UKRI AI CDT in Practice-Oriented Artificial Intelligence (PrO-AI)

The first year builds the generalist. Practice Projects are deep dives into a research domain in which students work with domain experts to learn their knowledge, expectations and measures of success, so that moving between domains later feels familiar. Foundations of Practice-Oriented AI is student-led and taught as a flipped classroom, covering data-driven AI, knowledge-intensive AI and human-AI interaction, human-centred and participatory methods, and the legal and ethical context for using AI responsibly.

Academic mentors attend the foundation sessions to judge what each mentee still needs, which feeds a Research Orientation module that completes the foundation individually. The year ends with a Summer Project, an extended research idea of the student's own choosing that may become the PhD topic.

After the foundation year, each student carries out a three-year research project supervised by one of more than 100 academics in the network, sometimes with one or more external partners. Cohort and cross-cohort activities continue throughout: research seminars, reading groups, an AI seminar series, annual summer schools and CDT conferences.

Students also build an online portfolio of transferable skills training modelled on the Vitae Researcher Development Framework, covering responsible innovation, entrepreneurship, hosting visitors, organising events, public engagement and citizen science. Partners span aerospace, cloud computing, data analytics, insurance, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy, semiconductors and more, and many offer research visits and internships.

Studentships pay tuition fees, a tax-free stipend and a training allowance for research events. Students with home fee status starting in September 2027 receive the standard UKRI rate, 21,805 pounds in 2026-27, plus an enhancement of at least 3,385 pounds. International students can apply for a small number of studentships, up to 30 percent of UKRI places, which waive international fees and pay the same UKRI rate plus 3,385 pounds; they do not cover visa, health surcharge or relocation costs. Funding is renewed each year on good academic progress, and self-funded or sponsored applicants are also welcome.

Applicants need at least an upper second-class degree, or the international equivalent, in a relevant discipline. The programme is aimed mainly at graduates with a first in engineering or science and strong programming skills, but skills gained at work also count, and every applicant must show prior knowledge of and experience with contemporary AI techniques. The centre also looks for strong interpersonal skills, a willingness to learn from and teach others, and the drive to lead.