PRHS PhD Alumni

Thesis Title – Transitional Justice, Punishment and Security

Main Supervisor – Rob Lawlor

Additional Supervisor(s) – Jamie Dow

Tom has been a Legal consultant at Deloitte since 2022, and was previously ESG Lead at Squire Patton Boggs

Thesis Title – A Political Approach to International Trade Justice

Main Supervisor – Carl Fox

Additional Supervisor(s) – Elizabeth Ellis and Rob Lawlor

Tadhg has been a Career Development Fellow at Durham University since 2024

Thesis Title – Energy, Capability, and Justice: a foundation for a normative account of energy systems

Main Supervisor – Katy Roelich

Additional Supervisor(s) – Rob Lawlor and John Barrett

Nathan is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow and coordinator for the Fair Energy Consortium at Utrecht University Prior to this Nathan was a Teaching Fellow at the IDEA Centre

You can read Nathan’s staff bio at Utrecht here: https://www.uu.nl/staff/NAWood

Thesis Title – Artificial Moral Agency: Autonomy and Evolution

Main Supervisor – Rob Lawlor

Additional Supervisor(s) – Graham Bex-Preistley

Zacharus has been a lecturer in the Philosophy Department at Koç University in Istanbul since 2024

Thesis Title – Between Commerce and Professionalism: The Changing Form, Role and  Significance of the Medical Trade Catalogue in Britain, 1880-1914.

Main Supervisor – Graeme Gooday

Additional Supervisor(s) – Jon Topham

Claire has been a Senior lecturer in the History of Medicine since 2016. Prior to this Claire has has held the following roles:

2014–2016: Research Associate, King’s College London

2012–2014: Director, Museum of the History of Science, Technology and Medicine, University of Leeds

2011–2012: Learning and Access Officer, Infirmary Museum, University of Worcester

2010–2011: Research Fellow, University of Warwick

You can read Claire’s staff bio at Kent here: https://www.kent.ac.uk/history/people/401/jones-claire

Thesis Title – Anthropology in Transition: A Study of the Sciences of Man at the British Association for the Advancement of Science, 1866-1870

Main Supervisor – Gregory Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – Jon Topham

Juan Manuel has been a Visiting Research Fellow at Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana in Mexico City since 2024. Prior to this Juan Manuel has has held the following roles:

Visiting Professor at UPAEP (Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla) (2022)

Postdoctoral fellowship, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (2019-2021)

Educational Research Fellow, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (2017-2018)

Posdoctoral fellowship, Posgrado en Filosofía de la Ciencia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (2015-2017)

You can read about Juan Manuel’s publications and research here: https://uam-xochimilco.academia.edu/JuanManuelRodr%C3%ADguezCaso and https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Juan-Manuel-Rodriguez-Caso

Thesis Title – Data and the Development of Research Methods in the Science of Human Emotional Expression from Darwin to Klineberg

Main Supervisor – Gregory Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – 

Hongjin has been a associate professor at Sichuan University of Arts and Science, since 2024. Prior to this Hongjin has been a Postdoc at Tsinghua Univeristy

You can read Hongjin’s staff profile at Sichuan University of Arts and Science here: https://www.dhs.tsinghua.edu.cn/?p=2466

Thesis Title – From Biological Revolution to Biotech Age: Plant Biotechnology in British Agriculture since 1950

Main Supervisor – Gregory Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – Tina Barsby

Matthew has been a Postdoctoral Fellow in Environmental History at the University of Stavanger since 2022, and was previously a Research Associate at the Centre for Research in the Arts, within Social Science and Humanities at the University of Cambridge from 2018 – 2022.

