, C, van der Heijde, D, Gilmour, A, Paterson, C, McInnes, IB, Porter, D , Raza, K & Scottish Early Rheumatoid Arthritis Inception Cohort Investigators 2021, ' The impact of autoantibodies against citrullinated, carbamylated, and acetylated peptides on radiographic progression in patients with new-onset rheumatoid arthritis: an observational cohort study ', The Lancet Rheumatology , vol. 3, no. 4, pp. e284-e293. https://doi.org/ 10.1016/ S2665-9913(20)30381-7

Fenton, C , Doig, C , Fareed, S , Naylor, A , Morrell, AP , Addison, O , Wehmeyer, C, Buckley, C, Cooper, MS, Lavery, G , Raza, K & Hardy, R 2019, ' 11β-HSD1 Plays a critical role in trabecular bone loss associated with systemic glucocorticoid therapy ', Arthritis Research & Therapy , vol. 21, no. 1, 188. https://doi.org/ 10.1186/ s13075-019-1972-1

Filer, A , Ward, LSC , Kemble, S , Davies, C , Munir, H , Rogers, R , Raza, K , Buckley, C, Nash, G & McGettrick, H 2017, ' Identification of a transitional fibroblast functional phenotype in very early rheumatoid arthritis ', Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases , vol. 76, no. 12, pp. 2105-2112. https://doi.org/ 10.1136/ annrheumdis-2017-211286

Juarez, M , Bang, H, Hammar, F, Reimer, U, Dyke, B , Sahbudin, I , Buckley, C , Fisher, B , Filer, A & Raza, K 2016, ' Identification of novel antiacetylated vimentin antibodies in patients with early inflammatory arthritis ', Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases , vol. 75, no. 6, pp. 1099-1107. https://doi.org/ 10.1136/ annrheumdis-2014-206785

Recent publications

Cope, A, Jasenecova, M, Vasconcelos, J , Filer, A , Raza, K , Qureshi, S, D'Agostino, M-A, McInnes, IB, Isaacs, J, Pratt, AG , Fisher, B , Buckley, CD, Emery, P, Ho, P, Buch, MH, Ciurtin, C, van Schaardenburg, D, Huizinga, TWJ, Toes, R, Georgiou, E, Kelly, J, Murphy, CL, Prevost, AT & APIPPRA Study Investigators 2024, ' Abatacept in individuals at high risk of rheumatoid arthritis (APIPPRA): a randomised, double-blind, multicentre, parallel, placebo-controlled, phase 2b clinical trial ', The Lancet . https://doi.org/ 10.1016/ S0140-6736(23)02649-1

DiSantostefano, RL , Simons, G , Englbrecht, M, Humphreys, JH, Bruce, IN, Bywall, KS, Radawski, C , Raza, K , Falahee, M & Veldwijk, J 2024, ' Can the General Public Be a Proxy for an “At-Risk” Group in a Patient Preference Study? A Disease Prevention Example in Rheumatoid Arthritis ', Medical Decision Making , vol. 44, no. 2, pp. 189-202. https://doi.org/ 10.1177/ 0272989x231218265

Martin, CS, Crastin, A , Sagmeister, MS , Kalirai, MS , Turner, JD , MacDonald, L, Kurowska-Stolarska, M , Scheel-Toellner, D , Taylor, AE , Gilligan, LC , Storbeck, K , Price, M , Gorvin, CM , Filer, A , Mahida, R , Clark, AR , Jones, SW , Raza, K , Hewison, M & Hardy, RS 2024, ' Inflammation Dynamically Regulates Steroid Hormone Metabolism and Action within Macrophages in Rheumatoid Arthritis   ', Journal of Autoimmunity , vol. 147, 103263. https://doi.org/ 10.1016/ j.jaut.2024.103263

Law, C, Wacleche, VS, Cao, Y, Pillai, A, Sowerby, J, Sowerby, B, Horisberger, A, Bracero, S, Skidanova, V, Li, ZJ, Adejoorin, I, Dillon, E, Benque, IJ, Pena Nunez, D, Simmons, DP, Keegan, J, Chen, L, Baker, T, Brohawn, PZ, Al-Mossawi, H, Hao, L-Y, Jones, B, Rao, N, Qu, Y, Alves, S, Jonsson, AH, Shaw, KS, Vleugels, RA, Massarotti, E, Costenbader, KH, Brenner, MB, Lederer, JA, Hultquist, JF, Choi, J, Rao, DA & Accelerating Medicines Partnership RA/ SLE Network 2024, ' Interferon subverts an AHR–JUN axis to promote CXCL13 + T cells in lupus ', Nature , vol. 631, pp. 857-866. https://doi.org/ 10.1038/ s41586-024-07627-2

Torlinska, B , Raza, K , Filer, A , Jutley, G , Sahbudin, I , Singh, R , De Pablo, P , Rankin, E , Rhodes, B, Amft, EN , Justice, E , McGrath, C, Baskar, S, Trickey, J , Calvert, M & Falahee, M 2024, ' Predictors of quality of life, functional status, depression and fatigue in early arthritis: Comparison between clinically suspect arthralgia, unclassified arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis ', BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders , vol. 25, no. 1, 307. https://doi.org/ 10.1186/ s12891-024-07446-6

D'Elia, A , Baranskaya, A , Haroon, S , Hammond, B , Adderley, N , Nirantharakumar, K , Chandan, J , Falahee, M & Raza, K 2024, ' Prodromal symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis in a primary care database: variation by ethnicity and socioeconomic status ', Rheumatology . https://doi.org/ 10.1093/ rheumatology/ keae157

Bishop, EL , Gudgeon, N , Fulton-Ward, T, Stavrou, V , Roberts, J , Boufersaoui, A , Tennant, DA , Hewison, M , Raza, K & Dimeloe, S 2024, ' TNF-α signals through ITK-Akt-mTOR to drive CD4 + T cell metabolic reprogramming, which is dysregulated in rheumatoid arthritis ', Science signaling , vol. 17, no. 833, eadg5678. https://doi.org/ 10.1126/ scisignal.adg5678

