Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project INTRACOM SINGLE MEMBER S.A. TELECOM SOLUTIONS Location: Athens, Greece Hours: Full Time Contract Type: Fixed Term, 3 Years The Position Applications are invited for a Doctoral Candidate (also known as Doctoral Fellow) in GREET (Generative Explainee-aware Explainability and Transparency in Proactive Cyber-Physical Eco- Environments) Doctoral Network, funded by Horizon Europe’s MSCA Programme.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- 30 September 2026
- Funding
- Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)
Cardiology
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Maximal oxygen uptake (V̇O 2max ), the highest rate at which the body can take up and use oxygen during exercise, is a key determinant of endurance performance (Joyner & Coyle, 2008).
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- 19 October 2026
- Funding
- Funded PhD Project (UK Students Only)
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project PROJECT DESCRIPTION About the Project An interdisciplinary foresight stream is seeking doctoral researchers to investigate avenuesof human-AI interaction (HAII). The stream are part of a larger UKRI Metascience AI Fellowship that is investigating how cognition is affected whenusing AI technologies as decision-support systems.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- 30 November 2026
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Sport & Exercise Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The MRes at Edinburgh Napier University represents a unique opportunity for students to conduct a substantial research project in the area of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences. The MRes may be undertaken over one year (full time) or 20 months (part-time).
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- 30 November 2026
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project PROJECT DESCRIPTION About the Project An interdisciplinary foresight stream is seeking doctoral researchers to investigate avenuesof human-AI interaction (HAII). The stream are part of a larger UKRI Metascience AI Fellowship that is investigating how cognition is affected whenusing AI technologies as decision-support systems.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- 30 November 2026
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Management
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project PROJECT DESCRIPTION Access to high-quality health services, essential medicines, vaccines and other health supplies is fundamental to achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- 31 December 2026
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project One fully funded PhD position in the Blockpass Identity Lab at Edinburgh Napier University on a project titled “Privacy-aware Public Trust Infrastructure (PTI) for Elections with AI Fake Detection”. This work is co-funded by Democracy Counts – a leading company within elections in the UK. Artificial Intelligence is fundamentally changing how governments communicate, make decisions and maintain public confidence.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- 31 December 2026
- Funding
- Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)
Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Three-dimensional forming refers to the fabrication of structure through layer-by-layer deposition of material using a printer head, a nozzle or other printing techniques. It is broadly used in applications including automobile manufacturing, aerospace manufacturing and medical applications.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Mechanical Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The School of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment, “SCEBE”, at Edinburgh Napier University, “ENU”, is a portal for research and knowledge transfer that has contributed extensively to develop and promote renewable and sustainable energy devices in the UK and abroad over the last 30 years. Through the expert services that the school offers industry has been supported in meeting the demanding energy challenges and government requirements.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Energy consumption in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) is of utmost importance given the low battery resources available in these networks. Existing techniques such as duty-cycling within nodes, clustering and mobility, of both nodes and the sink, have been utilised in order to both reduce energy consumption and more evenly spread consumption across the network. The spread of energy consumption being of particular concern in combatting 'energy holes' in WSNs.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Cyber Security
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Virtual machines have been around for a long time, and are used heavily throughout the internet. However, they are not immune to misuse, abuse, and attacks. Malware for instance can infect a virtual machine, and there is a reliance on the user of the virtual machine to deal with such problems.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Civil Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The UK construction sector faces mounting pressure to decarbonise, improve resource efficiency, and meet net-zero targets by 2050. Buildings account for approximately 25% of UK greenhouse gas emissions, with embodied carbon from materials and operational energy use being key contributors (UKGBC, 2023).
