FTDP scholarship funding
Each scholarship funding (second cohort) is for three years of a full-time PhD degree programme, and includes:
- tuition fees
- tax-free maintenance stipend of around £19,237 per annum (rising in line with URKI rates)
- additional research costs of up to £1,600 per year
Other funded supports:
- Funded secondments to industry and overseas universities.
- Enhanced training and skills development from LJMU’s Researcher Development Programme.
- Coaching and/or mentoring support.
- Training to gain teaching qualifications (Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy).
- Relevant activities by professional bodies, for example OR Society, CILT, IMarEST, IET.
- Relevant subject-specific training, for example guest lectures, research sandpits, methodological training.
Second cohort (3 students) to start in February 2025
- 6 January 2025: Application deadline
- 13 to 17 January 2025: Interviews (in person or remote)
- 20 to 21 January 2025: Successful candidates notified
- 28 February 2025: Relocate to Liverpool and enrol.
How to apply
Interested applicants please carefully read the descriptions for each project and person specifications as detailed below. If you believe you are suitable, email Prof Trung Thanh Nguyen with title “FTDP PhD + Project number” (for projects 1-3 below) and include the following information:
- CV and a transcript.
- Anything else to support your application.
Applicants must be available for interview (see Timeline above).
Project 1
Optimisation and AI for a modal shift to freight rail
Possible tasks
- Utilise historical train movement and disruption data to understand bottlenecks and common problems on the network.
- Analyse supply and demand for freight rail.
- Analyse network structure and train timetable to identify available capacity for freight rail.
- Develop models and algorithms to optimise the timetable and capacity for freight rail going from/to a new terminal.
- Provide optimal recommendations to industry stakeholders.
Specific expertise required
- Strong/demonstrable expertise in optimisation (exact/heuristics/meta-heuristics).
- Demonstrable experience in programming and data analytics.
Preferred, but not mandatory, experience in:
- Network and graph theory.
- Discrete-event/multi-agent simulation.
- AI and Machine learning.
- Engagement with industry/external partners.
Project 2
Optimising the planning of alternative energy in shipping
Possible tasks
- Model the supply and demand of alternative energy as a mathematical or simulation problem.
- Model alternative energy supplies at ports as a mathematical or simulation problem.
- Model movements of vessels using alternative energy as a mathematical or simulation problem.
- Solve the models taking into account environment/health impact and cost/profit.
- Provide optimal recommendations to industry stakeholders.
Specific expertise required
- Strong/demonstrable expertise in optimisation (exact/heuristics/meta-heuristics).
- Demonstrable experience in programming and data analytics.
Preferred, but not mandatory, experience in:
- Discrete-event/multi-agent simulation.
- Alternative-fuel.
- Engagement with industry/external.
Project 3
Benchmarking transport decarbonisation/freeport using apps and digital platforms
Potential tasks
- Develop a new mobile app/digital platform or maintain an existing one (on React Native) for benchmarking transport decarbonisation.
- Work with industry stakeholders to identify key performance indicators (KPIs) related to transport decarbonisation/freeport.
- Utilise the digital platform to collect user feedback and track KPIs.
- Attribution modelling to link changes in perceptions from users to specific investments or interventions.
Specific expertise required
Essential expertise in:
- Mobile app development (preferably React Native).
- Writing scripts and code to automate data collection, and analysis.
- Understanding of analytics tools to track behaviours and engagement metrics.
Desirable experience in:
- User experience research and user interface design.
- Data visualisation.
- Data analytics.
- Qualitative research methods.
First cohort (3 students) to start in February 2024
Project 1
Optimising the planning and operations of alternative fuel vehicles
Possible tasks:
- Model investment in electric/hydrogen vehicles as a mathematical problem.
- Model daily operational plans as a mathematical problem.
- Solve the models taking into account environment/health impact and cost/profit.
Specific expertise required
- Strong/demonstrable expertise in optimisation (exact/heuristics/meta-heuristics).
- Demonstrable experience in programming and data analytics.
Preferred, but not mandatory, experience in:
- discrete-event/multi-agent simulation
- alternative-fuel vehicles
- engagement with industry/external
Project 2
Machine learning or material analyses using intelligent sensors for Net Zero
Potential topics:
- Utilise existing and new sensor data (via sensor installations, engagement, citizen scientists etc.) to understand the impact of air pollution indoor/outdoor on health/environment.
- Insights into the sources of pollution and chemical compounds.
- Machine learning to recognise/classify events from sensor data, predict impact, and recommend mitigations.
For any topic, identify links to freeport/transport-logistics infrastructure/development/ behaviours/Net-Zero strategies. Then provide optimal recommendations.
Specific expertise required
Strong, demonstrable expertise in one of the following:
- Machine learning, large data handling/acquisition (e.g. via web APIs).
- Lab-based material analyses (microscopy, chromatography, mass spectrometry, XRF etc).
Demonstrable experience ( preferably with large data) in:
- programming
- data analytics
Preferred, but not mandatory, experience in:
- backend development and open source environments (Linux, GitHub, etcetera)
- programming/working with microcomputers/microcontrollers (for example Raspberry Pi and Arduino) or other embedded systems.
Project 3
Digitalisation and cyber security for freeports
Potential topics:
- New methods to enable cyber security risk analysis and quantification in UK freeports.
- Resilience of UK freeports cyber-physic communities under cyberattacks.
Specific expertise required
Essential expertise in:
- maritime operations or safety science
- algorithm design
- programming (Unity and PHP-based web development, using C# and Python)
Desirable experience in:
- cyber security background and Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN)
- data analytics
- familiar with protocols
- risk assessment tools
- 3D visualisation
Candidate background
Besides the above specific expertise/experience, you should have strong critical-thinking, communication, inter-personal and organisational skills. You must work well independently and in a team. You will travel (UK/abroad) to visit/engage partners, present findings or collect data.
We welcome interest from applicants with non-standard qualifications who can demonstrate knowledge, experience and skills developed in the workplace.
The programme offers transferable skills/development training through our Researcher Development Framework.