Weinand, K, Sakaue, S, Nathan, A, Anna Helena, J, Zhang, F, Watts, GFM, Al Suqri, M, Zhu, Z, Rao, DA, Anolik, JH, Brenner, MB, Donlin, LT, Wei, K, Raychaudhuri, S & Accelerating Medicines Partnership® RA/ SLE Program and Network 2024, ' The chromatin landscape of pathogenic transcriptional cell states in rheumatoid arthritis ', Nature Communications , vol. 56, no. 4, 4650. https://doi.org/ 10.1038/ s41467-024-48620-7

Sakaue, S, Weinand, K, Isaac, S, Dey, K, Jagadeesh, K, Kanai, M, Watts, GFM, Zhu, Z, Brenner, MB, McDavid, A, Donlin, LT, Wei, K, Price, AL, Raychaudhuri, S & Accelerating Medicines Partnership® RA/ SLE Program and Network 2024, ' Tissue-specific enhancer–gene maps from multimodal single-cell data identify causal disease alleles ', Nature Genetics , vol. 56, no. 4, pp. 615-626. https://doi.org/ 10.1038/ s41588-024-01682-1

Thompson, KN, Bonham, KS, Ilott, NE, Britton, GJ, Colmenero, P, Bullers, SJ, McIver, LJ, Ma, S, Nguyen, LH , Filer, A , Brough, I, Pearson, C, Moussa, C, Kumar, V, Lam, LH, Jackson, MA, Pawluk, A, Kiriakidis, S, Taylor, PC, Wedderburn, LR, Marsden, BD, Young, S, Littman, DR, Faith, JJ, Pratt, AG, Bowness, P , Raza, K , Powrie, F & Huttenhower, C 2023, ' Alterations in the gut microbiome implicate key taxa and metabolic pathways across inflammatory arthritis phenotypes ', Science Translational Medicine , vol. 15, eabn47. https://doi.org/ 10.1126/ scitranslmed.abn4722

Accelerating Medicines Partnership Program: RA/ SLE Network, Weisenfeld, D, Zhang, F, Donlin, L, Jonsson, AH, Apruzzese, W, Campbell, D, Rao, DA, Wei, K, Holers, VM, Gravallese, E, Moreland, L, Goodman, S, Brenner, M, Raychaudhuri, S , Filer, A , Anolik, J, Bykerk, V & Liao, KP 2023, ' Associations between rheumatoid arthritis clinical factors with synovial cell types and states ', Arthritis & Rheumatology (Hoboken) . https://doi.org/ 10.1002/ art.42726

Pucino, V , Nefla, M , Gauthier, V, Alsaleh, G , Clayton, SA , Marshall, J , Filer, A , Clark, AR , Raza, K & Buckley, CD 2023, ' Differential effect of lactate on synovial fibroblast and macrophage effector functions ', Frontiers in immunology , vol. 14, 1183825. https://doi.org/ 10.3389/ fimmu.2023.1183825

Barney, K , Hagel, V, Clarke, J , Clark, AR , Abdelmottaleb, D , Raza, K , Anderson, A , Wraith, D & Scheel-Toellner, D 2023, ' Generation of a B Cell Model to Investigate the Function of FcRL4 in the Context of RA ', British Society for Immunology Congress 2023, Belfast, United Kingdom, 4/ 12/ 23 - 7/ 12/ 23 .

Comment/debate

Law, C, Wacleche, VS, Cao, Y, Pillai, A, Sowerby, J, Sowerby, B, Horisberger, A, Bracero, S, Skidanova, V, Li, ZJ, Adejoorin, I, Dillon, E, Benque, IJ, Pena Nunez, D, Simmons, DP, Keegan, J, Chen, L, Baker, T, Brohawn, PZ, Al-Mossawi, H, Hao, L-Y, Jones, B, Rao, N, Qu, Y, Alves, S, Jonsson, AH, Shaw, KS, Vleugels, RA, Massarotti, E, Costenbader, KH, Brenner, MB, Lederer, JA, Hultquist, JF, Choi, J, Rao, DA & Accelerating Medicines Partnership RA/ SLE Network 2024, ' Publisher Correction: Interferon subverts an AHR–JUN axis to promote CXCL13 + T cells in lupus ', Nature , vol. 631. https://doi.org/ 10.1038/ s41586-024-07845-8

Sahbudin, I , Singh, R , De Pablo, P , Rankin, E, Rhodes, B, Justice, E, Derrett-Smith, E, Amft, N, Narayan, N, McGrath, C, Baskar, S, Trickey, J, Maybury, M , Raza, K & Filer, A 2023, ' Correction to: The value of ultrasound-defined tenosynovitis and synovitis in the prediction of persistent arthritis ', Rheumatology , vol. 62, no. 3, pp. 1356-1356. https://doi.org/ 10.1093/ RHEUMATOLOGY/ KEAC336

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Rheumatoid Arthritis

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We are a group of highly collaborative clinical and non-clinical scientists advancing understanding of the causes and developing new ways of treating rheumatological conditions.  

Our aim is to deliver excellent science and clinical research together with people with lived experience of rheumatological conditions. We are delivering novel insights and pragmatic treatment for conditions across the life course and in diverse populations, including osteoarthritis, gout, CPPD disease, immune-mediated inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, and musculoskeletal pain. These conditions represent the most common reasons for healthcare utilization in the NHS. Our studies range from preclinical modelling to randomised controlled mechanistic and efficacy trials. We link findings from real-world data (big-data research), research cohorts and biorepositories with deeply phenotyped cases. We embrace collaboration with patients, international academics and pharmaceutical industry.

Our research has informed national and international guidelines on osteoarthritis, gout, CPPD disease, and vaccination. We have combined multi-omics with deep clinical characterisation, linked gut microbiome to musculoskeletal disease, and defined how rheumatological and non-rheumatological conditions interact to define disease and disease management.

Our research has also informed the development of the teaching modules both for undergraduate (e.g. Evidence-based Medicine and Clinical Study Design), as well as postgraduate students (e.g. Quantitative Evidence Synthesis).  We also provide excellent PhD training programs spanning from preclinical to clinical, and from epidemiology to development of a complex intervention, clinical trial and systematic review.  

