A 3.5-year PhD studentship is available at UCL's Institute of Health Informatics, funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) UCLH Biomedical Research Centre. This opportunity focuses on applying Artificial Intelligence to enhance patient history elicitation during medical consultations, with a start date of February 1, 2027.
The successful candidate will contribute to a project that aims to integrate AI tools into patient consultations, improving the quality of interaction between clinicians and patients. The role involves collaboration with an AI start-up, experienced AI researchers, and practicing clinicians.
Quick Facts
| Opportunity | PhD Position |
|---|---|
| Institution | UCL |
| Department | Institute of Health Informatics |
| Location | London, United Kingdom |
| Region | Europe |
| Open to | UK Students, EU Students, International Students |
| Funding | Fully funded |
| Stipend / Salary | £28,212 starting stipend per annum + tuition fees (UK Home Rate) |
| Duration | 3.5 years |
| Start date | 1 February 2027 |
| Application deadline | 21 December 2026 |
About the Position
The PhD project, titled 'AI for Eliciting Patient Histories,' seeks to understand how AI can be integrated into patient consultations to improve clinician-patient interaction. This involves exploring the use of AI scribes for automating administrative tasks and conversational agents for direct patient information elicitation. The candidate will identify relevant insights from literature on clinical encounters and shared decision-making to inform conversational agent design, and develop AI-based approaches for analyzing transcribed consultations to assess consultation characteristics and explore hypotheses related to factors like age and gender.
Eligibility
- Hold, or expect to obtain, an upper second-class Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree (or equivalent work experience) in a relevant discipline.
- Possess an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.
- Applicants from outside the UK are welcome but must fund the difference between UK (Home) and overseas tuition fee rates if not eligible for Home fee status.
Benefits
- Starting stipend of £28,212 per annum
- Covers tuition fees at the UK (Home) rate
- Opportunity to undertake supervised research at a world-leading institute
- Contribute to the development of AI technologies for patient-centred care
- Become part of a vibrant research community
- Unique collaboration with an AI start-up, experienced AI researchers, and practicing clinicians
Documents Required
- Current CV, including contact details of two professional referees
- One-page A4 cover letter
How to Apply
- Prepare a current CV with contact details for two professional referees.
- Write a one-page A4 cover letter.
- Send your application materials to Professor Paul Taylor at p.taylor@ucl.ac.uk.
Source: jobs.ac.uk PhD studentships.
Details can change – always confirm eligibility and deadline on the official listing before applying.
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