News releases

(10 December 2018) - Vladimirs Horjkovs has been appointed the new researcher representative on the steering group of the Association of Engineering Doctorates. Horjkovs is in his final year of EngD at a consortium of universities led by Heriot-Watt University (CDT in Applied Photonics). He is sponsored by AMETEK Taylor Hobson Ltd, an ultra-precision technology company with expertise in the field of surface, roundness and form metrology.

(30 June 2018) - STREAM alumnus Alemayehu Shitaye (Alex) Asfaw has won an International Water Association Project Innovation Award, based on work in his EngD project on real-time abstraction management at the University of Sheffield.

(2 May 2018) - The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) has highlighted the economic impact of EngD research undertaken at Loughborough University’s Centre for Innovative and Collaborative Construction Engineering (CICE). Research undertaken by Dr Christian Christodoulou is estimated to have saved over £2m per annum through improvements in ongoing highway maintenance programmes.

(30 April 2018) - A University of Bristol EngD research engineer has helped a Somerset business win its second Queen's Award in five years. On Saturday 21 April 2018, Jo Bird, a company specialising in the design and manufacture of lifesaving and fire safety equipment storage, won The Queen's Award for Enterprise: Innovation 2018.

(14 June 2017) - A Swansea University researcher, Alex Harold, has beaten over 5000 applicants to win an international award for her work using proteins derived from soil bacteria to develop a new anti-corrosion coating for steel. Organised by Tata Group, the competition highlights and rewards innovation within research and development, right across Tata’s activity. This meant Alex’s entry was up against projects from divisions such as Tata Steel Europe, Jaguar Landrover and Tata Global Beverages. Of the 5000 entries, 51 teams were shortlisted and represented at the final in Mumbai. Alex’s project was announced as the winner of the “Dare to Try” award, one of the twelve categories in the competition. Alex is a TATA Steel UK engineering doctorate student at Swansea University. Her winning project was called ‘Superhydrophobic Coatings from Bacterial Proteins’. A material that is “hydrophobic” is one that repels water – in effect, waterproof. The cells of a common soil bacteria have hydrophobic properties, and Alex used these to develop her new coating.

(5 June 2017) - Sarah Cotterill, an EngD alumnus from Newcastle University, has received a Fulbright All Disciplines Scholar Award to enable her to carry out research at Pennsylvania State University on one of the most well-regarded and impactful scholarship programmes in the world.

(19 April 2017) - The AEngD has published its response to the UK Government's industry strategy green paper, highlighting the continued need for collaboration between industry and academia through EngD programmes.

(26 January 2017) - EngD graduate Marek Kubik has been named in the second Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe listing for his ground-breaking work on energy storage.

(23 January 2017) - Dr Steven Yeomans, an EngD graduate, an ardent advocate of the EngD programme, and manager of the CICE EngD centre at Loughborough University, has been appointed vice chair of the AEngD.

(22 February 2016) - Professor William Powrie of the University of Southampton has been appointed the new chair of the steering committee of the Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD).

(14 December 2015) - Peter Cooper, an engineering graduate from the University of Bristol, was runner-up in the New Civil Engineer Graduate Awards 2015. Peter is now undertaking an EngD, sponsored by Arup, at the Systems Centre at the university.

(19 November 2015) - Dr Marek Kubik, an EngD graduate from the Technologies for Sustainable Built Environments industrial doctorate centre at the University of Reading has won the Energy Institute's Young Energy Professional of the Year Award at the EI Awards.

(7 October 2015) - Pursuing its objective to osupport EngD brand-building, including acceptance and recognition of Engineering Doctorate (EngD) degrees within host institutions and industry, the AEngD is urging EngD centre directors to attend a forthcoming UKCGE workshop on the future for science and engineering doctorates.

(11 September 2015) - Research funded by the Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD) and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), has identified four key impacts of Engineering Doctorate (EngD) research programmes.

(29 May 2015) - Northern Ireland-based AES invites applications for two post-doctorate Research Fellowship positions with Queens University Belfast and AES Energy Storage.