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture, Building & Planning
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Urban flooding is becoming increasingly frequent and severe across the UK due to climate change, ageing infrastructure, and intensified land use. Over 5.2 million properties are currently at risk, with projected annual damages exceeding £1.3 billion by 2080 under high-emission scenarios (Environment Agency, 2021). Traditional flood mitigation measures—such as engineered barriers and drainage upgrades—are proving inadequate in densely built environments.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Human Computer Interaction
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project This PhD project invites researchers with interests in theatre, sound, and interactive technology to explore new possibilities in live performance. It investigates sound as a dynamic and expressive element of live theatre, offering performers intuitive tools to shape sound in real time—enhancing actor expression and deepening audience engagement.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Education
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The proposed research will support the development and delivery of the Housing Construction and Infrastructure Skills Gateway. Its aim will be to develop a regional level strategy to address the regional skills shortage in sectors relating to Construction and the Built Environment with a focus on Net Zero, Housing and Retrofit activities and to monitor it impact.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Control Systems
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Renewable energy systems are central to achieving the UK’s Net Zero goals, but their variability and interdependence pose major challenges for reliable operation. Addressing these challenges requires advanced control and optimisation methods that can coordinate generation, storage, and demand under uncertain conditions.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Electromagnetism
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project In the upcoming era of sixth-generation (6G) networks, it is predicted that a wide range of low-power devices will have the capability to efficiently sense their surroundings and transmit data on a large scale. A wireless power, sensing, and communication network (WPSCN) serves as the essential infrastructure that allows devices to wirelessly communicate with each other, exchange data, and receive wireless power to ensure uninterrupted operation.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Control Systems
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project About the Project As renewable penetration grows, national and regional power grids face increasing challenges in balancing variable supply with demand, maintaining stability, and ensuring resilience against uncertainty. Traditional deterministic control and optimisation approaches often fail to cope with the scale and variability of modern energy systems.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Electrical Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The production of electric energy from wind technology has experience great advances in the later years. It is estimated that the potential of wind energy in the world is between 20.000 x 106 and 50.000 x 106 MWh/year, whereas the energy consumption is about 15.000 x 106 MWh/year.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Built Environment
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Aim Floods are among the most destructive natural hazards, threatening ecosystems, urban areas, and critical infrastructure. In Scotland, the increasing frequency and intensity of floods driven by climate change, land-use dynamics, and human activity pose urgent challenges for urban resilience and disaster management.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Computer Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project There are currently many agile coaches and those tasked with mentoring remits within the IT function. Little is known about the involvement and role of agile coaches regards the adoption and deployment of agile methods (Stray et al, 2020) with inconsistent approaches and varying successes (Theobald et al, 2020). This implies that organisations are missing the opportunity to learn from successes and failures in the coaching process.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Manufacturing Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Metallic material properties can be attributed to various mechanisms such as grain refinement and precipitation hardening. In additive manufacturing the alloy, grain size and subsequent heat treatment is of great interest for their tribological properties and through the potential for architecture by manufacturing improved properties could be realized.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the ever-growing network of physical objects such as smart devices, vehicles, buildings and other items embedded with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network connectivity that enable these objects to interact autonomously and intelligently.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming industries worldwide at an unprecedented pace. From healthcare to finance, sectors are leveraging AI to innovate, improve efficiency, and unlock new opportunities. Yet, despite being one of the largest and most data-intensive industries globally, the real estate services sector has been slower to embrace this technological revolution.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Design
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Soundscape design is an interdisciplinary field that has the potential to transform how we experience and interact with our surroundings. This PhD project seeks to explore the application of augmented audio technologies in soundscape design to create immersive and engaging environments.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Electrical Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The Internet of Things (IoT) will connect billions of devices in the coming decade, enabling transformative applications across smart homes, healthcare, transport, and industrial automation. To support this vision, IoT devices require antennas that can deliver reliable, compact, and energy-efficient connectivity, even in challenging environments with multipath fading, device orientation changes, and interference.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The Energy Efficient Scotland programme sets out a strategic roadmap to decarbonise homes, businesses, and public buildings, supporting the Scottish Government’s climate commitments. Existing buildings account for a large share of Scotland’s energy use and carbon emissions [1,2]. Improving their performance is critical for achieving net-zero targets.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project We are inviting applications for a PhD project that investigates how advanced digital technologies can accelerate the adoption of circular economy (CE) principles in the built environment. This research will develop innovative strategies and tools to drive resource efficiency, waste reduction, and sustainable lifecycle management of buildings and infrastructure.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project AI workloads are rapidly increasing in scale and complexity, powering applications such as intelligent transportation, smart cities, healthcare monitoring, and industrial automation. These workloads are computationally demanding, often distributed across the Cloud–Edge continuum, where heterogeneous resources must balance performance, latency, energy consumption, and environmental impact.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Aerospace Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Estimating the structural integrity of components under multiphysical loading conditions is becoming increasingly important for applications in energy and transportation.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Animation
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Many cultural assets and archives are hidden or difficult for audiences to access for reasons including lack of physical space or lack of resources. Often these are smaller, niche collections held outside of well-known museums and galleries. Novel forms of creative interpretation can play an important role in widening access to these collections for diverse audiences.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Data Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The proliferation of Big Data analytics is developing ever more sophisticated models for intelligent data-driven insight and decision making in business and in other areas such as health and social care. Machine learning (ML) plays a crucial role in such development. On one hand the performance of an ML model is heavily dependent on the quality of data it used for training; on the other hand ML techniques can be used for data cleaning.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The increasing demand of secure and reliable communication has never been higher due to elevated number of applications in the present-day world such as the Internet of Things (IoT).
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Malicious software continues to evolve rapidly, posing significant risks to information systems and organisational networks. Among these, polymorphic and metamorphic malware are especially dangerous, as they continuously alter their internal code structures through obfuscation and transformation, effectively evading traditional and machine learning-based detection methods.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Applied Mathematics
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Mathematical systems and control theory “represents an attempt to codify, in mathematical terms, the principles and techniques used in the analysis and design of control systems” [1]. It concerns itself with “the basic theoretical principles underlying the analysis of feedback and the design of control systems [and] differs from the more classical study of dynamical systems in its emphasis on inputs (or controls) and outputs (or measurements)” [2].
