Building Informatics and Operations Research (BIOR) Lab is directed by Dr. Maomao Hu, Assistant Professor of the Department of the Built Environment, College of Design and Engineering, National University of Singapore.

The overarching goal of our lab is to develop sustainable and scalable technologies and computational tools to make today’s building and urban energy systems low-carbon, energy-efficient, energy-flexible, climate-resilient, and equitable. We employ a multifaceted approach that encompasses data analytics and machine learning, physics-based modeling and simulation, optimization and model-based optimal controls, as well as experiments. These approaches have been deployed across a spectrum of scales, spanning from equipment- through building- and community- to city-scale.

We warmly invites applications from students with backgrounds in Building Environment and Energy Engineering (i.e., Architectural Engineering/HVAC&R Engineering), Thermal Engineering (e.g., heat and mass transfer, thermodynamics, etc.), Mechanical Engineering (e.g., fluid mechanics), Electrical Engineering, or Applied Mathematics.

Current and past openings

• We are looking for one fully funded Ph.D. student to join our team starting from Jan 2025 or later. Candidates need to submit their complete application by July. 1, 2024 for the admission in Jan 2025.

• We are currently looking for 2-3 fully-funded Ph.D. students to join our team starting from Fall 2024 or later. 12-month stipend plus a tuition fee subsidy are covered for this position for 4 years (check NUS Research Scholarship). Candidates need to submit their complete application by Jan. 1, 2024 for the admission in Fall 2024.

Requirements

a) General requirments for Ph.D. admission at NUS

• A relevant Bachelor’s or Master’s degree with honours at least Second Class Upper or its equivalent;
• Graduate Record Examination (GRE) with minimum scores of 320 (Verbal & Quantitative Total) and 3.5 (Analytical);
• TOEFL score of 85 for Internet Based Test (IBT); or IELTS (Academic) score of 6.0.

(Note: Please check here for more information on general requirements for Ph.D. admission, including the validity period for GRE/TOEFL/IELTS)

b) Specific requirements for Ph.D. admission in our BIOR lab

• Strong foundation in heat and mass transfer, thermodynamics, applied mathematics, optimization and control, data science and machine learning, as well as an interest in applying these knowledge to building environment and energy systems;
• Programming experience (e.g., Matlab, Python, C/C++, R);
• Experience in related engineering software (e.g., EnergyPlus, TRNSYS, OpenStudio, FLUENT, LabVIEW) depending on the applied research projects;
• Excellent spoken and written English language skills;
• Critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication skills, more importantly, the collaborative spirit for working with an inter-disciplinary team.

PhD Scholarships

Please explore the potential scholarship opportunities available at NUS, including

• NUS Research Scholarship
• President’s Graduate Fellowship (for outstanding students with exemplary academic records)
• NUS-SINGA Scholarship
• A*STAR Graduate Scholarship, etc.

How to Apply

Prospective Ph.D. students should send an email with the subject line as Prospective_PhD_{First Name}_{Last Name} to the email address maomaohu@nus.edu.sg for inquiries. The email should be written in English and include the following:

• CV/Resume in English with an emphasis on research experience
• Transcripts from undergraduate or graduate studies
• Contact information for 2-3 references.
• Other materials demonstrating research and work capabilities (e.g., published papers as the first author, papers in preparation, project reports, etc.)

Strong applicants will be contacted asap for a Zoom interview. All applicants must meet NUS’s graduate admission requirements.

The availability of postdoctoral positions varies depending on the funding conditions. If you are interested in our research focus, you are encouraged to contact Dr. Hu to explore potential opportunities. To apply, please include your CV, a brief summary of your research experience and interests, and the contact information for at least two references, with a subject line as Postdoc_Application_{First Name}_{Last Name}.

We welcome visiting students/scholars who are interested in collaborating with us. Ideally, students/scholars will be able to visit for a minimum of six months (preferably one year) to maximize the opportunity for collaboration and research. We can accommodate in-person/virtual visits but the funding is not guaranteed and self-funded visiting is preferred. If you are interested in exploring the possibility of working with us, please email Dr. Hu with a subject line as Visiting_Application_{First Name}_{Last Name}. Please check here for more information on the visting program as non-graduating research students at NUS.

The National University of Singapore (NUS) is Singapore’s flagship university, which offers a global approach to education, research and entrepreneurship. NUS holds an outstanding reputation in the fields of engineering, science, business, and law. Globally, NUS was #8 in the QS World University Rankings 2024, #19 in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2024, #26 in the US News 2022-2023 Best Global Universities Rankings.

For subject rankings, NUS’s engineering programs are ranked #8 in the world in the latest THE World University Rankings 2023 by Subject. NUS’s program of Built Environment is ranked #7 in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023.