(23 April 2015) - The AEngD has published its submission to the QAA consultation, seeking the removal of the EngD from the 'professional doctorate' category, preferring inclusion within an 'integrated doctorate' description instead.

(23 April 2015) - In early March 2015, the Association of Engineering Doctorates submitted a response to the Royal Academy of Engineering's Dowling Review into collaboration between industry and academia. The AEngD's core views regarding the Government's Industrial Strategy are, first, that there is a numerically far greater need for EngDs in industry than the need for PhDs to support academia, and, second, that EngDs deliver value to industry more quickly – vital if the UK is to achieve its competitive aims.

(5 March 2015) - The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) has presented The University of Manchester’s EngD Centre with its long-term Accredited Scheme Award, given to organisations that have held IET accreditation for their Professional Development Schemes continuously for 10 years or more. The EngD Centre is the only university-based recipient of this award.

(25 November 2014) - The Rolls Royce Engineering Doctorate Network hold its conference, at the company's Learning & Career Development Centre in Derby, showcasing cutting-edge research conducted by Rolls-Royce-sponsored Engineering Doctorate (EngD) researchers.

(29 October 2014) - Dr Marek Kubik, now at AES in Northern Ireland (who sponsored his EngD research) is co-organising a seminar on energy storage at Stormont in Belfast on 10 November 2014.

(10 September 2014) - EngD student Anthony Velazquez received the Best Paper Award in the Logistics Research Network Conference 2014 from the Chartered Institute Logistics and Transport (CILT).

(27 August 2014) - The Royal Academy of Engineering has expressed its strong support for further funding for centres offering the Engineering Doctorate (EngD) qualification.

(10 July 2014) - Richard Craig, an EPSRC-funded EngD student in Systems programming, at the University of Bristol's Industrial Doctorate Centre won first prize in the UK Council for Graduate Education's BIG 2014 Image competition.

(9 June 2014) - EngD research work at Loughborough University, on corrosion management and repair of reinforced concrete, has won an award from the Institution of Civil Engineers. The project, Corrosion Management and Repair of Reinforced Concrete Structures, was Highly Commended in the Studies & Research category at the Institution of Civil Engineers East Midlands Merit Awards (EMMAs)

(23 May 2014) - Laura Pickard, an EngD candidate from the University of Bristol, received £1,000 in the 2014 Engineering Professors’ Council and Hammermen of Glasgow Student Awards, based on her work in response to Professor John Perkins’ keynote speech on Engineering Skills in the UK.

(12 May 2014) - A team of entrepreneurial postgraduate research students from the Manufacturing Technology Engineering Doctoral Training Centre (MTEDC), including researchers from The University of Nottingham and the University of Birmingham, has won the first Heat of the 2014 Engineering Young Entrepreneurs Scheme (YES), seeing off competition from the universities of Glasgow, Warwick, Manchester and UCL.

(2 May 2014) - The Minister for Universities and Science, the Rt Hon Mr David Willetts MP has responded positively to the Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD) when it recently shared its concern about funding for EngD centres. Mr Willetts said: "The Government recognises that the Engineering Doctorate (EngD) qualification is an important and distinctive part of the UK’s postgraduate landscape. I have written to the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) to ask them to continue to work with the Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD) to consider the EngD landscape as part of EPSRC’s wider commitments in engineering doctoral training. I would also encourage the Association to continue making its case to the universities, industry and other engineering organisations, to ensure the UK has sufficient supply of engineers with the diverse skills needed to tackle today’s global challenges."

(3 April 2014) - Northern Ireland power generator AES has announced new energy storage plans, with the company's strategy informed by an EngD thesis completed by Marek Kubik. A 100 megawatt battery facility will be built at AES's Kilroot power plant near Carrickfergus, helping the company lower energy costs for consumers, help meet renewable energy targets and improve the flexibility of the local grid.

(19 February 2014) - Southampton University engineering doctorate graduate Dr Darko Matovski has now added a Southampton MBA (passed with merit) to his qualifications. He started to study for the challenging business degree during his four year EngD, completing it after leaving University, and now works in technology for a London financial company, solving business problems through computer science.