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Integrated Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Product-service systems (PSS) aim to deliver value-in-use through integrated product and service solutions. Underpinned by sustainability research, PSS intends to produce a balanced approach to production and consumption. This PhD research project aims to combine two critical themes in sustainability: Product-Service Systems (PSS) and Distributed Additive Manufacturing.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Computer Vision
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The aim of this research project is to investigate the design of Mixed Reality Experiences, with the long-term objective of investigating how they can be designed, developed and deployed in engaging, impactful, and ultimately more meaningful ways, in any given application context. The creation of a Mixed Reality (MR) experience is by its nature a transdisciplinary challenge, and the application context influences the design significantly.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The increasing infusion of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into human–machine systems presents new opportunities and challenges in transport safety, driver support, and human–computer interaction. While autonomous driving technologies are advancing rapidly, there remain critical gaps in trust, usability, and user acceptance, particularly in semi-autonomous (Level 1–4) vehicles where human drivers are still expected to intervene in critical scenarios.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Human Computer Interaction
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project With the rapid development of humanoid social robots, and mixed reactions towards them from the general public (Sobolewska, Vanderschantz, Bitcon, 2021), it becomes imperative to provide prospective users with machines that are not only efficient and effective in their tasks, but also provide excellent User Experience, with desirable design and pleasurable interactions.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Aerospace Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project As humanity prepares for a sustained presence on the Moon, the single most critical challenge is establishing a reliable, resilient, and truly sustainable power grid. Designing this life-support system is a profound engineering challenge. Do you place solar farms at the poles for near-constant light, or in the mid-latitudes for different operational advantages? How large must the battery farms be to survive the deep cold of the 14-day lunar night?
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Humanoid Robots are a state-of-the-art technology with potentially unprecedented social and industrial benefits [1]. However, the current generation of humanoid robots are predominantly telemetric control systems that lack robust and intuitive emergency protocols and onboard devices such as external sensors to prevent/minimise the potential harm to people [2]. Current methods include overheating detection (thermal cutoff) and trip sensors.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Built Environment
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The transition to a circular economy in the construction industry is often framed as a technical or environmental challenge, focusing on material innovation, waste management protocols, and economic viability. However, the success of this transition is equally dependent on the human and social dimensions, which are frequently overlooked.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Facilities Management (FM) is a critical, multi-trillion-dollar global industry responsible for ensuring the functionality, safety, comfort, and sustainability of the built environment. Facilities management encompasses a wide range of activities, including maintenance, space management, security, and sustainability practices.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Electrical Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Due to the ongoing high penetration of renewable energy sources into the grid, the energy landscape is going through a major transformation. Since many small-scale renewable energy sources are built near the load points, the requirement of decentralized microgrid control is inevitable. To facilitate that several studies are reported in the literature in recent years.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Robotics
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The School of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment (SCEBE), at Edinburgh Napier University is proud to be contributing to the robotic and automation research and knowledge transfer over the years. With the new investment on several robotic systems, the research team here is ready and looking forward to the next chapter of research adventure.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Human Computer Interaction
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The Engineering and Mathematics Group within the School of Computing, Engineering, and the Built Environment is inviting applications for a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in developing an adaptive conversational VR-based real-time feedback system for net-zero manufacturing operations.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Chemical Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The need for environmentally friendly and sustainable solutions to combat plastic pollution has never been more critical. Plastics, particularly single-use plastic bags, have had a detrimental impact on our ecosystems and contribute to environmental degradation. In response to this challenge, this Ph.D. project aims to develop biodegradable fibrous bags designed for nurturing plants, thus contributing to a more sustainable and greener future.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Analytical Chemistry
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Agriculture contributes to the world's economic growth by accounting for 4 % of the global gross domestic product (The World Bank, 2023). However, agricultural activities have some negative impacts on the climate, including the use of resources and emissions due to straw burning.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Internet Of Things
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Upon the emergence of the Internet of Things (IoT) and Mobile Edge Computing (MEC), the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) has been undergoing a transformative phase with exponential growth in innovative digital services and unprecedented business opportunities. This has been growing in line with the expected dominance of Electric Vehicles (EVs) by the next decade.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project This interdisciplinary project aims to investigate the integration of digital technologies and energy-efficient solutions to develop climate-responsive and adaptable buildings to enhance the experience of diverse users. This research will focus on a case study to identify why a digital twin is needed and what issues it will attempt to address.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project With people spending the vast majority of their lives indoors, the quality of our homes, offices, and schools has a profound impact on our health, wellbeing, and productivity. Simultaneously, the energy used to heat, cool, and light these spaces is a major contributor to global carbon emissions.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project AI-powered cyber-physical and IoT systems are becoming integral to modern environments, with applications in smart cities, Industry 4.0, augmented reality, and autonomous vehicles. These systems increasingly rely on the Cloud–Edge continuum, where heterogeneous and geographically distributed resources must support dynamic, data-intensive, and latency-sensitive workloads.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Civil Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The PhD topic will focus on the use bio-inspired remediation techniques that are being used to remove contaminants, such as heavy metals from the soil in conjunction with their potential effect upon the engineering properties of the soil, such as increase of soil strength and further prevention of erosion.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Although therapeutic approaches such as cognitive-behavioural therapy and mindfulness programmes are effective, according to study reported by Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy, systemic barriers, including resource shortages, delivery variability, and long waiting times, limit accessibility and consistency (Peipert, et al., 2022).
