At UCL, ERBE students apply to and are recruited for specific projects, most of which have an industry partnership. Students enter the programme with an existing supervisory and industry team in place, and they begin by attending the residential week at Loughborough University to receive an introduction to energy resilience and the built environment.
UCL ERBE students undertake PhD research for 4 years. Alongside this, they receive training in the form of taught, assessed modules and supplementary, non-assessed training sessions. The training is most intense in the first year and then much lighter thereafter to allow more time for research in years 2-4.
The taught, assessed modules are researcher skills, energy economics, building physics, socio-technical perspectives, energy data analysis and building modelling. Towards the end of the first year students undertake a pilot project to test their proposed PhD methods.
In years 2 to 4, ERBE students work on their PhD projects with regular support from their supervisors, the ERBE management team and their ERBE cohort. They also attend internal and external conferences and seminars, and are encouraged to undertake internships in the energy and buildings field. Alongside their research students may gain further academic experience through opportunities such as postgraduate teaching assistant roles. Students submit their PhD thesis at or before the end of year 4.