PhD Architecture, Built Environment and Planning

The Belfast School of Architecture and Built Environment is Ulster University’s principal focus for research activities relating to the sustainable design and development, management, regulation and conservation of the built environment. The quality of the research in the Built Environment was recognised as 100% world-leading or internationally excellent in terms of the research environment and research impact in REF2014. The main areas of research activity are carried out within distinct research groups, which also collaborate in joint research activities.

Postgraduate research opportunities are available within each research group and within the School, in the areas of Architecture, Built Environment, Energy, Civil Engineering, Fire Engineering, Highway Engineering, Hydrogen Safety Engineering, Construction, Property, Real Estate, Planning, Housing and Environmental Health.

Based on both the Belfast campus and the Jordanstown campus, the Belfast School of Architecture and Built Environment seeks to provide its research students with a lively and stimulating environment for their studies. Jordanstown offers extensive experimental laboratory research facilities, established over many years of investment. These laboratories are complemented by high end computational facilities, and are available within each of the research centres. The fire research building provides a unique series of laboratories for the study of fire safety engineering science.

Research facilities for the Centre for Sustainable Technologies provide a state of the art environment for the study of energy systems and markets, renewable energies and energy technologies. There is a strong practical focus on the delivery of low carbon building solutions with technical performance and social acceptance being tested on instrumented houses. The Belfast campus offers Architecture studio research based concepts that link both the technical aspects of the School at Jordanstown and close interactions with the neighbouring Belfast School of Art. All of the research groups have active involvement in both national and international programmes with networks involving a wide range of visiting researchers and scholars.

PhD graduates are recognised by employers to hold valuable transferrable skills, as the nature of the degree trains candidates in creativity, critical inquiry, problem solving, negotiation skills, professionalism and confidence. The most recent Ulster survey of PhD graduates found that 92% had secured employment within the first year since graduation (HESA Destination of Leavers Survey 2015), and while two thirds end up in the Higher Education or Research sectors, the range of skills acquired equips the remainder for employment in a wide range of contexts.