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The recent years have witnessed transformative changes in the design of private cars with creative forms and innovative technologies to enhance the experience of the driver and passengers. On the other hand, changes to public transportation vehicles and systems have been generally very limited and very minor.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Human Computer Interaction
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project In situations where users are faced with online tasks that require to follow a linear process, such as visa applications or medical health checks, current online facilities offer sufficient support. However, more work can be done for users that fail to find suitable information they need or fully interact with such facilities.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Computer Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Generative AI is rapidly transforming diverse sectors, yet its implications for well-being remain underexplored. Beyond productivity gains, concerns are emerging around heightened performance expectations, reduced autonomy, and career uncertainty in AI-augmented environments.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Environmental Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Reducing greenhouse gasses (GHG) emissions is one of the main goals of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement (signed in 2015 during COP21) which seeks to limit the global raise in temperature to 1.5 °C. Contributions from all the sectors are needed to reach this objective, and in recent years additional attention been set on the protection of wetlands and other natural habitats.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Design
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Applications are invited for project proposals addressing the topic of experience design and digital media technologies. This is an opportunity to build on existing skills in digital creative practice and/or user experience (UX), and to develop these interests within a PhD project.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Automatic design and development of software applications has been the dream of software communities for decades.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Design
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project This PhD opportunity will invite candidates to explore and critically examine the intersection between religious, spiritual and transcendent experiences with place. Examples areas may include pilgrimage, digital communities, fandoms or other sites of meaning and how technology may play a role in mediating and creating new meaningful experiences. This research area aligns with areas of psychogeography, critical heritage, and phenomenology.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Civil Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Shear wave propagation and associated velocity Vs, are fundamental in characterising the small-strain response of soils. In addition, the shear wave velocity is essential input information in the characterisation of soils under static and dynamic conditions and eventually, in the design of geotechnical structures.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Federated learning (FL) enables vehicles to collaborate on model training without sharing raw data, while neuro-symbolic AI combines perception from neural networks with rule-based reasoning for compliance and explainability. Yet when data must be erased—because it is biased, malicious, or withdrawn—current federated unlearning techniques are computationally heavy, weakly verified, and vulnerable to attacks.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Cyber Security
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project n computer forensics, investigators need to be able to analyse the contents of storage devices. Such devices generally store information in blocks, and the arrangement of blocks in a certain order is the thing which represents a files. However, if the information about how each block connects together is lost, then it can almost impossible to piece the blocks back together again in order to reform all the data objects.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Built Environment
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Engineering problems related to conservation and restoration of Cultural Heritage are attracting increasing attention by researchers, offering opportunities for novel research and industry collaborations. Scotland’s historic environment is an essential part of its cultural background and economy but the effects of ageing, environmental conditions and past natural hazards have caused significant degradation, urging for action (Hyslop et al., 2006).
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Built Environment
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes, and hurricanes generate enormous volumes of waste, much of which is landfilled at high environmental and economic cost. At the same time, disaster recovery demands rapid access to new construction materials. This creates a critical challenge, how can we rebuild communities quickly while reducing waste, carbon emissions, and costs?
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Human Computer Interaction
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project As the climate emergency intensifies, the need for widespread behavioural change has never been more urgent. But how do we inspire individuals to act? While technological innovation contributes significantly to mitigation efforts, the long-term success of sustainability initiatives ultimately depends on the widespread adoption of pro-environmental behaviours at both individual and collective levels.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Data Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project This is an open call for research proposals related to gendered perspectives of data science. Diversity is vital to data science, given its crucial role in understanding the world, communicating information, and guiding behaviour. A diverse workforce is more likely to identify bias and thus mitigate historical and human bias to be integrated in the algorithmic design (Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation, 2020).
