Dear Colleagues,

We are searching for three PhD students to work with us on a large
grant-funded project starting early next year. Scholarships are
available for Australian and international students. Could you please
circulate this information to any you think may be interested in
applying?

I can send the information as a pdf if required, please just ask.

Thanks

Dr Thea Blackler



ARC FUNDED PhD STIPEND WITH QUT SCHOOL OF DESIGN

IF49 DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (PhD) Degree

$25,000 per annum, tax free
(up to 3 years duration starting early 2008)

Further supplement through casual academic teaching or research 
appointments may be available through negotiation.

Background

Older people have difficulties using complex electronic devices, and our
research has shown that they use them less intuitively than younger
people. Older people are often not experiencing the benefits of new
developments and technologies, and so can feel isolated from modern
workplaces and society generally. This project aims to investigate, and
build a clear picture of, the relationship between age and intuitive
interaction with complex devices, particularly healthcare devices. This
picture will inform the development of a tool to guide designers in
making complex devices more intuitive for older people to use. 


PhD student stipends - 3 available

The PhD students will work in a research team including Dr Thea
Blackler, Prof Vesna Popovic and Dr Doug Mahar. The students will
undertake work within a multidisciplinary team of researchers in
laboratories equipped with state of the art instrumentation for these
types of experimental studies. 

Student 1 will have a design background and focus on methods for
designers to use when designing for older people.

Student 2 will have a design/human factors background and will focus on
experimenting with various ways in which interfaces could be made more
intuitive for older people.

Student 3 will have a psychology background and will focus on
understanding why older people have more problems with using complex
devices.

The multidisciplinary nature of the project will provide the students
with a significant intellectual challenge, to assimilate the required
background research and to integrate this knowledge to achieve the aims
of the
project. The students will also be required to communicate research
ideas and results.

Student 1 will have an Honours 1 or high 2A undergraduate degree (or
equivalent) in interaction, interface or industrial design (or
equivalent experience).

Student 2 will have an Honours 1 or high 2A undergraduate degree (or
equivalent) in interaction, interface or industrial design and/or human
factors (or equivalent experience).

Student 3 will have an Honours 1 or high 2A undergraduate degree (or
equivalent) in psychology (or equivalent experience).

The appointees can be Australian or international students.

For further information and to express your interest in this
scholarship, please contact:
Dr Thea Blackler
School of Design
Phone: +61 (0)7 3138 7030
Email: [log in to unmask]



Dr Thea Blackler
 
Lecturer
School of Design
Faculty of Built Environment and Engineering
Queensland University of Technology
Brisbane
Australia
 
+61 7 3138 7030
0410 736494