The University of Bath is inviting worldwide applications for a competitive PhD on people-led digital twins for built-heritage conservation. The application deadline is 29 November 2026, with an expected start on 4 October 2027. The project brings technical development together with the needs of people who care for historic assets. It may interest applicants who want to investigate how evidence supports a decision as well as how a digital system is built.
Research Direction
The work combines monitoring and inspection information with interactive visualisation and explainable AI. Heritage practitioners and stakeholders remain involved in interpreting information and evaluating interventions. Relevant backgrounds include civil or structural engineering, architecture and closely related disciplines. Consider whether you enjoy explaining a technical finding to people whose priorities and specialist knowledge may differ from your own.
Location and Supervision
The university base is Bath, United Kingdom. The topic concerns built heritage. Architecture and Civil Engineering hosts the opportunity. It belongs to the faculty’s studentship competition. Dr Alejandro Jimenez-Rios and Dr P Shepherd are named supervisors. Dr Jimenez-Rios is the enquiry contact.
Academic and Financial Conditions
A first or 2:1 honours degree or international equivalent is required, alongside interest in heritage and practitioner engagement. Non-UK applicants not currently studying in the UK must meet the English requirement before the deadline. Competitive funding covers tuition, £1,000 annual training support and a stipend listed at £21,805 for 2026/27. Overseas awards are capped, visa and Immigration Health Surcharge expenses are personal costs, and the published stipend does not establish the 2027/28 rate.
Thinking About a People-Led Tool
For an optional preparation exercise, imagine that a technical display presents a result accurately but its intended user cannot understand what action it supports. Ask what you would need to learn about that user’s task before changing the display. Consider whether the difficulty comes from terminology, missing context or a mismatch between the information shown and the decision being made. This is an illustrative exercise, not a named project case study, a prescribed interview question or a promise about a particular heritage site.
You could extend the example by considering two users who interpret the same display differently because they have different responsibilities. Explain how you would investigate those differences without assuming that one user is simply mistaken. Identify what information should remain visible so that a recommendation can be questioned rather than accepted automatically. A clear account of how you would make assumptions and limitations understandable can help demonstrate interest in the human side of a technical research problem.
Presenting Relevant Experience
If supporting materials are requested, choose a completed example that shows how you connected technical work with a practical question. Explain the problem, your own contribution, the people involved and the evidence used to assess whether the work was useful. A modelling project, design exercise, conservation study or analytical report may offer relevant evidence if you describe the connection carefully. Do not imply that a project involved professional stakeholders if your experience was limited to a classroom or an independently constructed example.
If you have worked with a non-specialist audience, explain what you learned from their questions and what changed as a result. If you have not, identify that engagement as a skill you want to develop and use another genuine example to demonstrate thoughtful communication. Distinguish building a prototype from establishing that it improves a real decision, since those claims require different evidence. These suggestions are intended to clarify your preparation and should be adapted to the university’s actual application questions and document requirements.
Developing Focused Questions
A useful enquiry should address an unanswered issue that affects your decision to apply. Read the announcement first, identify the precise project and connect your question to a relevant interest or experience. Keep the message concise and avoid asking the academic contact to reproduce information already available in the application instructions. An informal reply can help clarify research fit, but it does not replace the formal application or guarantee admission and a competitive award.
How to Apply
Follow the university’s current instructions and check the required documents before submitting. Review the advertised title, intended supervisor and programme selection for consistency. Where you enter a second project choice, make sure the corresponding title and supervisor appear in the correct fields.
- View scholarship details and follow the institutional application route.
- Select the Architecture PhD and University of Bath URSA funding.
- Identify the project and supervisor, respecting the maximum of two project choices.
Final Checks
Information was checked on 23 October 2026. Confirm the current deadline, eligibility and written award terms before applying. Keep the submitted application and assess your personal budget before making commitments that depend on receiving an international studentship.