Abbas Rajabifard

PhD scholarship opportunity at the University of Melbourne for a project on automatic building permit assessment using artificial intelligence . The project is led through the Digital Lab and the Centre for Spatial Data Infrastructures and Land Administration (CSDILA) , in collaboration with the Urban Digital Twin Lab at SMST-UCF and the University of Auckland . The research sits at the intersection of Computer Science , Information Technology , Civil Engineering , Urban Planning , Geography , and Architecture , with a strong focus on AI-enabled regulatory compliance and digital governance. The project aims to develop intelligent systems that can interpret building codes and application documents, then assess compliance in a consistent and scalable way. Methods mentioned include large language models (LLMs) , retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) , and multi-agent systems (MAS) . The work is intended to improve efficiency, transparency, and accuracy in building permit assessment, while contributing to digital twins and smart city infrastructure. The scholarship is a 3.5-year PhD position at the University of Melbourne in Australia. It includes tuition fee coverage and a living allowance , and there is no teaching requirement . Applicants should have a Master’s degree in Computer Science, Geomatics, or a related discipline , and experience with LLMs, RAG, and MAS is expected. Knowledge of the construction industry is an advantage. Deadline: 30 April 2026. Start date: 1 July 2026. To apply, email your CV and academic transcripts to Dr Davood Shojaei at [email protected] .