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project People with learning difficulties often face barriers in traditional education systems because standard teaching tools are not sufficiently adaptive to individual cognitive differences. Generative AI (such as large language models) offers a new frontier: the ability to dynamically personalise explanations, scaffold support, rephrase content, and respond interactively to learners.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Civil Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The key idea is that Rubber-Soil mixtures (RSm), derived from car tyres, can be used to modify the foundation and protect civil structures against the action of earthquakes at beneficial economic and environmental costs. Thus, the seismic protection can be engineered in locations where earthquakes are most common, and consequences are least affordable. This is a distinctive Civil Engineering project in that is has direct consequences on human suffering.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Formal dialogue models have been developed over the last several decades to shed light on the conversational practises of people in a wide range of communicative contexts. More recently conversational AI has made rapid progress in generating plausible content for human-machine dialogue.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Computer Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Cyberattacks are increasingly designed to exploit and manipulate users’ behaviour rather than targeting purely technical vulnerabilities. Phishing emails, social engineering phone calls, and fraudulent websites often imitate trusted communication channels or rely on compromised legitimate accounts to encourage users to perform insecure actions.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project There have been significant recent advances in the effectiveness of machine intelligence systems based upon neural networks, deep learning, and machine learning techniques. However questions have been raised about the nature of the reasoning occurring in these systems, how opaque that reasoning is, and how that impacts people's ability to trust the resulting systems.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Computer Graphics
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The shift from transactional to experiential digital commerce has accelerated with advances in Extended Reality (XR) technology. Major retailers, and particularly luxury brands, are increasingly exploring XR-based platforms to create engaging customer journeys. However, current research into how these immersive technologies affect branding, particularly among youth markets, is still in its early stages.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Computer Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The rapid adoption of Machine Learning (ML) across industries has transformed how systems are built, deployed, and maintained. However, the operationalisation of ML—commonly referred to as MLOps—still faces significant challenges related to reproducibility, scalability, monitoring, and collaboration between data science and engineering teams.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Built Environment
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Housing markets are inherently spatial, shaped by location, neighbourhood characteristics, accessibility, and environmental factors. While traditional econometric models are useful for identifying relationships, these are often inadequate when it comes to capturing the non-linearities and complex interactions surrounding the dynamics of the markets.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The proposed PhD will focus on the design, integration, and validation of advanced sensor technologies into Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) for autonomous marine pollution monitoring. Building on recent innovations in microfluidic sampling, optical sensors, and electrochemical detection, the candidate will develop a modular sensor integration framework capable of operating in diverse aquatic environments.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Built Environment
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project On the continent there’s been a growing trend of balcony solar panels [1]. These can be mounted onto the sides of an apartment balcony. These are typically thin film solar panels, mounted horizontally, although some products do allow for monocrystalline panels, or for the panels to be angled to maximise solar gain.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Background and Motivation: Within the framework of 5G/6G infrastructure, advancements in network architectures and service integration are enabling emerging technologies such as Intelligent Metamaterials and Metasurface antenna systems. These systems can dynamically manipulate electromagnetic waves to enhance connectivity, sensing, and adaptive coverage within smart radio environments.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Human Computer Interaction
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project This PhD project explores how environmental science, sound design, and interactive technologies can be developed to address one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time: anthropogenic marine noise. It investigates how sensory engagement and interactive design can foster empathy, support policy awareness, and encourage sustained pro-environmental behaviour.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Machine Learning
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are increasingly used to forecast travel behaviour, offering impressive predictive capacity. Yet many such models lack grounding in behavioural theory and operate as “black boxes” that obscure how or why decisions are made.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project As software systems grow in complexity, the need for automated methods to detect vulnerabilities such as buffer overflows, SQL injections, and cross-site scripting becomes increasingly critical. Traditional static and dynamic analysis techniques are often labour-intensive, domain-dependent, and limited in generalisation across codebases.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Higher Education
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping the educational landscape by enabling data-driven decision-making, adaptive learning systems, and personalised support for students. With the growing use of AI-powered platforms such as intelligent tutoring systems, learning analytics dashboards, and chatbots, universities are beginning to integrate AI tools to enhance engagement and performance.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Acoustics Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Billions of people use headphones, earbuds, and loudspeakers every day, yet we still know surprisingly little about how loud they really listen, how long they are exposed, and what this means for long-term hearing health. The World Health Organisation warns that over one billion young people are at risk of hearing damage due to unsafe listening practices, but most existing evidence is based on self-report or lab-based studies.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture, Building & Planning
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Loneliness is fast becoming one of the most urgent social and public-health challenges, yet mobility is rarely discussed in this discourse. Transport is more than movement: it enables us to meet, to belong, to maintain relationships. Simultaneously, evolving social practices — such as coordinating with online communities, hybrid digital/in-person meetup groups, or remote social networks — are shifting how, when, and why people travel.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Biomechanics
