Research Supervisor Connect
Several research opportunities are available, all of which revolve around the new and emerging areas of sleep and circadian epidemiology. The overarching aim of these projects is to understand how sleep behaviour and the timing of activities such as work, meals, and physical activity correspond to population health. Students may examine sleep and circadian health in the general adult population in Australia, sleep disorders in special populations of pregnant women, or investigate jetlag in travellers.
Camperdown - Charles Perkins Centre
Masters/PHD
Potential topics may include the following, but students are encouraged to contact the supervisor to discuss current opportunities and to develop projects of interest within these general areas.
Project 1 - Sleep epidemiology: Insufficient or excessive sleep is a risk factor for morbidity and mortality. Little is known about sleep in the Australian general population. The aim of this project is to analyse data from nationally representative sources to describe sleep health in Australia and to inform public health prevention programs for sleep health.
Project 2 - Circadian epidemiology: Circadian rhythms underlie all aspects of physiology. Disruption of circadian rhythms such as in the form of shiftwork is acknowledge to contribute to poor health. At the level of population behaviour, much is unknown about the timing of these activities and whether they are an important contributor to population health. The aim of this project is to analyse data from cohort and cross-sectional datasets to determine if sleep/meal/exercise timing is associated with worse health outcomes.
Project 3 - Solutions for jetlag: This project involves collection and analysis of data from passengers travelling on long-haul flights and the development of solutions for jetlag in collaboration with industry. The aim of the data collection and analysis is to personalize and make more user-friendly the strategies for jetlag that are already acknowledged to work in the laboratory.
Students will be expected to work with a team of supervisors, but the exact team will depend on the scope of the project. I encourage all prospective students to speak to my previous students to ensure good supervisor-student fit (please contact me for details).
• Use of research technique / methodology / technology - Students will gain:o Experience in undertaking comprehensive literature review
o Extensive skills in the management and analysis of quantitative data
o Experience in multidisciplinary collaboration and teamwork
• Potential topics of interest for the research opportunity
• Current PHD and/or Masters topics
• Eligibility criteria / candidate profile
o Honours or equivalent experience in research is desirable
o Training in statistics, data analysis, and ability to use statistical software is desirable
• Scholarship(s) / funding available
o Supervisors will support students' applications for scholarship funding
o Some financial support may be available for initial period
The opportunity ID for this research opportunity is 2508