You can read more about Matthew here: https://matthewrholmes.com/

Thesis Title – Making Anatomical Knowledge about Disease in Late Georgian Britain, from Dissection Table to the Printed Book and Beyond: Matthew Baillie’s Morbid Anatomy and Its Accompanying Engravings

Main Supervisor – Adrian Wilson

Additional Supervisor(s) – Jon Topham and Richard Checketts

Richard has been an Associate lecturer in Medical Humanities at the University of St Andrews since 2023, and has worked there since 2020. Prior to this role Richard has has held the following roles:

2021–2022    Durham University, Tutor, Department of History.
2021–2022    University of Leeds, Teaching Fellow, School of Philosophy, Religion, and History of Science.
2020–2023    University of St Andrews, Associate Lecturer in Medical Ethics, School of Medicine.
2020    University of Leeds, Postdoctoral Research Assistant, ‘Print and the Making of Modern Medicine in Britain, 1813–1875’, School of Philosophy, Religion, and History of Science, PI: Jonathan Topham.
2020–2021    University of Bristol, Senior Research Associate, Alcmaeon project, Centre for Ethics in Medicine, School of Medicine, Line Manager: Jonathan Ives. 
2019–2020    University of St Andrews, Postdoctoral Research Assistant, ‘Networks, Books and Markets: Using Visualisations to Explore Early Scottish Auction Catalogues 1686–1760’, School of History, PI: Graeme Kemp.

You can read Richard’s staff bio at St Andrews here: https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/medicine/people/rtb8/

Thesis Title – Henri Bergson’s Creative Evolution and 20th-Century British Biology

Main Supervisor – Gregory Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – Laurent Loison

Emily has been working as a writer and a freelance editor. Emily’s first book, 'Herald of a Restless World. How Henri Bergson Brought Philosophy to the People', came out in October 2024 with Basic Books. . Emily also held a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Ghent from 2020 – 2021

Herald of a Restless World. How Henri Bergson Brought Philosophy to the People

Thesis Title – John Maynard Smith and the Fact(s) of Evolution. A Study of Scientific Working Life in Post-War Britain.

Main Supervisor – Gregory Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – Jonathan Pledge (British Library)

Helen has been a Postdoctoral Fellow at Research Institute for the History of Science and Technology, Deutsches Museum since 2020

Thesis Title – Max Isserlin and the possibilities of psychiatry in Imperial and Weimar Germany

Main Supervisor – Gregory Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – Mike Finn

Gonzalo has been a Lecturer of Ethics and Philosophy at Universidad del Pacifico since 2024. Prioor to this Gonzalo has held several other roles. 

Thesis Title – Biological Research After The Electron Microscope: The Case of Irene Manton

Main Supervisor – Gregory Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – Graeme Gooday

Nicola is as contractor within the AI sector, and recently has been working with the science industry and science communications and media organisations as science writer. Nicola is also an early career researcher working on a project, in part, funded by an early career research support grant (kindly awarded by the Royal Historical Society) and broadly encompassing the histories of cell biology, UV microscopy, and women in science. 

Previous roles Nicola has held are:

University of Durham – Module Leader (Department of Philosophy) Michaelmas Term 2021

University of Leeds – LAHRI Postdoctoral Fellow (non-stipendiary), April 2021 – August 2022

Thesis Title – Importing the Stethoscope: The Uptake of Mediate Auscultation by British Practitioners, 1816-1850.

Main Supervisor – Adrian Wilson

Additional Supervisor(s) – Jon Topham and Selina Hurley

Caroline has been a Project Support Officer for Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust since 2023. Prior to this role Caroline has has held the following roles:

Vaccination Administrator, Mid-Yorkshire NHS Foundation Trust, 2021.

Project Support Officer, Mid-Yorkshire NHS Foundation Trust, 2021.

You can find Caroline on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caroline-avery-65934a138/

Thesis Title – A Structuralist Approach to Animalism

Main Supervisor – Ellen Clarke

Additional Supervisor(s) – Helen Steward and Steven French

Arthur has been teaching as an adjunct Lecturer in Philosophy at Hartwick College (New York) since 2021, Arthur has also been a semi-regular adjunct Lecturer in Philosophy at Hamilton College (also New York) since 2022.

