Vacation Studentships
BHF Centre of Research Excellence, University of Oxford
The BHF Centre of Research Excellence (Oxford BHF CRE) in Oxford offers a small number of vacation studentships to enable talented and motivated undergraduates to carry out a research project in cardiovascular science during the University summer vacation.
The Oxford BHF CRE brings together over 70 world leading research groups, based in departments and centres across the University of Oxford. Together they cover the translational research spectrum from basic science through to clinical and population health research.
The placements are organised as part of the Graduate Access Programmes at the University of Oxford. The UNIQ+ internships are designed for talented undergraduates from backgrounds which have been disadvantaged and/or under-represented at postgraduate-level study, and these internships offer research experience with supervision from Oxford academics.
The programmes offer a generous scholarship stipend and free-of-charge accommodation in one of Oxford’s colleges, as well as the opportunity to improve your research skills and find out more about postgraduate study and careers.
Application guidelines and deadline for summer 2025 placements will be announced in Autumn 2024.
Past BHF CRE vacation studentships feedback
"I anticipate the studentship will enable to apply for either a master’s programme or a PhD. Additionally, it has given me practical lab skills which I can develop as I progress through my degree."
Student in Medicine
"I was surprised how teamwork was involved. Everyone in our lab helps each other out and collaborates on different projects. I assumed it was very individual and isolating but I was proven wrong by the friendly lab environment."
2nd year Biomedical Science
"I feel that this studentship has provided be with a fantastic experience that has allowed me to display my skills in real world projects. It will be an extremely useful demonstration of my abilities for future applications and opportunities. I’ve also made numerous contacts whilst in Oxford that will prove useful for future research."
Student in Medicine
'I have really enjoyed the wet lab component of my project as I was able to independently carry out certain procedures. I have also learnt a lot about some essential lab techniques and equipment during the practicals. Moreover, I enjoyed the interactions with people from different backgrounds and learning about their experience. It allowed me to put things into perspective and be less intimidated by postgraduate studies and a career in academia'.
2nd year Biomedical Science
'I have enjoyed being able to have hands-on experience in the lab, learning new techniques and the significant science behind them. This studentship has completely changed my perception of working in research. I have started to appreciate how diverse it is, and how it is not always pure wet lab work'.
2nd year Biomedical Sciences
'This studentship taught me the value of hard work, as well as the necessary skills and procedures for translating research into impact.... the tasks assigned to me were challenging; as a result I learnt a lot about statistical programming and research techniques in a highly supportive and welcoming environment'.
Due to start an MSc in Public Health
‘The studentship was an invaluable experience. It allowed me to experience first-hand working in modern scientific research and it has reinforced my desire to pursue a career in academia. The chance to develop my critical thinking and exercise my scientific curiosity is what I cherished most about my studentship.’
2nd year Human Biology
‘My nine weeks gave me significant training in fundamental molecular biology techniques such as Western Blotting, qPCR, protein extraction/quantitation, RNA extraction and HPLC, as well as experience with data analysis and an understanding of the methods and challenges of working with an animal model.’
2nd year Pre-clinical Medicine
‘I was able to attend lab meetings and observe the interplay between different research teams in an area for I had expressed an interest in my application; I appreciate that a large effort was made to place me with a team which aligned with my interests.’
2nd year Medicine & Surgery
‘I feel that this was a valuable introduction to the workings of a typical research lab, where experiments do not always go as planned. I believe this experience will be very useful to the rest of my undergraduate studies, and will make me a stronger candidate when I apply to postgraduate positions in the future. This experience has made me seriously consider a career in cardiovascular research.’
