MSc projects offered in 2024

Prof Paul Groot (SARChI) Luminous eclipsing variables in the Local Group of Galaxies
Prof Paul Groot (SARChI) Compact Binaries from the MeerLICHT and BlackGEM All Sky Surveys
Prof Sarah Blyth The gas depletion timescale of star-forming galaxies at intermediate redshift
Dr Lucia Marchetti Multi-wavelength study of SFGs and AGNs detected in the Radio in G23
Dr Lucia Marchetti Multi-Wavelength Studies of Strong Gravitational Lensing
Dr Lucia Marchetti Multi-wavelength and MeerKAT study of Local IRAS bright SFGs and AGNs
Dr Jacinta Delhaize MeerKAT studies of the HI content of AGN
Dr Jacinta Delhaize Investigating HI ram pressure stripping near the Virgo cluster with MeerKAT
Prof DJ Pisano (SARAO SARChI) Star Formation in Nearby Galaxies
Prof DJ Pisano (SARAO SARChI) Deep HI Mapping of the Halo of Andromeda
Prof Mattia Vaccari ADFS-MeerKAT : Time-Domain Extragalactic Astronomy with MeerKAT Observations of the Akari Deep Field South
Prof Mattia Vaccari Deep Learning Techniques for Strong Gravitational Lensing Studies
Prof Mattia Vaccari Machine Learning Approaches to Study Star Formation and Black Hole Accretion in the MeerKAT/MIGHTEE survey
Dr Nikki Zabel A first look at a complete survey of molecular gas in the Coma cluster
Dr Nikki Zabel What is happening to the MHONGOOSE galaxy UGCA319?
Dr Nikki Zabel Radial profiles of Virgo cluster galaxies undergoing ram pressure stripping
Dr. Marisa Geyer Is PSR J1748-2021A mode-changing or freely precessing?
Dr Rosalind Skelton (SAAO) The evolution of Brightest Cluster Galaxies with BEAMS
Dr Zara Randriamanakoto (SAAO) SC2RG Survey: investigating blue stellar clumps in a sample of Collisional Ring Galaxies
Dr Ramotholo Sefako (SAAO) Measures for the Characterisation and protection of the SAAO Sutherland Observing Site
Dr Moses Mogotsi (SAAO) Studies of Gas Kinematics and Star Formation in MHONGOOSE Galaxies
Dr Siddharth Maharana (SAAO) Development & on-sky Commissioning of the Integral-field Spectro-Polarimetry Mode for the SAAO Cassegrain Spectrograph
Dr Siddharth Maharana (SAAO)     Spectropolarimetic study of dust and magnetic fields in Nearby Galaxies
Dr Nicolas Erasmus (SAAO) Photometric and spectroscopic observations of asteroids using Sutherland telescopes
Dr Sabyasachi Chattopadhyay (SAAO) Development of Fiber Instrument Cable for Prototype AMASE Survey
Dr Sabyasachi Chattopadhyay (SAAO) Classification of bulges through spatially resolved kinematics
Dr David Buckley (SAAO) Transients in the Rubin Observatory LSST Era
Dr Hannah Worters (SAAO) Narrowband imaging of the Magellanic Clouds


PhD projects offered in 2024 
 

Prof Paul Groot (SARChI) Relativistic transients: gamma-ray bursts and gravitational wave events
Prof Paul Groot (SARChI) Early-time evolution of core-collapse supernovae
Prof DJ Pisano  (SARAO SARChI) Mass modeling of galaxies over a billion years of cosmic time
Prof Mattia Vaccari ADFS-MeerKAT : Time-Domain Extragalactic Astronomy with MeerKAT Observations of the Akari Deep Field South
Prof Mattia Vaccari     Deep Learning Techniques for Strong Gravitational Lensing Studies
Prof Mattia Vaccari     Machine Learning Approaches to Study Star Formation and Black Hole Accretion in the MeerKAT/MIGHTEE survey
Dr Lucia Marchetti Multi-wavelength and MeerKAT study of Local IRAS bright SFGs and AGNs
Dr Lucia Marchetti Multi-Wavelength Studies of Strong Gravitational Lensing
Dr David Buckley (SAAO) Transients in the Rubin Observatory LSST Era
Dr Moses Mogotsi (SAAO)     MeerChoirs: Studies of galaxy interactions in different environments
Dr Lisa Crause (SAAO) A laser frequency comb to support precision radial velocity science with SALT’s High-Resolution Spectrograph
Dr Ros Skelton (SAAO) The evolution of Brightest Cluster Galaxies with BEAMS
Dr Sabyasachi Chattopadhyay (SAAO)     Probing ionization feedback in sub parsec scale through AMASE


This list of projects also includes several projects eligible for SARAO scholarships. Please check with the prospective supervisor if the project of your choice qualifies for such support. 


Moreover, a number of the MSc and PhD projects offered will be primarily supervised at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO). Students will still be required to register at UCT to undertake these projects. For a full list of projects offered at SAAO, please see the SAAO website. 
 
Application process


If you are interested in any of the projects listed above, please do the following:

  • contact the academic staff member of the project you are interested in and send them a copy of your CV;
  • discuss the research with them to determine if you have the required qualifications, skills and abilities to undertake the project. You may contact as many potential supervisors as you like;
  • if the academic staff member agrees to supervise you, discuss details about registration and funding. 


Postgraduate funding


Most of the postgraduate research projects are funded by scholarships from the National Research Foundation (NRF) or the South African Radio Astronomical Observatory (SARAO).

If you require NRF or SARAO funding, you must ensure that you qualify for this support. To do so you can check the following documents:
NRF framework document 
SARAO scholarships opportunities webpage


These are the primary mechanism we have to provide you with a bursary, so you must read these documents carefully.


Completing the NRF application will take time. It is essential that you complete your discussions with your potential supervisor(s) well before the deadline to give you time to complete the application by the deadline.


Applications for NRF and SARAO bursaries need to be made through the NRF application portal. 
To access the NRF application portal you will need to register using your ORCID. Instructions on how to obtain an ORCID are reported on the NRF portal or here.


Please note that applications submitted through the NRF portal without an agreement with the prospective supervisor will not be accepted. Once you have submitted your application you will need to send the ID of your application to your prospective supervisor.


Application deadline


The NRF closing date for application for 2024 is 11 July 2023, but each university has its own, earlier, deadline. The UCT deadline for applications through the NRF portal is 30th June 2023 as stated on this UCT website. No application will be accepted after this date.


Postgraduate Registration


Details of the registration process at UCT can be found on the Faculty of Science web page.