Studentship Vacancies

Learning from structured collections of digital resources

The Knowledge Media Institute (KMi) of the Open University currently has an EPSRC Doctoral Training Grant available to cover PhD fees for two EU nationals in the area of information retrieval, in particular formal IR models and multimedia IR. The formal IR model topic will mainly be focused on statistical approaches for modelling and incorporating retrieval context through pseudo- and/or implicit relevance feedback. The multimedia analysis topic is focused on visual search engines and automatic annotation.

We aim to provide matched funding for successful applicants to cover their living expenses as well.

For further information on this PhD project please contact:

Professor Stefan Rueger
Professor of Knowledge Media

+44 (0)1908 654506

and / or

Dawei Song
Senior Lecturer

+44 (0) 1908 858215

Additional Information:

The Knowledge Media Institute (http://kmi.open.ac.uk) is home to internationally recognised researchers in semantic web, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, human-computer interaction, information retrieval and multimedia processing. KMi offers students an intellectually challenging environment with exceptional research and computer facilities. You will be joining a dynamic PhD programme with about 15 other students in KMi, plus peers in the Computing department and Institute of Educational Technology who together make up the OU's Centre for Research in Computing (http://crc.open.ac.uk/).

KMi sees PhD students as critical to its mission, and awards Studentships (£12,978/year tax free for 2008/09), with no additional fees, compulsory examinations or teaching required. Participation is required in CRC PhD events and thesis milestones, as specified in the KMI Research Degrees policy (http://kmi.org/studentships/policy.php). Additional training courses to develop your generic research skills are run across the OU, attendance at which is agreed with your supervisor.

The Open University (http://www.open.ac.uk) is UK's only distance learning university with a dedicated mission for excellence in teaching and research. PhD programmes are residential, however, and the student would carry out their research at the KMi in the Open University's central Milton Keynes campus.

Milton Keynes (http://www.mkweb.co.uk/), located in the triangle Cambridge, Oxford and London, is an exciting and vibrant place to be. It is one of the fastest growing cities in the country with fantastic shopping facilities, Xscape Snow slope, new skydiving centre and much more. Milton Keynes is also home to some major employers with Abbey National, Argos and The Open University having headquarters in the city. With more businesses continuing to locate here, unemployment levels are among the lowest in the country. Milton Keynes has excellent transport links with the M1 motorway and A5 running alongside the city and a fast train link into London Euston (35 minutes).

Applications

This studentship is available for immediate start. The deadline for applications is 18th January 2008. Applications should comprise an application form, C.V. and a proposal outlining how you would tackle this project. They should be submitted to:

Research School
The Open University
Walton Hall
Milton Keynes
MK7 6AA
UK