Current funded vacancies are below and will remain open until funded. However, if you are an exceptional candidate, then there are generally opportunities for funding for UK or EU students at any time. Overseas funding is more problematic but again, if you are an exceptional candidate I can work with you to try and secure funding. If you think you meet this criteria then please feel free to drop me an email. My research interests are in computer vision, machine learning and robotics, please see publications to get an overview of the areas I work in. As I get quite a few emails, I apologize if you do not get an immediate response. Please note that we DO NOT operate an internship programme as part of your undergraduate degree, so if you are emailing me in this regard, I'm afraid you will not get a reply. I receive too many requests.

Current funded vacancies:

2 fully funded PhD positions

Project start: from April 2016

Eligibility: A first Class or Upper Second Honours degree (or equivalent overseas qualification) in an appropriate discipline (e.g., engineering, computer science, signal processing, applied mathematics, physics). You should be able to demonstrate excellent mathematical, analytic, programming skills. Previous experience in specific areas related to the projects would be advantageous.

Supervisor: Prof Richard Bowden

Funding Source: Dept of Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey and/or Swiss National Science Foundation

Details: Applications are invited for a fully funded PhD studentship within the Centre for Vision Speech and Signal Processing at the University of Surrey. The funding is for a three year research programme leading to the degree of PhD.

There are two projects available:

1) Tools to support Sign language recognition. This project will develop tracking and recognition tools for the human body including hand motion, shape and facial expression recognition. It will research and develop approaches for both real time video recognition as well as more recent sensors such as the Microsoft Kinect. A strong mathematical background and previous experience of developing in C/C++, python or matlab are essential. Previous use of the Opencv libraries, computer vision and/or machine learning would be advantageous.

2) Tools to support Sign language generation. This project will develop graphical tools to support the dynamic animation of avatars in the context of sign language. It will research and develop approaches to support animation in industry standard games engines such as the Unreal Engine or Unity with possible integration of ROS. A strong mathematical background and previous experience of developing in C/C++ and python are essential as is familiarity with computer Graphics. Previous use of the Unreal Engine, Unity and or ROS would be advantageous.

Further details: The studentships are for three years starting from either April 2016, July 2016 or Oct 2016. It covers University tuition fees (at EU/UK level) and provides an annual tax free stipend (rate for 2015-2016 is £14,057 p.a. tax-free). For exceptional overseas candidates there is the opportunity to obtain additional funding to cover the increased fees.

Please send a cover letter explaining your interest in and qualifications for the project, a CV, and the names and contact details of two references. Applications and informal enquiries should be sent via e-mail to Prof Richard Bowden (r.bowden@surrey.ac.uk).

Non-native speakers of English will normally be required to have IELTS 6.5 or above (or equivalent).

Shortlisted applicants will be contacted directly to arrange a suitable time for an interview. The position will remain open until a suitable candidate is found so there is no fixed closing date for applications.