You can read more about Arthur here: https://arthurgcarlyle.com/

Thesis Title – Marketing Sexual Health in Britain: Visual and Commercial Lives of Infection, 1913-1996

Main Supervisor – Adrian Wilson

Additional Supervisor(s) – James Stark and Richard Checketts

David has been a Senior Lecturer in Marketing at the University of York since 2024. Prior to this he started at I started at York as a Lecturer in Marketing in 2022 and was appointed Head of Group for the academic subject group People, Operations, and Marketing in 2023.

You can find David’s staff profile at York here: https://www.york.ac.uk/business-society/people/david_rowe/#profile-content

Thesis Title – R. A. Fisher's The Genetical Theory of Natural Selection: Origins, Publication, Reception, Legacies

Main Supervisor – Greg Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – 

Alex has been a Departmental Lecturer in the History of Science, Faculty of History, University of Oxford since 2021.

You can find Alex’s staff profile at Oxford here: https://www.history.ox.ac.uk/people/dr-alex-aylward

Thesis Title – Plant Hybridity Before Mendelism: Diversity and Debate in British Botany, 1837-1899

Main Supervisor – Greg Radick

Additional Supervisor(s) – Jon Topham

Clare has been a Course Design & Development Manager, Digital Learning Design Team, Digital Education Service, University of Leeds since 2021.

Thesis Title – Moral error theory: a cognitivist realist defence

Main Supervisor – Pekka Väyrynen

Additional Supervisor(s) – Andrew McGonigal

Wouter has been a University Lecturer in Moral and Political Philosophy at Universiteit Leiden since 2018. Prior to this role Wouter has has held the following roles:

Teaching Fellow in Bioethics, University of Bristol (2013-2015)

Postdoctoral Researcher Evolution and Ethics, University of Utrecht (2015-2018)

You can find Wouter’s staff profile at Universiteit Leiden here: https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/staffmembers/wouter-kalf#tab-2

Thesis Title – Theism & the Metaphysics of Modality

Main Supervisor – Robin Le Poidevin

Additional Supervisor(s) – Scott Shalkowski

Sarah has been a Policy Lead (Grade 7), for NHS Public Health System UK in the Department of Health and Social Care since 2024. Prior to this role Sarah has has held the following roles:

Senior Policy Advisor, Drugs, UK Department of Health and Social Care (Sept 2023 - July 2024)

Senior Policy Advisor, Child Health Strategy, UK Department of Health and Social Care (Sept 2022 - Sept 2023)

Policy Advisor, Adult Social Care Charging Reform, UK Department of Health and Social Care (Sept 2021- Sept 2022)

Policy Advisor, EU & International Legislation, UK Department of Health and Social Care (Sept 2020 - Sept 2021)

Policy Advisor, PPE Strategy, UK Department of Health and Social Care (June 2020 - Aug 2020)

Production Editor, Routledge Books, Taylor & Francis Group (Oct 2016 - Aug 2020)

Editorial & Production Assistant, the Institution of Engineering and Technology (Feb 2016 - Sept 2016)

You can find Sarah’s LinkedIn profile here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-adams-phd-91b75740/

Thesis Title – The Metaphysics of Divine Causation

Main Supervisor – Robin Le Poidevin

Additional Supervisor(s) – Helen Steward and Jason Turner

Dani has been a Skills Transformation Manager, for City of Doncaster Council, since 2023. Prior to this role Sarah has has held the following roles:

Senior Policy & Insight Manager, City of Doncaster Council, Jan 2022-Sept 2023

Social Mobility Opportunity Area Programme Manager, City of Doncaster Council, Feb 2022 - Aug 2022

Policy & Insight Manager, City of Doncaster Council, Feb 2020 - Aug 2022

Strategy & Performance Improvement Officer, City of Doncaster Council, June 2019 - Feb 2020

National Management Trainee - Local Government Graduate Scheme, City of Doncaster Council, Oct 2017 - May 2019

Visiting Lecturer, York St John University, 2016-2017

Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Philosophy, University of Leeds, 2016-2017

You can find Dani’s LinkedIn profile here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dani-adams-phd-3303b673/

