Criminal justice responses to the use of money mules by organised criminals

College of Business and Law at the University of the West of England in Bristol invites applications for a fully funded PhD studentship with the Global Crime, Justice and Security Research Group.

Ref: 2526-JAN-CBL05

The expected start date of this studentship is 1 January 2026.

Closing date for applications is 12 October 2025.

The College of Business and Law is a host to a vibrant and rigorous PhD programme. Applicants in the Law programme will join a passionate and supportive PGR student cohort. In the latest Postgraduate Research Experience Survey, Law achieved an overall satisfaction score of 100%.

Students benefit from the College's modern facilities and a welcoming research environment comprising diverse research groups and centres. 

Doctoral students at the College benefit from comprehensive support and guidance from the UWE Bristol Doctoral Academy, including an extensive professional development programme, research skills training and careers advice.

Money mules are individuals who move illicit money on behalf of criminals and often across borders to disguise the unlawful origin of the proceeds of crime. Organised criminals are increasingly turning to money mules to launder illicit funds. Those recruited as money mules can be prosecuted for money laundering offences and potentially imprisoned. While some money mules are witting participants, others are unwitting victims of financial exploitation, having been groomed or coerced into providing the service (Home Office, 2024). Young and vulnerable people are particularly susceptible to recruitment (Bekkers et al, 2025).

The importance of money mules to organised criminals is an emerging issue in criminological literature, yet there is limited research on the appropriate legal response. Accordingly, this project will seek to provide an analysis of the global anti-money laundering legal framework, evaluating its application to money mule activity. This project must also critically analyse how these obligations are implemented at the national level in the United Kingdom through its legal framework and enforcement strategies.

The project should consider how the legal and policy responses balance the dual objectives of combating money mule activity and safeguarding vulnerable individuals from financial exploitation. The candidate is expected to select and justify a suitable methodology and methods to carry out the research, with a comparative or sociolegal approach likely to yield interesting insights.

The candidate will be supported by the Financial Crime Research Network.

For an informal discussion about the project proposal please contact Dr Mary Young at mailto:mary.young@uwe.ac.uk.

For an informal discussion about the studentship please contact College Director of Doctoral Research, Dr Paweł Capik at pawel.capik@uwe.ac.uk

The studentship is available from 1 January 2026 for a period of three years subject to satisfactory progress. It includes a tax-exempt stipend of £20,780 per annum (2025/26 academic year), and full-time home or international fees.

Applicants must have at least a 2.1 degree in financial, business or banking law or a cognate discipline, and preferably a master’s degree with an average programme mark of no less than 65%, UK grading scale or international equivalent.

A recognised English language qualification is required with an IELTS score of 7.0 overall or equivalent.

Please submit your application online. When prompted use the reference number 2526-JAN-CBL05.

You will need to upload your research proposal, all of your degree certificates and transcripts, and a recognised English language qualification.

Apply online 

Research proposal

Your research proposal should be no more than five pages all-inclusive and formatted in font size 11, 1.5 line spacing and 2-inch margins.

Indicative contents:

• research context and rationale
• brief literature review
• research focus (objectives/research questions)
• proposed methodology and expected contribution of the project.

Development of the research proposal should happen in consultation with the potential supervisor. You should contact the potential supervisor with an advanced draft of the proposal to confirm they are willing to support your application.

References

You will need to provide details of two referees as part of your application.

The closing date for applications is 12 October 2025 at 18:00.

Interviews will take place online in November. If you have not heard from us by 30 November 2025, we thank you for your application but you have not been successful.