PhD Opening (Extreme Performance) RMIT University, School Media & Communications

RMIT University, School of Media & Communications (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (rmit.edu.au), in Melbourne, Australia is seeking an exceptional PhD candidate to research Extreme Performance.

The School of Media & Communications hopes to attract a candidate who values an interdisciplinary design studio and extreme performance environment. You will be highly motivated, willing to learn a variety of skills and own initiative, extremely creative as well as technical, and also have highly developed analytical and communicative skills. Prior research experience (publications, prototypes, films, exhibitions etc.) is desirable and technical abilities in hardware prototyping, motion capture, biometrics, communications and film media (VMX) programming skills.
We are interested in an expression of interest in the following PhD topic:
Extreme Performance (PhD by Research 2015-17): Research, design and development of software to support the prototype development of wearable performance media hardware and remote communications systems for human performance in extreme environments: spanning activities in deep sea, alpine mountaineering and in microgravity environments. Demonstrated interest and experience with human exploration, performing arts technologies, interactive technology, and hardware prototyping and building communications platforms is desirable. A passion for sea, summit or space fieldwork will also be highly regarded. The desired candidate will demonstrate that they thrive in a convergent research culture where arts, science and technology are interrelated, and mutually informing modes of exploration, knowledge and discovery. Dr. Sarah Jane Pell (www.sarahjanepell.com) will mentor the candidate in all areas of the project, including research methods, publications and dissemination of results including interactive exhibitions. The RMIT University School of Media and Communications (SMC) incorporates the fields of art, communication, design, education, humanities, property and social sciences. SMC encourages collaborations across disciplinary boundaries, and promotes opportunities for exchange, guidance and mentoring with high caliber researchers. This project strategically and creatively contributes to the activities, values and pedagogical impact of RMIT’s goals for ‘Transforming the Future’.
Do you have exceptional creativity, research excellence, passion and drive?
Entry requirements: You will need a minimum of a 3year Bachelor Degree and Master’s Degree in an appropriate field plus evidence of practical experience and/or a portfolio of projects and/or expeditions. Example backgrounds may include interaction design, human-computer interaction, industrial design, communications, human movement, sports science, experimental arts, media and engineering but we are curious to know what you can contribute. All nationalities are encouraged to apply.
All applicants will need to apply for, and be accepted, to the PhD program in Media and Communication at RMIT University, see www.rmit.edu.au/mediacommunication/researchdegrees and
March 2015. The position will be supervised by Dr. Florian ‘Floyd’ Mueller and Dr. Sarah Jane Pell and will conclude with a thesis and exhibition. Scholarships are available according to the Australian Postgraduate Award rate of approx. AUD 25,000 per year. We are also offering space to research and design in an open plan lab environment in the award-winning Design Hub, Australia’s newest interdisciplinary design research centre and the RMIT project-built VMX Room Studios.
Expression of interest: 15 Oct 2014.
First, applicants will apply with an expression of interest by the date above to the email below. After the internal interview with Dr. Sarah Jane Pell, the candidate will need to apply to the general RMIT University admissions office by 31 Oct 2014. This two-step process ensures that we are able to endorse your application. Dr. Pell is currently a member of the RMIT University Exertion Games Lab. Their research is focused on the merging of the active human body, technology and play by drawing from research streams such as interaction design, human-computer interaction and human performance. The interdisciplinary culture within the School of Media & Communications ensures that we do not just philosophise about the future, but we actively invent it, and bring it to the world.
Please submit your application (CV, brief research proposal outline (Max 3 pages), transcript of latest academic results and portfolio URL) by email to SarahJane.Pell (at rmit.edu.au).
Looking forward to reading your applications!
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