Our research

Our research themes include:

Rheumatology leads Pain Centre Versus Arthritis  at the University of Nottingham, and the national Advanced Pain Discovery Platform . The Pain Centre develops new and improved treatments through a translational research programme into the mechanisms by which changes within the joint and in the nervous system interact with psychosocial factors to produce arthritis pain. Targeted treatment approaches are based on mechanistic pain phenotypes in order to improve the lives of people with chronic pain.

We investigate molecular mechanisms underlying chronic pain and pain relief in people with osteoarthritis or trauma through observational studies, experimental medicine and lifestyle interventions

targeting metabolism and inflammation in musculoskeletal conditions are becoming increasingly important particularly in the context of multimorbidities during the ageing process. This type of intervention can reduce pain from arthritis, reduce cardiometabolic risk, improve outcomes following surgery, reduce chronic inflammation, have survival benefits and even have cognitive benefits. the lack of understanding of the mechanisms of action it is impossible to undertake efficacy studies in any meaningful manner. Development of a measurable biomarker based on efficacy pathways would allow modifying, readapting, or optimising these interventions thereby improving adherence and adoption by the general population.

This work has resulted in papers in Cell ,  Nature Metabolism , Cell Reports Medicine and Nature Medicine  among many others.

This includes categories such as mobile health wearable devices, telehealth and telemedicine, and personalised medicine.   We have pioneered the delivery of  app delivered physiotherapy to reduce osteoarthritis pain with high effectiveness as featured in our work in JAMA Open Network.

We have established longitudinal cohorts to investigate musculoskeletal health and wellbeing (IMH&W) , knee pain and related health in the community ( KPIC ), foot/ankle osteoarthritis and cognitive impairment in the UK soccer players ( FOCUS ).  We also developed cohorts of healthcare workers (patherstudy.org.uk) which enabled us to during the COVID-19 pandemic to answer several key research questions and to establish national and international collaborations which resulted in papers in Lancet , Lancet Infectious Diseases , Nature and Science  among others.

We host unrivalled biorepositories of human joint tissues from living and post mortem donors, matched spinal tissues, and blood and synovial fluid samples linked to our clinical cohorts

We undertake large multi-centre primary-care and secondary-care clinical trials that have implications for patient management globally. Our clinical trial research is funded by NIHR-HTA and NIHR-MRC EME programs and is geared towards answering key clinical uncertainties in the management of gout (T2T), rheumatoid arthritis (MOOSE), perioperative biologic management (PERISCOPE), and optimising immune-response to COVID-19 boosters in people with inflammatory conditions (VROOM) and chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (IMPROVE). We collaborate with trial units throughout England and with other leading institutions such as Southampton, Imperial, Oxford, Leeds, QMUL, Keele and Sheffield. Our interventional studies have been published in Lancet , and Lancet Respiratory Medicine

We undertake big-data research using UK electronic health records datasets and UK Biobank studying epidemiology of inflammatory conditions, gout, and safety and effectiveness of vaccination in people with inflammatory conditions in collaboration with colleagues in Nottingham and Birmingham. Using a multi-specialty and multi-disciplinary approach we study rheumatic, dermatologic and gastrointestinal inflammatory conditions. This workstream has been funded by NIHR (RfPB, HTA/EME) FOREUM, AstraZeneca, Versus Arthritis, and several other funders. We have obtained over £8 million in external research grants (over £5 million with Professor Abhishek as Chief Investigator). Our observational studies have been published in JAMA  and the BMJ .

We lead on the development of the first validated classification criteria for CPPD disease, leading a multinational collaborative of investigators from three continents. We collaborate with qualitative researchers, basic scientists with interest in inflammatory conditions and methodologists nationally to deliver patient centred research with our main research strengths in observational studies and clinical trials.

We undertake conventional systematic review and meta-analysis , network meta-analysis and individual patient data (IPD) meta-analysis .  We lead the development of national and international evidence-based guidelines for osteoarthritis , gout and CPPD .  We have developed an undergraduate course on EBM and a postgraduate course on quantitative evidence synthesis including conventional, network and IPD meta-analyses. 

Our research in this area started with gout , SLE and rheumatoid arthritis.  We are currently leading a European project on “ Comorbidities in osteoarthritis (ComOA)” in UK, Netherlands, Sweden and Spain, aiming to examine the temporal association, clusters, analgesics contribution, causality and variation between populations. We are revealing how pain, multimorbidity and frailty interact to impair quality of life in elderly populations.

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University of Nottingham Medical School Nottingham, NG7 2UH

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RILA Institute of Health Sciences

PgDip Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Medicine

Course details

Core modules.

RILA724 Generic Medical Skills

This module enables learners to demonstrate understanding of the core principles of health promotion and the determinants of good health that are common across all specialties

RILA725 Clinical Practice

The module explores how advances in a specialism can be applied to clinical practice. The implications of implementing advanced clinical skills in community practice and at the hospital/community interface is evaluated. The interventions required to improve clinical standards and patient care are examined.

RILA734 Advances in Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal

This module allows participants to explore new insights at the forefront of rheumatology and musculoskeletal medicine. The current evidence-base will be examined and critically evaluated to help inform up-to-date clinical decisions. Moreover, the implementations required to promote diversified primary care will be examined.

Entry requirements

Fees, costs and funding, how to apply.

For further information and to apply for this course, please visit the institution's website .

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• Faculty of Medicine and Health
• School of Medicine

Professor Paul Emery

• Position: Professor (Clinical)
• Areas of expertise: Inflammatory Arthritis including RA; psoriatic arthritis; AS; SLE; Scleroderma; Sjogren Syndrome; immunotherapy; disease prevention; ultrasound; MRI imaging
• Email: [email protected]
• Phone: +44(0)113 392 4884
• Location: Chapel Allerton Hospital

Professor Emery was Cambridge undergraduate 1971(Churchill College), did clinical training at Guy’s and undertook early specialist training at Guy’s and Brompton. After completing his accreditation in Rheumatology and GIM. he became Head of Rheumatology at Walter & Eliza Hall Institute and Consultant at the Royal Melbourne Hospital in 1985. He returned to the University of Birmingham as a Senior Lecturer in 1987.  Since 1995 he has been AR UK Professor of Rheumatology in Leeds and Head of Department (-2018). Leeds under his direction is one of the worlds’ largest and most highly rated centres. Since 2009 he has been Director of the Leeds NIHR Biomedical Research Centre.  

