Program Overview

Doctoral Study in Engineering Science

Why Study with Us?

The University of Auckland's Engineering Science department is the highest-ranked engineering faculty in New Zealand and 107th in the world, according to the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025. Students have the opportunity to be supervised by experts in the field, including those affiliated with the Geothermal Institute, the Auckland Bioengineering Institute, and other research centers. Additionally, students can benefit from access to Postgraduate Research Student Support (PReSS) funding for research expenses.

Research Opportunities

Pursuing a PhD in Engineering Science at the University of Auckland provides access to a high-caliber research community, with opportunities to publish papers, attend international conferences, and develop networks in academia and industry. The department's research areas include:

• Operations Research
• Computational Engineering and Computational Mechanics
• Signal Processing
• Inverse modelling, Data Science, and Bayesian Statistical analysis of engineering systems
• Neural Engineering
• Biomedical Engineering

Our People

The Engineering Science department has a diverse range of staff and researchers working across different research areas, including:

• The Operations Research Group: Utilizes advanced mathematical theory and computational methods to help make better decisions.
  • Professor Andy Philpott
  • Professor Cameron Walker
  • Associate Professor Andrew Mason
  • Associate Professor Michael OSullivan
  • Associate Professor Andrea Raith
  • Dr. Thomas Adams
• The Computational Engineering Research Group: Applies mathematical and computational models to physical engineering problems.
  • Professor Mark Battley
  • Professor Justin Fernandez
  • Professor Piaras Kelly
  • Dr. Maedeh Amirpour
• The Inverse Problems, Uncertainty Quantification and Data-centric Engineering Group: Uses a combination of mathematical, statistical, and computational tools to analyze and understand complex engineering systems.
  • Dr. Oliver Maclaren
  • Dr. Ru Nicholson
• The Signals Processing Research Group: Works in the area of signal analysis, nonlinear dynamical systems, artificial neural networks, wavelets, and independent component analysis.
  • Associate Professor Andreas Kempa-Liehr
• The Geothermal Research Group: Develops computational and analytical methods to deepen our understanding of geothermal systems.
  • Associate Professor Sadiq Zarrouk
  • Associate Professor John OSullivan
• The Neural Engineering Group: Researches Neural Chip Discovery Platforms, Advanced Nonlinear Signal and Image Processing, Artificial Neural Networks, and Machine Learning.
  • Professor Charles Unsworth
• The Bioengineering Research Group: Carries out research in a range of bioengineering applications, often in collaboration with the Auckland Bioengineering Institute.
  • Professor Iain Anderson
  • Professor Thor Besier
  • Professor Andrew Taberner
  • Professor Justin Fernandez
  • Professor Martyn Nash
  • Professor Poul Nielsen
  • Professor Peng Du
  • Associate Professor Vinod Suresh
  • Dr. Bryan Ruddy

Past Research Topics

Some examples of past research topics in the Engineering Science department include:

• Inverse modelling, data analysis, and Bayesian statistics for the prediction of Antarctic ice-sheet melting
• Measure twice, cut once: A two-staged approach to optimizing production planning in customized sawmilling
• Image recognition and classification of biomatter in bags arriving at the airport
• Optimizing geothermal well planning under reservoir uncertainty with stochastic programming
• Stochastic "network contagion" modelling of disease spread
• Novel decomposition techniques for multi-objective optimization problems
• Optimising emissions and fuel consumption in traffic assignment models
• Improved service provision and optimal staffing within emergency service operations
• Reactive transport modelling of flow through porous and fractured media in geothermal systems
• Inversion of geothermal reservoir models using the adjoint method and randomized low-rank matrix approximation algorithms
• Mitigation of coastal wave impacts through innovative engineering and community engagement

Scholarships and Awards

There are several scholarships available for PhD students in Engineering Science, including the University of Auckland Doctoral Scholarships.

Help and Advice

For general student enquiries, students can contact a Student Hub. For more information about studying Engineering Science, students can contact a Postgraduate Adviser.

Doctoral Programmes

The University of Auckland offers a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Engineering Science.

Related Subjects

Related subjects to Engineering Science include:

• Operations Research
• Biomedical Engineering