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The MRes at Edinburgh Napier University represents a unique opportunity for students to conduct a substantial research project in the area of Football Science undertaken over one-year full time or 20 months part-time. The MRes is suitable for recent graduates, who wish to advance their research skills in the field of Football Science as well as those who wish to consider subsequent PhD studies.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Evaluating student assignments puts a tremendous burden to teachers. Besides investigating if, and in what extent, a student has used AI, other aspects have to be evaluated as well, such as creativity and/or originality, just to name a few. Another issue, especially in case of evaluating many assignments, is the inconsistencies in evaluation when the grades for two very similar solutions are too much different.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project False and harmful narratives propagated by large language models threaten the integrity of information in elections, public health, and crisis response. This PhD addresses that risk by creating principled, auditable ways to remove or neutralise targeted misinformation behaviours while preserving overall model utility.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Aerospace Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project High-fidelity computer simulations for complex engineering systems are computationally demanding. The challenges compound for problems in nonlinear regime and multiphysics loading conditions. To tackle large-scale complex systems in an efficient manner, model reduction techniques are usually pursued.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Hydrogen is identified to play a key role in the UK’s goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2050. To meet this target, the UK needs hydrogen storage capacity of at least 15 TWh (~ 450k tonnes) meet short-term and seasonal supply and demand variability. Currently, the UK only has one hydrogen storage facility in Teesside, with a capacity of ~30 GWh (0.9k tonnes of hydrogen) in salt caverns.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Control Systems
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The popularity of power electronic drives used to control electrical machines is increasing, pushed by both the surge of renewable energy generation and the ongoing electrification of transport. This trend is expected to continue and rapid developments are happening on multiple fronts; from more efficient wide-bandgap semiconductors, to new materials and design approaches in electrical machines.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project With the time, the intruders are becoming more intelligent with higher ability of attacking networks without being identified. Multi-modal machine learning-based intelligent intrusion detection systems must be designed to identify stealthy and adversarial cyber attacks. Learning different representations of attack features will provide higher capabilities of distinguishing between the legitimate event and the illegitimate pattern.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Human Computer Interaction
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Technological interventions have been created to attempt to counter symptoms of stress, through improving cognition and functioning of target users. Mobile devices, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) applications have demonstrated the ability to support and improve clinical practices through sensory based technologies.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Machine Learning
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Multimodal multilingual sentiment analysis involves analysing sentiments expressed in different modalities (such as text, images, audio) and across different languages. This complex task begins with integrating and representing diverse data types, including textual, visual, and auditory information.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture, Building & Planning
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The built environment is responsible for approximately 40% of global carbon emissions [1], making it a critical frontier in the global pursuit of net zero targets. While advances in sustainable materials and renewable energy technologies are contributing to emission reductions, the fundamental architectural and urban design strategies employed remain among the most influential determinants of environmental performance.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Videogames
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Over the past two decades, digital games have evolved into complex cultural products supported by vast ecosystems of players, creators, and developers. Nowhere is this more visible than across major gaming franchises, whose communities extend far beyond the play of the title itself to include forums, fan content, live events, esports, and digital platforms that sustain long-term engagement.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Wearable Internet of Things (IoT) devices such as smartwatches, health trackers, and fall detectors are revolutionising healthcare, assisted living, and safety-critical systems. However, challenges remain around trust resulting from data quality (Bamgboye, Liu, Cruickshank, & Liu., 2025), and data reliability due to sensor accuracy or failure.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Energy Technologies
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Improving the sustainability of energy storage materials is becoming an increasingly important aspect in recent years. Sodium-ion batteries are a promising alternative to Lithium, that could reduce the reliance on rare earth elements. This project aims at numerical and experimental investigation of a novel sodium battery design. Simulations and experimental validation will be carried out to validate new functionality of the battery.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Civil Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Coastal erosion is one of the key impacts of changing sea-levels as a result of climate change and presents a significant threat to large populations around the world. Erosion is also a key factor to understand river dynamics, landscape change, etc. Within civil/structural engineering, soil erosion plays a significant role in the stability of large dams and embankments (e.g.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Information Systems
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Expertise is considered advantageous for effective task completion and is associated with length of experience in a domain (Hambrick et al., 2018). In academic settings there are researchers with numerous levels of expertise completing similar tasks, such as literature reviews or presentations.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Communications Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Base stations employ antenna arrays to accommodate parallel data streams and increase information transmission rates of wireless communication networks. Particularly, the antenna array should occupy a limited volume at the base station premises while ensuring optimum performance to meet the requirements of future 6G wireless networks.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Zoonotic diseases, which jump from animals to humans, are one of the greatest public health challenges of our time. Pathogens are not static targets; they constantly evolve, creating new strains that can be more transmissible or evade our immune systems. Traditional mathematical models that predict how diseases spread often have a critical blind spot: they fail to account for this rapid evolution, treating the pathogen as a fixed entity.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Communications Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) are smart devices that can manipulate electromagnetic wave propagation to optimize performance of future 6G wireless networks. In RIS-assisted wireless communications, the performance such as the symbol error rate (SER), bit error rate (BER) and channel capacity (CC) depends on the underlying statistical attributes of the received signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), as is the case for any wireless communication scenario.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Chemical Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The UK government is committed to reaching Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Due to the global economic landscape and energy market, the pathway towards "Net Zero" must be accelerated to release the economic pressure on households and businesses. Among the strategies, increasing the solar capacity is vital for the goal of sustainable net-zero buildings, particularly on domestic and commercial rooftops.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Human Computer Interaction
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Background: Education and knowledge have long been considered core factors in explaining why individuals engage in political and civic activities (Galston, W.A., 2001, Ashley, Maksl and Craft, 2017).
