PhD Studentship: AI-Powered Conversational Interview System for University Admissions: Enhancing Fairness, Efficiency, and Candidate Evaluation

Applications are invited for a PhD studentship in the Department of Computer Science at City, University of London. The successful candidate will work on developing a novel AI-powered conversational interview system for university admissions. This project aims to improve the fairness, efficiency, and objectivity of student selection by reducing bias and subjectivity inherent in traditional interviews. The system will leverage cutting-edge techniques in Natural Language Processing (NLP), Machine Learning (ML), and Multimodal Analysis to conduct adaptive interviews, assess candidate responses, and generate automated rankings. The research includes real-world validation using university admissions data and will contribute to the broader fields of AI in education and ethical decision-making.

This PhD research will contribute to the field by:

• Developing a conversational AI interviewer capable of conducting real-time adaptive interviews.
• Building an automated candidate ranking model based on interview performance and university-specific criteria.
• Integrating multimodal analysis (voice tone, facial expressions, sentiment analysis) for holistic assessment.
• Ensuring fairness and bias mitigation in AI-driven evaluations.
• Validating the system with real-world university admissions data.

Eligibility and requirements 

The candidate should have a first or upper second-class BEng and MEng (or equivalent, or higher) degree in Computer Science or a related course. They should demonstrate aptitude for original research.

Scholarship: The studentship is for 3 years and will provide an annual tax-free stipend of £21,237 and tuition fees. Start date October 2025.

Additional income: Each student may also have the opportunity to earn around £2,200/year on an average (max. is around £4,300/year) through a teaching assistantship.

The ideal candidate will have a strong understanding of NLP, machine learning, and AI ethics, with proven skills in Python and frameworks like TensorFlow or PyTorch. Preference may be given to applicants with published research or exceptional academic performance. Experience in computer vision or audio processing is desirable and will be considered an advantage.

A doctoral candidate is expected to meet the following pre-requisites for their PhD: 

• Demonstrate a sound knowledge of their research area;
• Achieve and demonstrate significant depth in at least a few chosen sub-areas relevant to their primary research area;
• Demonstrate the ability to conduct independent research, including a critical assessment of their own and others’ research;

If you are interested in applying, I will be happy to address any initial informal enquiries:

sujit.biswas@citystgeorges.ac.uk

How to apply

Submit your application by clicking the 'Apply' button, above.

Please submit a research proposal with your application.

Research proposal should be a maximum of 3 sides A4.

See guidance on writing your research proposal

For queries regarding the application process, please contact:

pgr.sst.enquire@citystgeorges.ac.uk

City, University of London is committed to promoting equality, diversity and inclusion in all its activities, processes, and culture for our whole community, including staff, students and visitors.

We welcome applications regardless of age, caring responsibilities, disability, gender identity, gender reassignment, marital status, nationality, pregnancy, race and ethnic origin, religion and belief, sex, sexual orientation and socio-economic background. City operates a guaranteed interview scheme for disabled applicants.

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