Research interests of the research team offering the project
Ultra-high risk focuses on young people who may be at increased risk of going on to develop schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. The research provides greater insight into risk and protective factors for psychotic disorders, mechanisms that drive the onset of these disorders, and the most effective treatments for delaying or preventing the onset of psychotic disorders and other adverse outcomes in young people at high risk.
Details of the project
Individuals need to be given therapies that are matched specifically to them, rather than to groups. To realise the potential of precision medicine, we recently used machine learning techniques in order to stratify individuals with psychosis into subgroups.
In this MPhil or PhD project, we will determine these subgroups in a separate sample of individuals who were enrolled in a treatment trial consisting of psychotherapy, medication, or a combination of psychotherapy and medication. We will then determine if pre-stratification could be used to match individuals to treatments. The work will be used to apply for a prospective trial assessing personalised medical approaches using machine learning.
Project references
- Dwyer DB, Buciuman MO, Ruef A, Kambeitz J, Dong MS, Stinson C, Kambeitz-Ilankovic L, Degenhardt F, Sanfelici R, Antonucci LA, Lalousis PA. Clinical, Brain, and Multilevel Clustering in Early Psychosis and Affective Stages. JAMA psychiatry. 2022 May 18. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/2792519.
- Nelson B, Amminger GP, Yuen HP, Wallis N, J. Kerr M, Dixon L, Carter C, Loewy R, Niendam TA, Shumway M, Morris S. Staged treatment in early psychosis: a sequential multiple assignment randomised trial of interventions for ultra high risk of psychosis patients. Early intervention in psychiatry. 2018 Jun;12(3):292-306. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/eip.12459
Scholarships and fees
A stipend is not available for this project.
To complete this project as a MPhil:
Scholarships are available through the University of Melbourne. More information here.
Other scholarship opportunities may also be available but are highly competitive. Please speak to the contact person below for more information.
Domestic Master of Philosophy students do not incur fees. Information on University of Melbourne fees for international students is available here.
To complete this project as a PhD:
Scholarships are available through the University of Melbourne – find out more here.
Other scholarship opportunities may also be available but are highly competitive, so please speak to the contact person below for further details.
Information on fees for domestic and international students is available here.
How to apply
To complete this project as a MPhil:
- Read information for future students here, and check your eligibility here.
- Read our frequently asked questions here.
- Liaise with, and gain the support of, the supervisor/s. Please contact them using the details below and attach a copy of your CV and university transcript(s).
- Once you’ve gained supervisor support, submit your application here.
To complete this project as a PhD:
- Read information for future students here and check your eligibility here.
- Read our frequently asked questions here.
- Liaise with, and gain the support of, the supervisor/s. Please contact them using the details below and attach a copy of your CV and university transcript(s).
- Once you’ve gained supervisor support, follow the steps outlined by the University of Melbourne here. You can go straight to Step 3.
You are strongly encouraged to submit your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
Contact
Dr Dom Dwyer
[email protected]