Thesis Title – The Diversity of Truth: A Case Study in Pluralistic Metasemantics

Main Supervisor – J. Robert G. Williams

Additional Supervisor(s) – Daniel Elstein and Paolo Santorio

Will has been a Teaching Fellow in Philosophy at University of Leeds, since 2022. Prior to this role Will has has been a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Leeds, 2018-2022

You can read about Will here: https://willgamester.wordpress.com/

Thesis Title – Valuing Others: Moral responsibility and psychopathy

Main Supervisor – Ulrike Heuer

Additional Supervisor(s) – Helen Steward

Jim is a Professional Ethics Consultancy Team Leader for the IDEA centre at the University of Leeds

You can read Jim’s staff profile at Leeds here: https://ahc.leeds.ac.uk/ethics/staff/582/dr-jim-baxter

Thesis Title – A God of Our Time?

Main Supervisor – Helen Steward

Additional Supervisor(s) – Mikel Burley

Emily has been a Senior Development Manager at University of Nottingham since 2024. Prior to this Emily has held the following roles:

Senior Philanthropy Manager, Breaking Barriers - 2 years

Philanthropy Manager, Breaking Barriers - 3 years

Policy Advisor, Defra, 1 year

Thesis Title – Marriage and the Political Liberal State: An investigation into the nature of the marital relationship and the legitimacy of a political institution of marriage

Main Supervisor – Gerald Lang

Additional Supervisor(s) – Matthew Smith

Alison has been a Teaching Fellow at the University of Leeds since 2018

You can read Alison’s staff profile at Leeds here: https://ahc.leeds.ac.uk/philosophy/staff/2103/dr-alison-toop

Thesis Title – Against Moral Deference

Main Supervisor – Pekka Väyrynen

Additional Supervisor(s) – 

Adina has been a Teaching Associate in Foundation Arts & Philosophy, at University of Nottingham, since 2022. Prior to this Adina has held the following roles:

Teaching Associate, University of Bristol, 2019-2020

Teaching Associate, University of Warwick, 2020-2022.

You can read Adina’s staff profile at Nottingham here: https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/humanities/departments/philosophy/people/adina.covaci

Thesis Title – The Constitution of Constitutivism

Main Supervisor – Pekka Väyrynen

Additional Supervisor(s) – Daniel Elstein

Olof has been a Postdoc, at University of Siena (Italy), since 2024. Prior to this Olof has held the following roles:

Postdoc, University of Pavia, 2023 – 2024
Postdoc, University of Vienna, 2022 – 2023
Vikarierande universitetslektor, University of Gothenburg, 2021 - 2022 
Teaching Fellow, Durham University, 2019 - 2021
 

You can read Olof’s webpage here: https://www.olofleffler.com/

Thesis Title – Actually Control - Demodalising Free Will

Main Supervisor – Helen Steward

Additional Supervisor(s) – Pekka Väyrynen

David has been a Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter, at Freie Universität Berlin, since 2024. Prior to this David has held the following roles:

2020 - 2022: Junior Research Fellow at the Centre for Human Abilities, Berlin

2022 - 2023: Akademischer Mitarbeiter, Potsdam University

2023 - 2024: Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg.

*Wissenschaftlicher/akademischer Mitarbeiter is the rough German equivalent of a postdoc/assistant professor (no tenure).

You can read more about David here: https://www.davidheering.com/

Thesis Title – Qualities as Truthmakers: A Quasi-Realist Account of Powers

Main Supervisor – Helen Steward

Additional Supervisor(s) – Léa Salje

George has been a Lecturer in Philosophy at University of Bristol since 2023. Prior to this George has held the following role:

Associate Lecturer in Philosophy, Birkbeck, University of London, October 2022 – June 2023

Thesis Title – A Temporal Metaphysics for Affective Attitudes

Main Supervisor – Robin Le Poidevin

Additional Supervisor(s) – Helen Steward

Kyle has been a Systems Leadership, Learning and Development Manager at Changing Futures Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, hosted at Cambridgeshire County Council.​​​​​, since 2024. Prior to this Kyle has held the following roles:

Senior Equality and Partnership Adviser - Essex County Council, 2023-24.

