Fully Funded PhD in Building Performance Evaluation for Sustainable, Resilient and Healthy Buildings Leeds Beckett University in United Kingdom

Leeds Beckett University is advertising a fully funded PhD studentship in the School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing, hosted by the Leeds Sustainability Institute (LSI).

The project is titled “Testing the Tests: Advancing understanding of performance evaluation and innovations for sustainable, resilient and healthy buildings” and focuses on building performance evaluation, building physics, energy systems, decarbonisation, and the development and assessment of experimental and hybrid methods for understanding how buildings perform in practice.

Research themes include refinement of measurement techniques such as co-heating tests, development of complementary or synthetic-data validation approaches, exploration of emerging testing regimes, and investigation of assumptions and limitations in current BPE standards. The project may also consider social and behavioural dimensions of how performance results are interpreted and used.

The studentship offers access to world-leading research infrastructure, including a fully instrumented historic test building, experimental test cells, and extensive datasets and calibrated building energy models. It is interdisciplinary and suitable for candidates interested in experimental methods, data analysis, modelling, and sustainable built environment research.

Funding: fully funded for 36 months, with Home (UK) fees covered and a tax-free stipend of £21,805 (UKRI 2026/2027 rate).

Eligibility: a first or upper second-class honours degree in a relevant subject such as Building Physics, Architectural Engineering, Civil or Mechanical Engineering, or Environmental/Energy Engineering. A relevant master's degree is desirable but not essential. Strong analytical skills, interest in experimental methods and modelling, and experience with Python, MATLAB, or building simulation tools are advantageous.

Deadline: 31 August 2026. Applicants should apply via the university application portal, select the project, and include reference number 2027-February-BEEC-2601 along with the required documents.