(22 January 2014) - Reacting to recent announcements regarding future postgraduate engineering research funding, the Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD) is seeking an urgent meeting at UK ministerial level to secure funding for as many EngD centres as possible.

(10 December 2013) - University of Southampton engineering doctorate (EngD) student Peter Halswell was runner-up in the National Instruments' Graphical Systems Design Achievement Awards at the Royal Academy of Engineering in London, commended for his research with the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).

(9 December 2013) - Tom Bartley, a graduate engineer working on Parsons Brinckerhoff's Building Information Modelling (BIM) adoption strategy, while also studying for an Engineering Doctorate (EngD) at the Bristol University-based Industrial Doctorate Centre in Systems, received high praise from judges and was runner-up in this year's NCE Graduate of the Year competition.

(29 November 2013) - The two winners of the inaugural Engineering Research Writer of the Year competition, organised by the Association of Engineering Doctorates, were announced at the AEngD conference in London on Tuesday 26 November.

(26 November 2013) - The Engineering Doctorate (EngD) postgraduate qualification has made a profound difference to the career prospects of enrolled researchers, and delivered tangible benefits to industrial sponsors including new knowledge, products, processes and patents. The key findings of AEngD/EPSRC-funded research undertaken by Manchester Business School were presented at the AEngD national conference in London today.

(14 November 2013) - Applications for 2014 awards of 1851 Royal Commission Industrial Fellowships are now being invited. The Fellowships are worth up to £80,000 over three years, and the most recent cohort included three EngD candidates.

(11 November 2013) - The annual conference of the Association of Engineering Doctorates, in London on 26 November, will debate the future of the EngD qualification in light of new research into EngD impacts and recent changes in EPSRC funding,

(21 October 2013) - The AEngD judges have produced an initial shortlist of entrants for the AEngD writing competition. Subject to entrants' availability, their papers will be presented at the AEngD annual conference on Tuesday 26 November in London.

(17 October 2013) - Following the successful AEngD launch conference held in London in November 2012, we will be holding an AEngD half-day conference at the Building Centre in London WC1 on Tuesday 26 November 2013. This event will include presentations for the 2013 Engineering Research Writer of the Year competition.

(28 August 2013) - A team of four students from the University of Reading, captained by EngD researcher Peter Burgess, made a triumphant start to the new series of University Challenge, beating St John’s College, Cambridge in their first round match.

(22 August 2013) - The EngD in Systems, delivered by the IDC in Systems at the University of Bristol and the University of Bath, has been officially accredited as providing the learning requirement of Chartered Engineer (CEng) by the IET, IMechE and ICE.

(25 July 2013) - The AEngD is launching a competition for EngD research engineers and recent alumni to write short articles promoting public interest in their research. The two best articles will each win £250.

(19 July 2013) - The Technologies for Sustainable Built Environments industrial doctorate centre at University of Reading showcased the research work of its EngD research engineers at its annual conference at Henley Business School on 2 July 2013.

(5 July) - A short-term pilot study, supported by the AEngD and EPSRC, aims to understand the various forms of impact which EngD programmes have made over years. The key objective is to define and understand what is the ‘impact’ of EngDs and identify how it can best be evidenced.

(28 June 2013) - Growing People, a Bristol-based Community Interest Company, established by Systems Centre EngD graduate Matt Montgomery, won an £8,000 runner-up prize in the University of Bristol's annual business challenge competition, the New Enterprise Competition.

(14 June 2013) - Reading University TSBE EngD researcher Sam Mudie presented at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit on low carbon towns and energy storage in China. Her paper “Electricity Use in the Commercial Kitchen” received an award for best paper

(3 June 2013) - The EngD Centre in Virtual Environments, Imaging & Visualisation welcomes you for drinks at its exhibition and book launch in the UCL Quad where it will be projecting 10 years of research onto the face of the Portico and Wilkins Building.

