Morphological Phylogenetics Workshop
An exciting opportunity for students and researchers to gain practical skills relating to morphological phylogenetics from experts.
Morphological Phylogenetics Workshop
9th-11th November 2026
IOE – University College London, UK
Pre-registration deadline: 8th October 2026 (17:00h GMT+0)
Attendees will be selected based on their application. You will be notified of the outcome of your application by 15th October at the latest.
Registration is OPEN! Click here or scan the QR code below:
About the Workshop
This workshop is joint-run by The Systematics Association, The Palaeontological Association and the Society of Spanish Researchers in the United Kingdom. It is a three day event held at UCL and run by experts in the field of phylogenetics. The workshop will cover a broad range of areas including an introduction to Bayesian Inference, discrete character construction, as well as hands on training on how to use tools including MCMCTree and RevBayes.
Places are limited and thus priority will be given to attendees that already have the rudiments of phylogenetic analyses and command line use. Student bursaries are also available (see More Details below)
Organisers & Instructors: Dr Sandra Alvarez-Carretero, Dr Ana Serra Silva
Instructors: Dr Laura Mulvey
Tentative Schedule
Day 1
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 09:30h – 10:15h | Morphological character construction |
| 10:15h -10:35h | Coffee break (20 min) |
| 10:35h – 11:15h | Introduction to parsimony |
| 11:15h – 11:25h | Short break (10 min) |
| 11:25h – 12:30h | Practical on Biscuit Cladistics |
| 12:30h – 13:45h | Lunch break (1h 15 min) |
| 13:45h – 14:55h | Ancestral character estimation with parsimony |
| 14:55h – 15:15h | Coffee break (20 min) |
| 15:15h – 16:15h | Practical on ancestral state estimation using parsimony |
| 16:15h – 16:30h | Short break (15 min) |
| 16:30h – 17.30h | Continue practical session + Q&A |
Day 2
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 09:30h – 10:15h | Introduction to morphological models |
| 10:15h -10:35h | Coffee break (20 min) |
| 10:35h – 11:15h | Practical to simulate morphological data in R |
| 11:15h – 11:25h | Short break (10 min) |
| 11:25h – 12:30h | Introduction to Bayesian statistics (part I) |
| 12:30h – 13:45h | Lunch break (1h 15 min) |
| 13:45h – 14:55h | Introduction to Bayesian statistics (part II) |
| 14:55h – 15:15h | Coffee break (20 min) |
| 15:15h – 16:15h | Introduction to RevBayes |
| 16:15h – 16:30h | Short break (15 min) |
| 16:30h – 17.30h | Introduction to model adequacy |
Day 3
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 09:30h – 10:15h | Practical on model adequacy |
| 10:15h -10:35h | Coffee break (20 min) |
| 10:35h – 11:15h | Introduction to the FBD model |
| 11:15h – 11:25h | Short break (10 min) |
| 11:25h – 12:30h | Practical on the FBD model with RevBayes |
| 12:30h – 13:45h | Lunch break (1h 15 min) |
| 13:45h – 14:55h | Introduction to total-evidence dating |
| 14:55h – 15:15h | Coffee break (20 min) |
| 15:15h – 16:15h | Practical with MCMCtree using GMM and molecular data |
| 16:15h – 16:30h | Short break (15 min) |
| 16:30h – 17.30h | Wrap up practical session + Q&A |
More details
Cost:
Prices include training and light refreshments for the three days. Attendees will have to procure their own lunches.
Student member/non-member – £40/60
Standard member/non-member – £55/90
(Become a member of the Systematics Association)
Student travel bursary:
Limited travel bursaries are available to help with travel (no accommodation will be covered). These will be assigned based on attendees’ justifications for the requests and will be capped at 120GBP. We will prioritise UK-based PhD students, but all students and postdocs are welcome to apply. To avail of this you can select this choice and provide more information in the registration form.
If you wish to be eligible for the travel grant you must submit your registration of interest by 1st October 2026 (17:00h GMT+0)
Location:
The workshop will be held at IOE, University College London (20 Bedford Way, London, WC1H 0AL). More details on how to get there will be provided if you are selected to attend.
Contact
Any questions or comments? Would you like to sponsor future editions? Please contact the organising committee at communications@systass.org (SystAssn) or evolution@sruk.org.uk (SRUK/CERU).
Organisers
Sandra Álvarez-Carretero (University College London)
Ana Serra Silva (University College London)