Lead Supervisor Name: Dr Jaqi Lee

Directly Funded Project (Students Worldwide)

The University of Surrey, in collaboration with Rolls-Royce, is pleased to announce an exciting opportunity to join the Practitioner Doctorate in Sustainability programme. Hosted by the internationally acclaimed Centre for Environmental Strategy, the Practitioner Doctorate in Sustainability programme is the first of its kind, offering talented and ambitious researchers a unique experience in collaborative research spanning industry and academia.

Applications are invited from self-motivated and enthusiastic candidates who hold a degree (or equivalent) of at least 2i standard, as well as a Masters in engineering or physics and/or at least three years’ work experience in a relevant field. Having considered the Project Brief, candidates will be expected to clearly outline the relevance of their prior experiences in their covering letter. Candidates should have an interest or experience in sustainability/social science and be able to demonstrate experience/skills in working across disciplines. Proven skills in holistic problem solving/systems thinking and excellent inter-personal skills are a must.

Project Background and Rationale In order for civil nuclear power to become a secure part of a sustainable low-carbon energy system in the UK, there is a need for timely and sensitive adoption of ICTs (information and communication systems) that can enhance operational safety, security, on-site energy efficiency and conservation, etc. This doctoral research project between Rolls-Royce and CES addresses this need and proposes a mapping of attitudes and values across the workforce generations, and a subsequent action research programme that will lead to creation and refinement of a framework for sustainable technology assessment within Rolls Royce and potentially the civil nuclear sector as a whole in the UK.

Project Aims To investigate the implications of ageing of the technical workforce in civil nuclear power and the perceived culture of risk-aversion, suspicion on safety grounds of new technologies for communication and monitoring; and to devise, based on empirical action research, a framework for sustainable technology assessment and effective processes for introduction of new systems into the operations of nuclear plants.

The successful candidate will receive a generous stipend of £18,000 per annum throughout this time (with potential to increase to c. £20,000 per annum after two years). Stipends are usually tax-free and DPs will also benefit from an additional £500 p.a. allowance for attendance at conferences etc. In addition to this, full-time tuition fees will be covered at the current Home/EU rate for the duration of the programme (International students will be subject to additional fees).

To apply for this project, please contact k.boazman<στο>surrey.ac.uk for an information pack, which will include:

• A Project Brief
• Information about the Centre for Environmental Strategy, Carillion plc and the supervisory team
• Details of the Practitioner Doctorate in Sustainability programme
• An application form

Key Dates This project is due to begin on the 13th of April 2015 and the successful candidate will be based in Guildford until the 3rd of July 2015, after which he/she will be based at Rolls-Royce in Derby. The programme will run for a minimum of three years with the opportunity to extend to four years, dependant on the wishes of the Partnering Organisation and the DP.

Interviews for this post are expected to take place at the University of Surrey in Guildford on 11th March 2015.