3rd year Biochemistry
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Our team
- Caroline Telfer
- Philippa Major
- Dr Ben Davies
- Professor Peter Donnelly
- Professor Chris Pugh
- David Greaves
- Charalambos Antoniades
- David Paterson
- Paul Riley
- Shankar Srinivas
- Pawel Swietach
- Caitlin Clunie-O'Connor
- Chris Delaforce
- Chris Lindsay
- James Holt-Martyn
- Houman Ashrafian
- Shoumo Bhattacharya
- Ricardo Carnicer
- Barbara Casadei
- Keith Channon
- Robin Choudhury
- Mark Crabtree
- Matt Daniels
- Martin Farrall
- Vanessa Ferreira
- Katja Gehmlich
- Paul Leeson
- Craig Lygate
- Stefan Neubauer
- Stefan Piechnik
- Charles Redwood
- Svetlana Reilly
- Oliver Rider
- Matthew Robson
- Christopher Rodgers
- Jurgen Schneider
- Ellie Tzima
- Hugh Watkins
- Mathilda Mommersteeg
- Anant Parekh
- Nicola Smart
- Duncan Sparrow
- Damian Tyler
- Manuela Zaccolo
- James Eaton
- Rebecca Hancock
- Jane Armitage
- Colin Baigent
- Zhengming Chen
- Robert Clarke
- Kieran Clarke
- Rory Collins
- Sarah Darby
- Jonathan Emberson
- Jane Green
- Neil Herring
- Jemma Hopewell
- Samira Lakhal-Littleton
- Martin Landray
- Claudia Monaco
- Kate Dunne
- Sarah Lewington
- Sarah Parish
- David Preiss
- Leanne Hodson
- Antony Galione
- Christopher J Garland
- Ming Lei
- Derek Terrar
- Rui Monteiro
- Roger Patient
- Akane Kawamura
- Angela Russell
- Blanca Rodriguez
- Aurore Lyon
- Daniel Lucy
- Kim Dora
- Peter Kohl
- Richard Wade-Martins
- Grant C Churchill
- Theo Kyriakou
- Edward Fisher
- Manuel Mayr
- Shona Kerr
- Chris Schofield
- John Mullins
- Paolo Tammaro
- Michael Dodd
- Jana Koth
- Tatjana Sauka-Spengler
- Richard Haynes
- Filipa Simoes
- Jyoti Patel
- Iona Millwood
- Dorota Szumska
- Richard Bulbulia
- Paul Robinson
- Emily Flashman
- Gil Bub
- Regent Lee
- Will Herrington
- Asif Iqbal
- Lisa Heather
- Aurora Pérez-Cornago
- Gillian Douglas
- Graham Davies
- Adam Lewandowski
- Nadia Akawi
- Dr Kerstin Timm
- Carin de Villiers
- Alexander Sparrow
- Cher-Rin Chong
- Carolyn Carr
- Sevasti Zervou
- James McCullagh
- Huaidong Du
- Emily Sammons
- Louise Bowman
- Olena Seminog
- Rina Ariga
- Fiona Bragg
- Derrick Bennett
- Gil McVean
- Cornelia van Duijn
- Chas Bountra
- Carol Robinson
- Gareth Purvis
- Marion Mafham
- Alfonso Bueno-Orovio
- Joaquim Vieira
- Aiden Doherty
- Chris Toepfer
- Jillian Simon
- Marco Spartera
- Diego J. Aguilar-Ramírez
- Nikita Ved
- Justin Lau
- Rohan Wijesurendra
- Rohan Wijesurendra
- Andia Redpath
- Irina-Elena Lupu
- Christopher Toepfer
- Alice Neal
- Matthew Burrage
- Oliver Stone
- Thomas Nicol
- Betty Raman
- Ben Cairns
- Ladislav Valkovic
- Sarah De Val
- Christopher Toepfer
- Kerstin Timm
- Winok Lapidaire
- Elliot Bentine
- Betty Raman
- Mi Jun Keng
- Peter (Ka Hung) Chan
- Susann Bruche
- Suzanne Engelen
- Lea Dib
- Thomas Lanyon-Hogg
- Qiang Zhang
- Marion Mafham
- Jillian Simon
- Filipa Simões
- Ying-Jie Wang
- Kyung Chan (KC) Park
- Naveed Akbar
- Jacinta Kalisch-Smith
- Andrew Lewis
- Molly Stevens
- James Grist
- Charalampos Sigalas
- Dillon Lim
- Amaury Genovese
- Alexander Tinworth
- Max Hill
- Charilaos Zisou
- Selin Tuzuner
- Fantin Lowenstein
- Lazaros Belbasis
- Stefan van Duijvenboden
- Gareth Purvis
- Jakub Tomek
- Andia Redpath
- Elizabeth Ormondroyd
- Betty Raman
- Anuj Goel
- Kar Lai Pang
- Andrew Lewis
- Marion Mafham
- Qiang Zhang
- Mootaz Salman
- Departments, Centres and Institutes
- Funding opportunities
- BHF CRE Awards
- BHF CRE Research Themes