Professor Emery was President of EULAR 2009-2011, the European Society for Rheumatology, the first UK President for 25 years.  He has served on the editorial boards of all the major rheumatology journals. He was inaugural President of ISEMIR (International extremity MRI society). He has been an NIHR Senior Investigator since 2008. He is a recipient of the Roche Biennial Award for Clinical Rheumatology; the Rheumatology Hospital Doctor of the Year award 1999; and EULAR prize 2002 for outstanding contribution to rheumatology research. In 2012 he was awarded the Carol Nachman Prize, the top international prize for rheumatology. In 2018 he was made Master of the American College of Rheumatology and was awarded an OBE by the Queen for services to Rheumatology.

Professor Emery’s research interests centre around the immunopathogenesis and immunotherapy of rheumatoid arthritis, SpA, psoriatic disease and connective tissue diseases.  He has a special interest in the factors leading to persistent inflammation. He was instrumental in bringing sensitive imaging (MRI/US) into rheumatology practice. He established the concept of early intervention in inflammatory arthritis, with a model for early arthritis now adopted throughout the world.  He is currently focusing on the prevention of autoimmune diseases with national programmes identifying patients in the pre-clinical phase.  This prevention strategy is applied not only to inflammatory arthritis but to systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjogren’s syndrome, scleroderma and psoriatic disease. He has published >1100 peer-reviewed articles in this area, he has an h factor of >140.

Responsibilities

• Director. Leeds Biomedical Research Centre

Research interests

• Inflammatory Arthritis
• Psoriatic arthritis
• Scleroderma
• Sjogrens Syndrome
• Immunotherapy
• Disease prevention
• Ultrasound, MRI imaging

Qualifications

• MA, MD, MBBChir, FRCP, FRCPE, FMedSci, MACR

Professional memberships

Student education.

Undergraduate rheumatology teaching.  

Supervising multiple postgraduate students

Research groups and institutes

• Leeds Institute of Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Medicine
• Immunity and inflammation
• Musculoskeletal disease
• Targets and therapies
• Autoimmune Connective Tissue Diseases
• Dermato-Rheumatology Group
• Inflammatory Musculoskeletal

Publications:

My five most recent selected publications, my other selected publications, journal articles, conference papers, presentation (conference/workshop etc), conference presentations, internet publications, performances, compositions, exhibitions, scholarly editions, software / code, thesis / dissertations, working papers.

• Rheumatology
• Rheumatology Advances in Practice
• Musculoskeletal Care
• Conferences
• Annual Conference
• Case-based Conference
• Rheumatology for specialist nurses
• Core skills in rheumatology
• Future leaders
• Best Practice
• Service Guidance
• Best Practice Awards
• Quality improvement
• JIA learning collaborative
• Requesting registers data
• Special interest groups
• Devolved nations
• Our Trustees
• Vision, mission and values
• Equity, diversity and inclusion
• Careers in rheumatology
• Rheumatology Taster Days
• Specialty Certificate Examination
• Versus Arthritis handbook
• Working with BSR
• Jobs at BSR

Information for current trainees

If you've already decided you want a career in rheumatology, here's where you can find out more about what you need to do next., preparing for appraisal, annual review of competence progression (arcp) is the formal method by which a trainee's progression through their training programme is monitored and recorded. for more information, look at the joint royal college of physicians training board ., specialty training curriculum, rheumatology joint royal college of physicians training board, august 2010, general internal medicine  joint royal college of physicians training board, august 2009, physician academic checklist  joint royal college of physicians training board, arcp specialty decision aids, rheumatology joint royal college of physicians training board, november 2014, general internal medicine joint royal college of physicians training board, november 2017, pre-acrp checklist for educational, supervisors and trainees joint royal college of physicians training board, april 2015  , specialty certificate examination (sce):, the sce examination is a compulsory of assessment for certificate of completion of training (cct). it takes place annually in june in multiple centres. the decision aid states this exam should be attempted by the end of st5. for more information please  visit the mrcp website ., thinking of doing research there are multiple ways that you can get some research onto your cv:, clinical trials alongside usual clinical work (in programme), sub-investigator for multi-centre pharmaceutical trial, co-investigator for local study, devising your own study, ethical approval will be needed for all studies defined as research and this can be a daunting minefield for the inexperienced researcher. determining whether or not your study is counted as research, suggestions on how to plan your research study and requirements for ethical approval can be found at the hra website, pros and cons, whether or not undertaking a period of research is right for you really depends on your individual career plans and goals and it may be helpful to consider the following when making your decision:, do i need to, will research experience will be helpful or necessary in getting you the job you want talk to your seniors and find out about the job market. having research experience may open the door to a wider variety of job opportunities. it is not all about high impact publications; a period of research gives you a wide range of transferable skills., would i enjoy it, ‘research’ is a very broad church, and just because you did not enjoy your bsc doing cell culture in a lab, does not mean that you would not enjoy an epidemiological study. aside from the actual work, the benefits and stresses/strains of an academic job are very different to those of a clinical job. e.g. you perhaps have greater autonomy to decide what to do each day, but that comes with responsibility (and if you go on holiday, you cannot ‘hand over’ in the same way), timing and length of training, consider your family and other commitments which your career has to dovetail with, and bear in mind that the academic career path can involve applications at slightly different stages to the clinical path, and academic jobs can continue for longer periods in the same institutions., you may need to complete your clinical training within a shorter space of time (e.g. if you are on an acf with protected research time), or you may take longer (e.g. if you undertake a phd out of programme and decide not to count your years towards your clinical training)., there is no ‘right’ time in your career to do research. many factors play a role, not least a bit of luck and being in the right place at the right time. undertaking research can also have financial implications, either through loss of banding or delayed progression., how do i start, talk to as many people as you can about your intentions and keep your ears open for opportunities. bear in mind that the best opportunities may stem from agreeing to help with a ‘little’ project, so say ‘yes’ whenever you can, getting involved with multiple small projects will also help you to decide what aspects of research you enjoy the most, and help to boost your cv for when your perfect opportunity arises. not all projects work out, and publications can take a long time to come through, so casting your net wide can be advantageous., eventually you will need to get funding if you want to pursue a phd/md, but don’t let this put you off. applying for a personal fellowship is a lot of hard work, but there are other ways to get the money you need, and once you have your foot through the door, if you have a good project, your seniors will help you to navigate the system., for details of how to arrange ‘out of programme’ research experience, check the joint royal colleges of physicians training board's  out of programme (oop) experiences, including out of programme for research (oopr) ., types of research degree, research fellow: out of programme for research (oopr), usually for one year. they can be advertised for a pre-specified research study/interest, or they can be arranged locally following a research idea from an interested registrar., md (doctor of medicine), arranged locally in conjunction with a university. timescales vary dependent on university and personal requirements (e.g. 1 year full time; 2 years part time; 5 years alongside usual clinical work). thesis based on several pieces of linked research. will require funding for salary and tuition fees   , three year research programme. gaining funding is a complex and long process, but will usually involve applying for fellowships from organisations, such as versus arthritis, medical research council, wellcome trust and national institute for health research, post-cct fellowship, one year of research to develop a sub-specialty interest following completion of your registrar training, audit/qi projects, as part of the curriculum (both rheumatology and gim), you will be required to take part or lead an audit or quality improvement project., to get the best out of it, and make it as useful a process as possible for both you and your unit have a good think about what you want to do and why, rather than using it as a tick box experience., you may even get a poster or presentation out of it the links below will direct you to established audit tools and information:, royal college of physicians clinical audit programmes, nhs england audits, nice support tool.

