This programme enables you to study cultural phenomena, practices and texts at an advanced level. You will critically engage with theories and methodologies of transdisciplinary cultural research. Research topics The programme supports a range of research topics in visual and urban cultural studies, with a particular interest in: place and memory spatial violence and urban disintegration post-socialist cities of Eastern Europe visual and semiotic landscapes materiality and spatiality of writing book space and architectures of reading photography and visual knowledges image-text-theory experimental publishing curatorial practices and multimodality in representation of research Research community Your project will benefit from: the diverse research expertise of staff from the Edinburgh School of Architecture & Landscape Architecture (ESALA) our collaborative exchanges with academic colleagues and research students across the University our broad range of contacts with local and international research networks, cultural and heritage institutions and archives Assessment and progression The PhD is a major work of independent research. It will prepare you for a future in academic scholarship or a research career at cultural and heritage institutions or government organisations. To obtain the degree, you will research and present a thesis of 80,000-100,000 words, followed by a viva voce examination. You will have two supervisors with whom you will work closely throughout the research period.