PhD: Estudia y desarrolla modelos inspirados en la biología para manejar grupos animales

Oferta compartida por Cristina

Biological Sciences: Fully Funded EPSRC DTP and Swansea University PhD Scholarship: Biologically inspired herding of animal groups (RS209)

Closing date: 23 January 2023

Key Information


Funding providers: Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) DTP and Swansea University's Faculty of Science and Engineering

Subject areas: Collective animal behaviour, flocking, swarm systems, agent-based models, robotics, UAVs

Project start date: 1 October 2023 (Enrolment open from mid-September)

Project supervisors: Dr Andrew King
Dr Miguel Lurgi

Aligned programme of study: PhD in Biological Sciences

Mode of study: Full-time or Part-time

Project description:

Background- A single sheepdog can bring together and manoeuvre hundreds of sheep from one location to another. Engineers and biologists are fascinated by sheepdog herding because of the potential it provides for bio-inspired strategies for herding real animal groups. Herding of animal groups over the sea, on land, and in the air using UAVs (for example) has potential to solve a variety of ecological problems that are currently impossible, dangerous, and/or costly for humans to manage directly.

Project details- The student will use existing data and collect new data on a variety of animal systems to research and develop biologically inspired models for herding animal groups – “bioherding”. The student will be based at www.SHOALgroup.org, Swansea University, and supported by a highly interdisciplinary team of international collaborators that includes biologists, mathematicians, and engineers. The student will travel to collaborator labs to complete specific project objectives.

Timeline- Candidates will be shortlisted and invited to interview early February 2023. A panel will meet soon after 20 February 2023 to decide on the successful candidate.

Eligibility

Candidates must normally hold an undergraduate degree at 2.1 level in Biosciences or a related subject, or a master’s degree with a minimum overall grade at ‘Merit’ (or Non-UK equivalent as defined by Swansea University). See ‘country specific information for European and international applicants (available at the bottom of the page)'.

We are looking to hire a biology graduate with strong quantitative skills, or an maths/engineering/computer scientist graduate with a strong interest in biology. An enthusiasm for tackling challenging computational problems is essential and prior experience with programming (e.g., in R, Python, MATLAB, etc.) is required. The candidate should have strong interpersonal skills and be enthusiastic about working across disciplines.

English Language requirements: If applicable – IELTS 6.5 overall (with at least 6.0 in each individual component) or Swansea recognised equivalent. Details on the Swansea University English Language entry policy can be found here.

This scholarship is open to candidates of any nationality.

NB: If you are holding a non-UK degree, please see Swansea University degree comparisons to find out if you meet the eligibility.

If you have any questions regarding your academic or fee eligibility based on the above, please email pgrscholarships@swansea.ac.uk with the web-link to the scholarship(s) you are interested in.

Funding


This scholarship covers the full cost of tuition fees and an annual stipend at UKRI rate (currently £17,668 for 2022/23).

Additional research expenses will also be available.

How to Apply


To apply, please complete your application online with the following information: Course choice – please select Biological Sciences / PhD / Full-time / 3 Year / October

In the event you have already applied for the above programme previously, the application system may issue a warning notice and prevent application, in this event, please email pgrscholarships@swansea.ac.uk where staff will be happy to assist you in submitting your application.
Start year – please select 2023
Funding (page 8) –‘Are you funding your studies yourself?’ – please select No
‘Name of Individual or organisation providing funds for study’ – please enter ‘RS209 – PhD BioSci'

*It is the responsibility of the applicant to list the above information accurately when applying, please note that applications received without the above information listed will not be considered for the scholarship award.

One application is required per individual Swansea University led research scholarship award; applications cannot be considered listing multiple Swansea University led research scholarship awards.

We encourage you to complete the following to support our commitment to providing an environment free of discrimination and celebrating diversity at Swansea University: Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Monitoring Form (online form)

As part of your online application, you MUST upload the following documents (please do not send these via email): CV
Degree certificates and transcripts (if you are currently studying for a degree, screenshots of your grades to date are sufficient)
A cover letter including a ‘Supplementary Personal Statement’ to explain why the position particularly matches your skills and experience and how you choose to develop the project.
Two references (academic or previous employer) on headed paper or using the Swansea University reference form. Please note that we are not able to accept references received citing private email accounts, e.g. Hotmail. Referees should cite their employment email address for verification of reference.
Evidence of meeting English Language requirement (if applicable).
Copy of UK resident visa (if applicable)

Informal enquiries are welcome, please contact Dr Andrew King (a.j.king@swansea.ac.uk).

*External Partner Application Data Sharing – Please note that as part of the scholarship application selection process, application data sharing may occur with external partners outside of the University, when joint/co- funding of a scholarship project is applicable.