عرض في العربية | NHS Foundation Trust

+44 (0) 20 7317 7751

Professor Christopher Denton

Professor of experimental rheumatology.

Christopher Denton is Professor of Experimental Rheumatology at UCL and Consultant Rheumatologist and Head of the Centre for Rheumatology, Royal Free Hospital in London. He leads a large clinical programme in scleroderma at the Royal Free Hospital and co-ordinates multidisciplinary care for more than 1400 patients. The scleroderma centre has played a prominent role in many recent clinical studies in scleroderma, Raynaud’s phenomenon and connective tissue disease associated pulmonary hypertension. In addition there is a vigorous translational and basic science research programme that focuses on pathogenic mechanisms and novel disease models.

Hospital Locations

Royal Free Hospital

Year qualified

Country of qualification, languages spoken, specialities.

• Rheumatology

Memberships

• Member of the Association of Physicians
• Member of British Society for Rheumatology
• Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (London)
• International Fellow of the American College of Rheumatology

Registration and licensing

GMC:3134128

Clinical interests

• Scleroderma
• Systemic sclerosis
• Raynaud’s phenomenon and related connective tissue disease

Research interests

• Clinical and translational research into scleroderma
• Fibrosis and pulmonary hypertension
• Active clinical trials programme
• Quillinan NP, McIntosh D, Vernes J, Haq S, Denton CP .  Treatment of diffuse systemic sclerosis with hyperimmune caprine serum (AIMSPRO): a phase II double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Ann Rheum Dis. 2014 Jan 1;73(1):56-61.
• Derrett-Smith EC, Dooley A, Gilbane AJ, Trinder SL, Khan K, Baliga R, Holmes AM, Hobbs AJ, Abraham D, Denton CP.   Endothelial Injury in a Transforming Growth Factor β-Dependent Mouse Model of Scleroderma Induces Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension. Arthritis Rheum. 2013 Nov;65(11):2928-39.
• Penn H, Quillinan N, Khan K, Chakravarty K, Ong VH, Burns A, Denton CP.   Targeting the endothelin axis in scleroderma renal crisis: rationale and feasibility. QJM. 2013 Sep;106(9):839-48.
• Coghlan JG*, Denton CP*, Grünig E*, Bonderman D, Distler O, Khanna D, Müller-Ladner U, Pope JE, Vonk MC, Doelberg M, Chadha-Boreham H, Heinzl H, Rosenberg DM, McLaughlin VV, Seibold JR;   on behalf of the DETECT study group. Evidence-based detection of pulmonary arterial hypertension in systemic sclerosis: the DETECT study. Ann Rheum Dis. 2013 May 18. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 23687283. *equal contribution
• Denton CP, Krieg T, Guillevin L, Schwierin B, Rosenberg D, Silkey M, Zultak M, Matucci-Cerinic M; DUO Registry investigators .  Demographic, clinical and antibody characteristics of patients with digital ulcers in systemic sclerosis: data from the DUO Registry. Ann Rheum Dis. 2012 May;71(5):718-21.
• Herrick AL, van den Hoogen F, Gabrielli A, Tamimi N, Reid C, O’Connell D, Vázquez-Abad MD, Denton CP.   Modified-release sildenafil reduces Raynaud’s phenomenon attack frequency in limited cutaneous systemic sclerosis. Arthritis Rheum. 2011 Mar;63(3):775-82.
• Hoyles RK, Derrett-Smith EC, Khan K, Shiwen X, Howat SL, Wells AU, Abraham DJ, Denton CP.   An essential role for resident fibroblasts in experimental lung fibrosis is defined by lineage-specific deletion of high-affinity type II transforming growth factor beta receptor. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2011 Jan 15;183(2):249-61.
• Nihtyanova SI, Tang EC, Coghlan JG, Wells AU, Black CM, Denton CP.   Improved survival in systemic sclerosis is associated with better ascertainment of internal organ disease: a retrospective cohort study. QJM. 2010 Feb;103(2):109-15.
• Denton CP, Engelhart M, Tvede N, Wilson H, Khan K, Shiwen X, Carreira PE, Diaz Gonzalez F, Black CM, van den Hoogen FH.   An open-label pilot study of infliximab therapy in diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2009 Sep;68(9):1433-9
• Cai CL, Martin JC, Sun Y, Cui L, Wang L, Ouyang K, Yang L, Bu L, Liang X, Zhang X, Stallcup WB, Denton CP, McCulloch A, Chen J, Evans SM.   A myocardial lineage derives from Tbx18 epicardial cells. Nature. 2008 Jul 3;454(7200):104-8.
• Fonseca C, Lindahl GE, Ponticos M, Sestini P, Renzoni EA, Holmes AM, Spagnolo P, Pantelidis P, Leoni P, McHugh N, Stock CJ, Shi-Wen X, Denton CP, Black CM, Welsh KI, du Bois RM, Abraham DJ.   A polymorphism in the CTGF promoter region associated with systemic sclerosis. N Engl J Med. 2007;357:1210-20.

