PhD Studentship: Collaboratory 2026 PhD Project (ENG285)

Deadline: 11:59pm, 30th November 2025

Host University: University of Nottingham

School/department: Engineering

Start date: Wednesday 1st April 2026

Funding offer: Tuition fees covered in full (worth approx. £15-17k across full PhD programme). Monthly stipend based on £20,780 per annum, pro rata, tax free.

Working hours: Full-time (minimum 37.5 hrs per week).

Working style: Primarily in-person at host university. Flexible working supported. Working pattern to be agreed between successful candidate and lead supervisor. 

Project Supervisors
•    Lead Academic Supervisor: Dr Michael Craven (University of Nottingham)
•    Academic Co-Supervisor: Dr Adeolu Badi Adewoye (Nottingham Trent University)
•    Academic Co-Supervisor: Dr Shreyank Narayana Gowda (University of Nottingham)
•    Community Supervisor: â¯Dr Beili Shao (Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust)

About The Project

Caring for people living with dementia can be emotionally and physically demanding, especially when carers are unfamiliar with the specific challenges of the individuals they support. This research project aims to improve the experience of both carers and residents in Nottinghamshire care homes by developing personalised digital avatars. These avatars will represent realistic dementia care scenarios based on the unique needs and backgrounds of residents in each care home.

The project will work closely with carers, care home staff, residents’ families, and community organisations to co-design these avatars and training experiences. The goal is to create digital tools that help new or incoming carers feel better prepared for the specific behaviours, communication styles, and emotional needs they may encounter before they begin working in a particular care home.

A key focus of this project is ensuring that the avatars reflect a wide range of cultural experiences and ways of expressing dementia, particularly those that may not be well understood in typical Western training models. For example, some residents may show signs of distress or confusion in ways shaped by their language, religion, or cultural background. By recognising and including these variations in avatar scenarios, the project aims to support more inclusive and culturally responsive dementia care.

This research has the potential to improve carer confidence, reduce stress, and lead to more compassionate and effective care.

Collaboratory

Collaboratory (pronounced co-laboratory), or Collab for short, is a pioneering, collaborative research programme that aims to bring together researchers, community-focused organisations, and citizens to deliver meaningful change for the people of our local communities.

Collaboratory is an 8-year, £7.4m project, funded by the Research England Development Fund and launched in 2022. The programme will work with local communities to shape research that address challenges which are important to them. To carry out this research, Collab will recruit 77 PhD candidates and 37 Research Placement candidates from local communities, supporting them to become future leaders in community engaged research. Ultimately, Collaboratory aims to support positive, evidence-based change for local communities in Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire and Rutland communities through it’s research.

Further details about the programme: https://collaboratoryresearchhub.ac.uk/

All 2026 studentships: https://collaboratoryresearchhub.ac.uk/2026-studentships/

Closing Date: 30 Nov 2025
Category: Studentships