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Chemistry
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Flexible and conformable energy sources with high energy storage capabilities and fast charge/discharge rates are needed for applications such as wearables, robots, and electric vehicles. The power requirements for the operation of components in these devices are in different capacity ranges. The applications mentioned above require new features and designs that traditional energy storage technologies simply cannot provide.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Cyber Security
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Blockpass and the School of Computing at Edinburgh Napier University have set up an advanced Blockchain Identity Lab (BIL), which supports world-leading research related to cryptography, blockchain, distributed ledger technologies, privacy-preserving machine learning, and their linkage to sovereign identities such as decentralised identities and verifiable credentials. It currently supports several PhD studentships, and it aims to increase this number.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Query performance prediction (QPP) is a crucial task in information retrieval (IR) that estimates the effectiveness of a search system for a given query without requiring human relevance judgments. QPP has various applications, such as helping an IR system determine whether a specific query is likely to be effective.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Edinburgh Napier University’s research Centre for Cyber Security focuses on applied research in areas of threat analysis and detection, digital forensic triage, trust, identity and cryptography, and has had successful real world impact with several spin-out companies.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The rapid proliferation of wind and solar installations, coupled with the growing impact of climate change on the volatile UK weather, creates formidable operable challenges for the UK electricity Grid. To balance the supply and demand of the electricity system, the National Grid is required to take proactive actions to curtail variable renewable energy (VRE) generation.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Background and Motivation: The increasing demand for sustainable and maintenance-free wireless technologies has accelerated interest in radio frequency (RF) energy harvesting, which converts electromagnetic waves into usable electrical power. This approach supports energy-autonomous IoT networks, sensors, and smart infrastructure.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Acoustics Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Hospitals are among the most acoustically complex and stressful environments. Alarms overlap, conversations cross thin curtains, and background noise prevents rest. These conditions contribute to alarm fatigue for staff, anxiety for visitors, and poor recovery outcomes for patients. While medicine advances rapidly, the way sound is managed in clinical settings has changed very little.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Applied Statistics
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The construction sector is one of the largest global sources of greenhouse gas emissions, primarily due to the production of carbon-intensive materials such as cement and steel. Efforts to reduce these emissions (through building standards, procurement rules, labelling schemes, and corporate reporting) rely almost entirely on attributional life cycle assessment (LCA) data and methods.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project This project considers the social partnered aspects of salsa danced to salsa music, and how a pair of robots could dance to this style of music. This project will investigate Robot - Robot interaction, programming of or training of motor skills, machine listening and computational creativity.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Infrared spectral recognition is a powerful way to identify plants, assess ecological conditions, and distinguish between different materials for recycling. However, most current systems are heavy, expensive, and unsuitable for widespread use in the field. This project aims to change that by developing low-cost, lightweight devices supported by embedded artificial intelligence.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Internet Of Things
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project 1. Research Background and Motivation The Internet of Things (IoT) is rapidly transforming sectors such as healthcare, smart cities, industrial systems, and critical infrastructure. Billions of connected devices continuously sense, process, and exchange data to support intelligent services.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The Blockchain Identity Lab (BIL) supports world-leading research in cryptography, distributed ledgers, privacy-preserving technologies, and sovereign identity such as decentralised identifiers and verifiable credentials. We invite applications for a PhD focused on software security and AI security, including how AI can automate and enhance cybersecurity processes.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Large Language Models (LLMs) are machine learning models trained for general-purpose tasks that can be modelled using text, images, or both. These models demonstrate emerging abilities that result mainly from unsupervised pre-training on vast amounts of data. However, with parameter counts in the billions and datasets often exceeding a trillion tokens, they are expensive to train and run, making them inaccessible for small groups with limited resources.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Architecture
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project The UK construction industry is under increasing pressure to address climate change, reduce embodied carbon, and adopt circular economy principles. A key barrier to achieving these goals is the lack of transparency and traceability of building materials throughout their lifecycle. Material Passports—digital documents containing detailed information on the composition, provenance, and recyclability of materials—offer a promising solution.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Chemistry
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Wearable electronic devices have sparked tremendous attention in recent years, owing to their wide range of possible applications, which include artificial organs, electronic skin, and healthcare monitoring, as well as soft robotics with arbitrary surface forms. Stretchability and multifunctional applications are critical for these devices.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Digital Media