Professor Christopher Denton, Professor Of Experimental Rheumatology is available to be seen for consultations at Royal Free London

• Our Approach To Research
• The Kennedy Institute
• Senior Research Fellowships
• Research Ignition Awards
• Scleroderma Programme
• Other Projects
• History of the Trust
• Financial Reports
• Our Policies

Our Objectives

The Kennedy Trust’s mission is to provide support for basic and translational research into musculoskeletal and related inflammatory diseases, where we can make a clear difference and where other funding is not easily available.

Our investment in research is not purely financial; we want our funding relationships to be built on open, ongoing dialogue with potential recipients around their ideas and scientific approach.

Our Funding Priorities

The Trust has, for many years, focused its funding on the work of the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology at the University of Oxford.

In meeting its charitable objectives, the Trust supports both basic and translational research at the Institute in the form of Fellowships, doctoral studentships, Senior Investigator Awards and core funding to underpin central services and facilities.

Whilst we continue to support the Kennedy Institute, the Trust has expanded the scope of its funding beyond the Institute in recent years. Our priority is to focus on the funding of strong individuals, particularly early-stage researchers, working in the fields of musculoskeletal and related inflammatory diseases.

Our Application Process and Reviews

The Trust’s funding strategy is guided by its Research Committee, which comprises the following Trustee and non-Trustee members:

Professor Andy Cope (Chair)

Professor Philip Conaghan

Professor Dirk Elewaut

Professor Carl Goodyear

Professor Tracy Hussell

Professor Paul Lehner

Professor Carola Vinuesa

Professor of Rheumatology at King’s College London

Professor of Musculoskeletal Medicine at the University of Leeds

Professor of Medicine at Ghent University

Professor of Translational Immunology at the University of Glasgow

Professor of Inflammatory Disease at the University of Manchester

Professor of Immunology and Medicine at the University of Cambridge

Professor of Immunology at the Francis Crick Institute

Non-voting members:

Professor Sir Stephen Holgate

Mr Richard Punt

MRC Professor of Immunopharmacology at the University of Southampton

Professional services management consultant

Funding is provided through two distinct channels:

1) Long-term funding of the Kennedy Institute

An 8-year research funding strategy is agreed between the Director of the Institute and the Board of Trustees, with advice from the Research Committee. The Trust provides strategic funding for facilities, key posts (such as Senior Research Fellowships) and studentships.

The Institute is reviewed every four years by an External Advisory Board of independent scientists.

The most recent external review was carried out in November 2022 by Professors Tim Hardingham, Gitta Stockinger, Dylan Owen, Cornelia Weyand, and Ramnik Xavier.

The Institute is also assessed biennially by its own Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), which includes a Kennedy Trust representative who provides an independent report to our Board of Trustees.

2) Independent initiatives

We primarily establish our funding initiatives by identifying areas of need and issuing targeted calls for proposals.

The Trust appoints an independent Review Panel of expert scientists to assess applications for each initiative. Recommendations for funding are provided to the Board through the Research Committee.

We also respond to informal approaches from institutions and other funders for new funding initiatives. We do not consider personal applications.

Our Funding Initiatives

Our major funding initiatives now include a biennial Senior Research Fellowship award and an MB PhD scheme for aspiring clinician scientists.

We also support an arthritis therapy acceleration programme (A-TAP) between the Universities of Birmingham and Oxford, a scleroderma research programme at the University of Leeds and a three-year Daphne Jackson Trust fellowship designed to enable talented scientists and researchers to retrain and return to research after a career break.

Further information on all of our funding initiatives can be found below.

Global Talent Visa

The Kennedy Trust has been accepted by the UKRI to join the Government’s list of Endorsed Funders under the Global Talent Visa scheme. This endorsement enables all international researchers funded by Kennedy Trust grants to apply for a fast-tracked, Tier 1 Global Talent Visa. Further information can be found here .

National Institute for Health Research

The Kennedy Trust is a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) non-commercial Partner. This means the studies that we fund may be eligible to access the NIHR Study Support Service which is provided by the NIHR Clinical Research Network. The NIHR Clinical Research Network can now support health and social care research taking place in non-NHS settings, such as studies running in care homes or hospices, or public health research taking place in schools and other community settings.

Read the full policy here .

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Patrick Gordon

• Rheumatology

PATIENT REVIEWS

Reviewed By

Dr Patrick Gordon is a Consultant Rheumatologist at King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and privately with HCA Healthcare at London Bridge Hospital. The talented physician was awarded the King's College Hospital 2018 Patient Choice Star.

He was awarded his Medical Degree in 1991 from Kings's College and completed his specialist training in rheumatology in south London. He completed a PhD at the Lupus Unit at St. Thomas' Hospital and was appointed as Consultant at King's College Hospital in 2004 where he established the Connective Tissue Disease Service. Now a National Specialised NHS England Centre which serves over 1000 clients with various connective tissue disorders. He is an honorary senior lecturer, his research is clinically orientated and focused on lupus and myositis with a clinical trials programme. He supervises junior doctors for their PhD and MD studies and has published over 70 papers and 4 medical textbook chapters during his career. He is a member of the British Medical Association, the British Society for Rheumatology and the International Myositis Assessment and Clinical Studies Group.

Diseases, Medical Tests and Treatments

• Joint Injection
• Soft Tissue Injection
• Osteoarthritis
• Rotator Cuff Disease
• Neck and Back Pain
• Inflammatory Arthritis
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Psoriatic Arthritis
• Ankylosing Spondylitis
• Sero-negative Arthritis
• Multisystem Diseases
• Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
• Systemic Sclerosis
• Connective Tissue Disease
• Polymyalgia Rheumatica
• Temporal Arteritis
• Behçet's Disease
• Sarcoidosis
• IgG4 disease
• Granulomatosis
• Polyangiitis (Wegener's)
• Eosinophilic Granulomatosis
• Microscopic Polyangiitis
• Polyarteritis Nodosa.

