Fully funded PhD Studentship Optimised demand modelling |2021-2022 Scholarships Grants

The School of Business and Economics at Loughborough University invites excellent applications for the above PhD Studentship starting October 2013

The Studentship is open to home/EU and international* students. It will run for 3 years and it includes:

A stipend of Â£13,726 p.a. plus fees paid at the home/EU rate

* International students will be required to find funding to cover the difference between home/EU fees.

To be considered for this studentship candidates must have an Honours degree equivalent to British 2:1 minimum in a subject relevant to Operational Research/Management Science, Maths, Engineering or Computing.

About the project:

This is an inter-departmental PhD project supervised by members of the School of Aeronautical and Automotive Engineering, Chemical Engineering and Materials Engineering (SAACME) and the School of Business and Economics (SBE) The work will be carried out in close collaboration with the Leicestershire Constabulary, who will directly benefit from this research. The project will focus on developing combined simulation and optimisation models that can be used to support optimal staff allocation at the Leicestershire police force. As part of this project algorithms and methods that predict demand will be developed, which in turn can be incorporated into simulation models to determine the best staff allocation strategy. The research will aim to identify ways to optimise demand for police officers to ensure that in the event of a call, demand is met in the shortest amount of time, by effectively distributing officers, minimizing travel routes, all in all reducing costs to the force and at the same time improving services to the public. This level of sophistication is not currently seen within the force. The Police Officer working practices have been set for a long period with no evaluation of their suitability or effectiveness. Sustainability of the police force, helping to tackle crime with the optimal use and allocation of resources is an area that can hugely impact the performance of the police force in difficult economic times.

Supervisory team:

Dr Antuela Tako, Lecturer in Operations Research, SBE

Dr Lisa Jackson, Senior Lecturer, SAACME

How to apply

Candidates are requested to submit:

An application form

A cover letter explaining your interest in, and aptitude for, the topic of this research project. In particular we would like to learn about:

Why you are attracted to this research opportunity?

What qualities you feel you can bring to the project?

How does the studentship fit with your career aspirations?

A 2,000 word research proposal based on the research project. We ask you to specify a research question, clearly identify a gap in the academic literature and generally develop a roadmap for this research.