Smart textile for mental wellbeing

This project has been selected for consideration for a fully-funded Vice-Chancellor’s PhD Scholarship at Nottingham Trent University. Fifteen PhD projects will be funded across the University through the Vice-Chancellor’s PhD Scholarship Scheme for entry in 2015/16.
Full details of the projects and the competition are available at

http://www.ntu.ac.uk/research/graduate_school/studentships/index.html

This project will complement the exciting technical work being undertaken within the Advanced Textile Research Group, bringing user centred and designerly ways of thinking to the development of new applications of smart textiles for mental wellbeing. A national need has been identified for designers to engage with technology as it is increasingly adopted by the NHS within mental health care services, and for all wellbeing services, including the third sector, to engage with the vision of a 'network of things'. The project will map practices in mental wellbeing for design, and will engage service users, clinicians and practitioners in participatory design processes of smart textiles and sensory environments which enable human communication. It will benefit from close alignment with, and contribute to current EPSRC-funded research project, An Internet of Soft Things (http://www.ntu.ac.uk/apps/research/groups/6/home.aspx/project/162709/overview/an_internet_of_soft_things_).

Entry requirements

In order to be eligible to apply, you must hold, or expect to obtain by 1st October 2015, a Master’s degree, or a 1stClass/2.1 Bachelor’s degree in a relevant subject (including, where appropriate, training in the relevant research methods and, where relevant, laboratory experience).

Applications can be accepted from UK/EU and International students, but a successful non-EU candidate would be responsible for paying the difference between non-EU and UK/EU fees. (Full-time Fees for 2014/15 are £12,000 for non-EU students and £3,996 for UK/EU students). The minimum English language proficiency requirement for candidates who have not undertaken a higher degree at a UK HE institution is IELTS 6.5 (with a minimum of 6.0 in all skills)