It is important that HCA is transparent about our relationship with those doctors who provide us with clinical guidance on delivering the best possible care to patients and operating our hospitals safely and efficiently. We set out here some of the ways in which we work together and the amount we pay this doctor for such services.

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All conditions

• Autoimmune Diseases
• Interstitial Lung Disease
• Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA)
• Scleroderma
• Sjögren's Syndrome
• Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE)

Qualifications

MBBS FRCP PhD

Registered with

General Medical Council: 3543298

Unavailable

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The Complete Guide To Becoming A Rheumatology Doctor

• Specialty Guides

The Role Of A Rheumatologist

Rheumatologists diagnose, treat and rehabilitate persons of all ages with disorders of the musculoskeletal system.1 This includes inflammatory disorders, systemic autoimmune diseases, degenerative diseases, soft tissue disorders, sports injuries, chronic pain syndromes and metabolic bone diseases.

Examples of pathologies managed by rheumatologists are rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and osteoporosis. A large proportion of the caseload comprises chronic illnesses. Consequently, rheumatology allows doctors to have prolonged involvement in patient care. 

Rheumatologists apply an array of approaches in clinical medicine. Imaging and pharmacological modalities and joint and soft tissue injections are commonly utilised.1 Rheumatologists employ a multidisciplinary working model.

Care is typically delivered in outpatient settings in coordination with primary care practitioners, other medical and surgical specialists and allied health professionals, for example, physiotherapists and occupational therapists. Personal skills requisite for rheumatologists are teamwork, cohesiveness and empathy.

Most rheumatologists jobs are exclusively in the specialty. However, they are accredited dually in general internal medicine (GIM). GIM physicians are trained to diagnose and manage a broad array of acute and chronic medical conditions in persons that present to emergency departments and acute medical units, to inpatients of other specialties – for example, surgery and obstetrics and gynaecology – and to attendants of medical outpatient clinics.2

They also engage in the management of inpatients and outpatients with co-morbidities. Consequently, rheumatologists may assume additional roles, for example, contributing to the acute on-call rota and leading a medical ward. 

In the UK, high levels of job satisfaction are reported by rheumatologists. Recently, the specialty has benefitted from pioneering treatment methods that have resulted in improved patient outcomes and there persists scope for further advancements. In 2017, 51% of rheumatologists were women.3 

A Typical Week

Most of the activities performed by a rheumatologist in a standard week comprise patient consultations in outpatient clinics or day assessment and treatment centres. The number of cases managed per day is variable. For example, three new patients and ten follow-up patients may be seen.4

Registrars are given the opportunity to work in different subspecialty clinics every week to facilitate the development of special interests. Other responsibilities are teaching, clinical governance and research. On-call work is very infrequent – approximately 25% of consultants conduct routine on-call work at weekends.4 

The Route To Rheumatology

The route to rheumatology is via general medical training. This can be Internal Medicine Training (IMT) stage 1 or Acute Care Common Stem (ACCS), which are three-year programmes. Both programmes feature several rotations across a variety of medical specialties; ACCS facilitates increased focus on acute medicine, emergency medicine, anaesthetics and critical care medicine in the initial two years.

Application to these is through a form examining entry requirements, for example, core competence, clinical reference, and details of achievement in various areas – and an interview. Trainees must then pass the Membership of the Royal College of Physicians of the United Kingdom (MRCP (UK)) examination. 

Specialty training in rheumatology has a duration of five years and results in dual accreditation in GIM.5 Entrance to this is very competitive – in 2018, the competition ration for rheumatology ST3 was 2.40.6 Trainees are assessed for appointment to rheumatology ST3 by an application form and an interview.

Many rheumatology trainees conduct research towards attainment of an MD or PhD qualification. The Specialty Certificate Examination (SCE) in Rheumatology must be successfully completed prior to being awarded a certificate of completion of training (CCT) by the General Medical Council.

Application for consultant posts can be made six months prior to attainment of a CCT. There is a good balance between the number of trainees and the availability of consultant jobs in rheumatology, unlike in many other specialties.5 

Strong competition for rheumatology ST3 means that it is important to demonstrate commitment to the specialty. Medical students interested to pursue a career in rheumatology can attend conferences, join student societies and choose student selected components with a focus on rheumatology.

The British Society for Rheumatology (BSR) can also be joined by students. An early decision on specialty choice may be of use and can be aided by careful observation and enquiries on clinical placements. 

Foundation trainees should attempt to secure full placements in rheumatology or, if unfeasible, full placements in a related discipline. Alternatively, taster experiences can be attained. It may also be useful to enter essay competitions and construct case reports or presentations relevant to rheumatology.

An extensive CV, featuring, for example, audit, teaching and research experiences, including publications and postgraduate degrees, is requisite for entrance to specialty training. 

Subspecialties

It is possible to undertake specialist fellowships in an area of personal interest in the final years of specialty training or subsequent to the attainment of a CCT.7 This is typically completed in one year at national or international centres of excellence, for example, the Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine at King’s College London, the Centre for Musculoskeletal Research at the University of Manchester and The Birmingham Rheumatology Research Group. Subspecialty interests include paediatric rheumatology, metabolic bone disease, neurophysiology, sports medicine and autoimmune multisystem connective tissue disease.1

NHS consultant salaries are the same for all specialties but vary between Scotland (highest), England, Northern Ireland, and Wales (lowest) and increase with service (up to 19 years). In 2020 the salary bands range from £77,779 to £109,849.6 Salaries can be further enhanced with NHS excellence awards. 

Rheumatology is a specialty with modest  potential for private practice. JRSM reported in 2008 that private income for rheumatologists was 0.33x  their NHS income.

The recommended starting salary of accredited consultants in the British Army is similar to that in the NHS. In 2017, this was £80,527.8

For more information on salaries within the NHS, please feel free to review  The Complete Guide to NHS Pay .

The primary society for rheumatology and musculoskeletal care professionals in the UK is the BSR. Additionally, the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) is the representative of people with rheumatic diseases, health professionals and scientific societies of rheumatology of the European countries. BSR organises an annual conference and EULAR hosts an annual congress.

Key journals in the discipline are Nature Reviews Rheumatology, Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases and Rheumatology. 

