The new UKRI AI Centre for Doctoral Training on Designing Responsible Natural Language Processing has launched its first call for applications for fully funded PhD studentships.

CRISP Director, Dr Lachlan Urquhart, is an investigator and part of the management team for this new £9.75m Centre hosted at the University of Edinburgh.

The CDT will have the first cohort of students starting in September 2024. Applications are encouraged from students from a wide variety of disciplines (such as arts and humanities, design, social sciences, law, computing, philosophy, linguistics, information science) ahead of the deadline of 11th March 2024. For more details on the Centre and how to apply, please see further details below.

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Natural Language Processing (NLP) is an area of AI operating at the intersections of computer science, linguistics, and interaction design that has rapidly jumped from the research lab to routine deployment in-the-world. Mature NLP systems offer powerful capabilities to create new products, services, and interactive experiences grounded in natural language, and underpin much of the current excitement around generative AI. However, they also bring significant challenges to responsible and trustworthy design, adoption and deployment.

Our students will gain the skills, knowledge and experience to study and design real-world applications of NLP that are responsible and trustworthy by design, in a highly interdisciplinary training environment hosted by the new Edinburgh Futures Institute. The training programme brings together world leading researchers at the University of Edinburgh in informatics, design, linguistics, speech science, psychology, law, philosophy, information science, and digital humanities, who will supervise students and guide them in their training and learning.

The CDT will be seeking to fund up to 12 studentships to start next academic year. We are looking for applicants with background in or related to:

• Computer science, informatics and artificial intelligence

• Design, human computer interaction and human centred computing

• Language, linguistics and speech sciences

• Law, governance and regulation

• Digital Humanities and Information Science

These are just indicative, and we are interested in applicants who come from any background or discipline with relevant skills and expertise that connect to our five Training Areas. Our ambition is to recruit a diverse cohort of students coming from different disciplines and backgrounds, who are excited by the prospects of working with each-other and on real-world applications of NLP.

The deadline for applications is midnight (GMT) 11^th March 2024

To find out more information on the programme, funding available and its benefits take a look at the CDT website here: https://www.responsiblenlp.org/.

Detail on how to apply can be found here: https://www.responsiblenlp.org/application-documents/

You can also register for our applicant webinars on the 12^th and 13 February here: https://www.responsiblenlp.org/applicant-webinars/