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Are you interested in designing robots or voice assistants for older adults? Join the effort to make socially intelligent systems for older adults. Older adults are a growing proportion of the UK's and the world's population. Automated technologies such as robots and voice assistants that operate in socially supportive roles may help older adults with daily activities, improve their self-efficacy and relieve caregiver burden.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Manufacturing Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Subtractive manufacturing processes such as turning, milling, and drilling remain the backbone of industrial production across sectors, including aerospace, automotive, and energy. Despite the rise of additive technologies, subtractive methods continue to dominate due to their precision and reliability. However, these processes are not without challenges.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Digital Media
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project This is an open call for research proposals related to topics of mis-information or dis-information in social influence. Proposals should focus on the ways in which mis- and dis-information impact human information behaviours and practices in a social or societal context. This work will be anchored in the domain of Information Science with a focus on human information behaviour, information seeking and use, or social informatics and online information.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Manufacturing Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Industrial manufacturing has long been associated with environmental pollution, particularly in the form of airborne particulate matter generated during machining and processing activities. These particles, often invisible to the naked eye, pose significant challenges not only to the immediate workplace but also to the broader ecosystem.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Machine learning has seen a meteoric rise in popularity over the past decade. However, with this success comes growing concern about the opacity of the decisions made by AI. When decisions impact are safety-critical or high-stakes it is no longer enough for a model to be accurate: it must also be transparent, trustworthy, and interpretable.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Large language models (LLMs) are increasingly being explored in healthcare for their ability to interpret complex guidelines and generate personalised recommendations. In cardiovascular prevention and rehabilitation (CVPR), they could support the shift to home-based care by producing exercise prescriptions tailored to an individual’s health profile.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Trust is the invisible glue that holds Agile software development together. Teams rely on openness, accountability, and shared confidence to deliver high-quality software at speed. Yet in today’s fast-moving digital landscape, trust is fragile: distributed teams, growing complexity, and the introduction of AI-based tools can strain relationships between developers, stakeholders, and organizations.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Cyber Security
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project A current weakness in many evidence gathering infrastructures is the handling of digital evidence bags, and how they are handled through criminal investigations and for insurance purposes. This work aims to understand the key stakeholders involved in the handling of digital evidence, and understand the key areas of the trustworthiness of the data, including the immutability of the gathered evidence and in the evidence chain.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Computer Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Organizations benefit from sharing cyber threat intelligence (CTI), yet direct sharing of raw data, rules, or logs can reveal sensitive business information and undermine security. This PhD explores how to enable collaboration with verifiable trust, so parties can rely on each other’s security signals, without exposing internal data or detection logic.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Artificial Intelligence
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Large Language Models (LLMs) are rapidly transforming software development and software engineering. Instead of relying on a single model, recent approaches use multiple AI agents for software development activities. This shift has increased speed and improved capabilities into the field. However, it has also raised new risks.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Digital Media
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project A large literature has shown that multiple robots in socially assistive roles perform better than a single robot in the same role (Li et al., accepted). It is still unclear why this is the case. Multiple robots have the potential to deliver content and provide social support in a more diverse way with multiple agents, though the conditions that warrant the increased financial and development cost remain unclear.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Built Environment
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Growing areas of academic and policy interest in the built environment consider the role of cities as homes to the majority of the world’s population and key drivers for health and wellbeing, resilience and sustainable development. However, a range of challenges exist in relation to urban inequalities, people and places and climate change.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Engineering
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Improving rural accessibility, reducing car dependency, and tackling climate change have been central themes in transport research for decades. Yet, private cars remain the dominant mode of travel in rural areas, largely due to the limited reliability and efficiency of available public transport. Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) has long been presented as a flexible alternative to conventional services, but its potential has never been fully realised.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Computer Science
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project As Connected Autonomous Vehicles (CAV) deployments grow, society needs trustworthy, auditable vehicle decisions and coordination, especially at intersections, merging/convoying, and emergency manoeuvres, without exposing sensitive data (routes, identities, internal logic). This project investigates how to enable verifiable decision accountability and inter‑vehicle trust while preserving privacy and vendor IP.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
Adult Nursing
Edinburgh Napier University
About the Project Home treatment for various diseases offers a cost-effective and patient-centred alternative, but it requires individuals and their caregivers to perform complex procedures safely and consistently. Current training approaches are resource-intensive, highly variable, and can cause anxiety for new patients. Virtual Reality (VR) offers a novel solution by providing safe, repeatable, interactive, and engaging training environments.
- Location
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom, United Kingdom
- Deadline
- Year-round applications
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only