Related Job Sources With BMJ Careers

• Hospital Jobs
• Psychiatry Jobs
• Public Health Jobs
• Research Jobs
• NHS Jobs in England
• NHS Jobs in Northern Ireland
• NHS Jobs in Scotland
• NHS Jobs in Wales

More Complete Guides By BMJ Careers

• How To Become A Cardiologist
• How To Become An Oncologist
• How To Become A Pathologist
• How To Become A Radiologist
• How To Become A Urologist

Rheumatology [Internet]. Health Careers. [cited 19 June 2020]. Available from:  https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/medicine/rheumatology

General internal medicine [Internet]. Health Careers. [cited 19 June 2020]. Available from:  https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/medicine/general-internal-medicine

NHS Digital. Analysis of the representation of women across the hospital and community health services workforce [Internet]. NHS Digital; 2018 [cited 19 June 2020]. Available from: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/find-data-and-publications/supplementary-information/2018-supplementary-information-files/analysis-of-the-representation-of-women-across-the-hospital-and-community-health-services-workforce

Working life (rheumatology) [Internet]. Health Careers. [cited 19 June 2020]. Available from:  https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/medicine/rheumatology/working-life

Rheumatology [Internet]. Physician ST3 Recruitment. [cited 19 June 2020]. Available from: https://www.st3recruitment.org.uk/about-st3/overview-st3-recruitment 

Specialty Recruitment Competition Ratios 2019 [Internet]. Health Education England; 2019 [cited 19 June 2020]. Available from: https://specialtytraining.hee.nhs.uk/portals/1/Content/Resource%20Bank/Competition%20Ratio's/Competition%20Ratios%202018.pdf

Akram Qasim, Hughes Michael. A career in rheumatology BMJ 2016; 352: i1367

Pay [Internet]. British Medical Association. [cited 19 June 2020]. Available from: https://www.bma.org.uk/advice/employment/pay

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Clinical and Medical Sciences Education PhD

Our MPhil, MD and PhD degrees in Microbiology explore the molecular and cellular biology of microorganisms and their roles in human health and disease. They also explore how microbes can be engineered as valuable tools for medical, biotechnological and industrial applications.

You are currently viewing course information for entry year:

Start date(s):

• September 2025
• January 2026

Microbiology is a diverse and well-funded area at Newcastle University. It includes researchers at the Centre of Bacterial Cell Biology and others who study eukaryotic microbes.  It creates a vibrant and dynamic environment for postgraduate study. Our research drives forward the understanding of pathogens and the development of new antibiotics. It also provides crucial insights for solving a range of industrial and environmental problems.

We offer supervision for MPhil, PhD and MD in a variety of areas including:

• transcription and translation
• cell growth and division, bacterial cytoskeleton
• cellular/spatial organisation of a bacterial cell
• cell membranes - organization, function and biosynthesis
• bacterial cell wall structure and biosynthesis
• microbial protein secretion
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Important information

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Please rest assured we make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the programmes, services and facilities described. However, it may be necessary to make changes due to significant disruption, for example in response to Covid-19.

View our  Academic experience page , which gives information about your Newcastle University study experience for the academic year 2024-25.

See our  terms and conditions and student complaints information , which gives details of circumstances that may lead to changes to programmes, modules or University services.

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Qualifications explained.

Find out about the different qualification options for this course.

An MPhil is available in all subject areas. You receive research training and undertake original research leading to the completion of a 40,000 - 50,000 word thesis.

Find out about different types of postgraduate qualifications

A PhD is a doctorate or doctoral award. It involves original research that should make a significant contribution to the knowledge of a specific subject. To complete the PhD you will produce a substantial piece of work (80,000 – 100,000 words) in the form of a supervised thesis. A PhD usually takes three years full time.

How you'll learn

Depending on your modules, you'll be assessed through a combination of:

We offer a wide range of projects for the thesis. These will be provided by our academics. You can also propose your own topic.

Our mission is to help you:

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We can offer you tailored wellbeing support, courses and activities.

You can also access a broad range of workshops covering:

• research and professional skills
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Find out more about our postgraduate research student support

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Faculty of medical sciences (fms) researcher development programme .

Each faculty offers a researcher development programme for its postgraduate research students. We have designed your programme to help you:

• perform better as a researcher
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You’ll cover:

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Find out more about the FMS researcher development programme

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There are opportunities to undertake your PhD at Newcastle within a:

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Being part of a CDT or DTP has many benefits:

• they combine research expertise and training of a number of leading universities, academic schools and academics.
• you’ll study alongside a cohort of other PhD students
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Find out more about doctoral training and partnerships

If there are currently opportunities available in your subject area you’ll find them when you search for funding in the fees and funding section on this course.

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Our award-winning Careers Service is one of the largest and best in the country, and we have strong links with employers. We provide an extensive range of opportunities to all students through our ncl+ initiative.

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Check the government’s website for more information .

The School of Medicine is the hub of clinical and medical education research and scholarship activities within the University. It's part of one of the largest integrated medical teaching and hospital complexes in the country. We provide excellent undergraduate and postgraduate training. We're passionate about developing education, training, and careers in research.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees for 2025 entry (per year).

We are unable to give an exact fee, this is why the fee is shown as a range. This fee range takes into account your research topic and resource requirements.

Your research topic is unique so it will have unique resource requirements. Resources could include specialist equipment, such as laboratory/workshop access, or technical staff.

If your research involves accessing specialist resources then you're likely to pay a higher fee. You'll discuss the exact nature of your research project with your supervisor(s). You'll find out the fee in your offer letter.

Home fees for research degree students

For 2024-25 entry, we have aligned our standard Home research fees with those set by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) . The standard fee was confirmed in Spring 2024 by UKRI.

For 2025-26 entry, we will be aligning our standard  Home research fees  with those set by  UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) . The standard fee will be confirmed in Spring 2025 by UKRI.

As a general principle, you should expect the tuition fee to increase in each subsequent academic year of your course, subject to government regulations on fee increases and in line with inflation.

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We support our EU and international students by providing a generous range of Vice-Chancellor's automatic and merit-based scholarships. See  our   searchable postgraduate funding page  for more information.  

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The entrance requirements below apply to 2025 entry.

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