Energy and Low Carbon Project Officer - Essex County Council, 2022-23.

Energy Officer - Southend-on-Sea City Council, 2019-2021.

Research Analyst - Minerva Analytics, 2019-2019.

Teaching and Administration Assistant, 2018-2019.

Thesis Title – The Paradox of Deontology

Main Supervisor – Gerald Lang

Additional Supervisor(s) – Pekka Väyrynen

Andreas has been a Research Fellow in Ethics Section of Translational Medical Ethics, National Center for Tumor Diseases, at Heidelberg University Hospital since 2021

Thesis Title – Grounds and Moral Laws

Main Supervisor – Pekka Väyrynen

Additional Supervisor(s) – Jack Woods

Alexios has been a Azrieli Postdoctoral Fellow, at Tel Aviv University, Dept. of Philosophy since 2022. Prior to this Alexios was a Society of Applied Philosophy postdoctoral fellow, at LAHRI, University of Leeds.

You can read more about Alexios here: https://sbrehier.weebly.com/

Thesis Title – Morality and Blame

Main Supervisor – Gerald Lang

Additional Supervisor(s) – Pekka Väyrynen

Sam has been a Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter at University of Duisburg-Essen since 2023.

You can read Sam’s philpeople profile here: https://philpeople.org/profiles/sam-mason

Thesis Title – Learning about attachments through literature

Main Supervisor – Víctor Durà-Vilà, Matthew Kieran (each for two years)

Additional Supervisor(s) – Helen Steward

Radu has been a Postdoctoral researcher at University of Geneva since 2023.

You can read more about Radu here: https://www.radubumbacea.com/

Thesis Title – On the Nature and Relationship of Individual and Collective Justification

Main Supervisor – Robbie Williams

Additional Supervisor(s) – Haixin Dang, Andrew Peet, Joshua Habgood-Coote

Simon has been a Research Fellow at Institute Vienna Circle, University of Vienna since

You can read Simon’s PhilPeople profile here: https://philpeople.org/profiles/simon-graf

Thesis Title – Muslim mobilisation, urban informality, and the politics of development in Tanzania: an ethnography of the Kariakoo Market district

Main Supervisor – Adriaan van Klinken

Additional Supervisor(s) – Emma Tomalin

Benjamin has been a Junior Professor, at University of Bayreuth, since 2022. Prior to this Benjamin has been a British Academy Postdoctoral Research Fellow, at School of PRHS, University of Leeds, 2018-2022

You can read Benjamin’s staff profile at University of Bayreuth here: https://www.religion.uni-bayreuth.de/en/team/benjamin-kirby/index.php

Thesis Title – Grounding theology in experience: A theological and grounded theory exploration of the narratives of people with lived experience of altered moods and Christianity

Main Supervisor – Tasia Scrutton

Additional Supervisor(s) – Sean McLoughlin

Anthea has been a Coordinating Chaplain, at University of the West of England, since 2023. Prior to this Anthea has been Lead Chaplain to the University of Leeds, Diocese of Leeds 2018-2023.

Thesis Title – A queer and Methodist theology of holiness: strategies for queering Wesley's teaching

Main Supervisor – Adriaan van Klinken

Additional Supervisor(s) – Rachel Muers, Johanna Stiebert

Mark has been a Secretary of the Faith and Order Committee, for Methodist Church in Britain since 2022, this is alongside being a Free Church Chaplain at University of Warwick a role held since 2019.

You can read Mark’s staff profile at University of Warwick here: https://warwick.ac.uk/services/chaplaincy/about_us/team/mark/

Thesis Title – Exodus 20–23 and Utopia

Main Supervisor – Johanna Stiebert

Additional Supervisor(s) – Stefan Skrimshire

Katherine has been a Secondary School Teacher since 2024

You can follow Katherine on X @katgwyther