(11 April 2013) - Southampton EngD research engineer Frederick Levy has won the British Geotechnical Association's Cooling Prize 2013 for his paper and presentation on "The uplift capacity of transmission tower foundations".

(4 April 2013) - AEngD featured in The "i" (Independent newspaper mini-edition)

(6 March 2013) - Call for Abstracts for 2nd annual EPSRC Manufacturing The Future Conference to be held 17-18 September 2013 at Cranfield University.

(25 February 2013) - The IET website featured the EngD in a review of postgraduate study options in engineering.

(15 February 2013) - A joint group of Bristol University EngD and PhD research students in engineering recently took part in an innovative training session on public engagement organised by the Systems Centre.

(16 January 2013) - Researchers at the University of Bristol’s Industrial Doctorate Centre in Systems help Sustain win a contract with Defra to develop waste management expertise

(2 November 2012) - “The EngD was ahead of its time,” the Minister for Universities and Science David Willetts MP told the AEngD launch conference.

(24 October 2012) - The Rt Hon David Willetts MP, Minister for Universities and Science at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills will be addressing the launch conference of the Association of Engineering Doctorates on Thursday 1 November 2012, at the Royal Academy of Engineering in London.

(18 October 2012) - Staff and students from the University of Bristol, including EngD research engineer Ellie Cosgrave, are joining famous faces in a new calendar which aims to excite young women about science.

(15 October 2012) - The 3TU.School for Technological Design, Stan Ackermans Institute has become the first affiliate member of the Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD) – the UK-based organisation which promotes the value of the Engineering Doctorate (EngD) to government, industry and commerce.

(2 October 2012 - London) - On Thursday 1 November 2012, the Association of Engineering Doctorates, the umbrella group for UK university research centres offering the EngD qualification, will hold a launch conference at the Royal Academy of Engineering in London. Dr Paul Golby, chairman of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) will give the keynote address.

(30 August 2012) - IDC in Systems engineering student Ellie Cosgrave starred in last night’s [Wednesday, 29 August] opening ceremony for the Paralympic Games, which took billions of viewers on a journey through the history of science.

(23 August 2012) - Complicated concepts from the world of engineering, nanoscience and chemistry have been communicated on canvas thanks to postgraduate students from the University of Bristol who contributed to the huge success of See No Evil - the UK's largest permanent street art project.

(8 August 2012) - Postgraduate students from the University of Bristol will be swapping science for spray cans as they bring their research work to life for See No Evil – the UK’s largest permanent street art project.

(4 July 2012) - The Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD) is to hold its official launch event in London at the Royal Academy of Engineering on Thursday 1 November 2012.

(1 May 2012) - It has been agreed that an accredited EngD, when combined with an accredited Bachelors degree with honours in engineering and technology, will provide the full exemplifying academic qualification for CEng (Chartered Engineer) registration.

(11 April 2012) - Applicants, research engineers, sponsoring companies and academics will all be going to Loughborough on 29 May 2012 to attend the CICE’s Annual Open Day.

(20 November 2011) - The Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD) is marking its first birthday by revamping its website and adding new interactive features that will dramatically improve how the organisation communicates with its different stakeholders.

(7 November 2011) - ULTra Global, a UK-based company, has delivered one of the world's first operational Personal Rapid Transit systems at Heathrow airport. PRT is an innovative urban light transport system and Alan Peters’ research at the Systems Centre (University of Bristol) is making major contributions by applying systems-based approaches to safety management and the application of simulation techniques to aid complex systems integration.

(13 January 2011) - The automotive and aerospace industries in the UK received a major boost today as Universities and Science Minister David Willetts announced the launch of five new centres across the UK to train engineers of the future.

(18 November 2010) - On 17th November the Steering Committee for the Association of Engineering Doctorates (AEngD), held its inaugural meeting. This national Association establishes a community of Engineering Doctorate providers (initially the 19 EPSRC-funded Industrial Doctorate Centres, IDCs) with aims to promote interdisciplinary collaboration; to communicate Excellence and Innovation; to give Leadership to the EngD brand; to uphold best practices across IDCs; and to support knowledge transfer.