Scottish Graduate School of Social Science

Sgoil Cheumnaichean Saidheans Sòisealta na h-Alba
Read all about what SGSSS has been up to in our 2024/25 Year in Review!
Click here

Scottish Graduate School of Social Science

Sgoil Cheumnaichean Saidheans Sòisealta na h-Alba

SGSSS Academic Placements

The Urban Big Data Centre (UBDC) University of Glasgow

Placement host: The Urban Big Data Centre (UBDC) University of Glasgow
Full time/part time: 3 months full-time/6 months part-time
In person/remote/hybrid: Hybrid
Start date: January 2026

Project Title

UK Transport Accessibility Online Tool

Project Details

The Urban Big Data Centre (UBDC) promotes the use of big and novel data for innovative research, with the aim of improving social, economic and environmental well-being in our cities.

The PhD student will be based in the UBDC, part of the newly-established Urban Analytics Subject Group (UASG) within the Division of Urban Studies & Social Policy, University of Glasgow. Together, UBDC and UASG offer extensive experience with large-scale and non-traditional datasets, which, combined with the robust IT infrastructure and advanced tools available, support the technical requirements of the project.

Research context:

Geographic accessibility reflects the efficacy of transport systems in relation with the location of essential services, e.g. the ease of reaching employment, hospitals, schools, parks, or supermarkets by public transport.

In 2022 and 2023, the UBDC developed a collection of accessibility indicators for each neighbourhood in Great Britain (Verduzco Torres & McArthur, 2022). This work has supported key research outputs, e.g. assessing urban transport poverty in UK cities, examining the correlation between accessibility and COVID-19 vaccination uptake rates (Chen et al., 2023), and validating the indicators (Verduzco Torres & McArthur, 2024).

Main output:

This project will develop a user-friendly web interface (i.e. a web dashboard) which streamlines the use of accessibility measures into local city and transport planning and policy design.

This resources seeks to maximise the value of modelled travel times and accessibility, originally developed for academic research at the UBDC. This tool will be tailored for city and transport planners, enabling more evidence-based and efficient decision-making by minimising technical and computational challenges. Specfically, the tool will enable any city and transport planner to interactively visualise, explore, and download the precomputed data.

The tool is expected to amplify the research impact. This web tool will be publicly available online and will benefit both rural and urban areas. This means that the most under-sourced city and transport planning bodies will see important benefits.

Additionally, it is expected to support interdisciplinary research by easing the visualisation for researchers less familiar with quantitative approaches.

Work Plan

To be discussed with candidates.

This opportunity offers the following benefits for the student: ​

A major benefit of this placement is the opportunity to collaborate closely with UBDC’s specialist data science team and data researchers, gaining hands-on experience and guidance from professionals working at the forefront of urban analytics. This offers the student valuable insight into the practical implementation of data-based projects and exposure to industry-relevant workflows, tools, and standards.

The student will also contribute to a live, externally facing project with demonstrable impact—building on existing relationships with non-academic partners including local authorities and transport agencies.

Throughout the placement, the student will develop a range of highly transferable and industry-relevant skills, including:

  • Data management – Organising, standardising, and enriching complex datasets, essential in fields such as consultancy, public policy, and technology.
  • Problem-solving – Translating academic research into actionable solutions, a skill sought across sectors.
  • Geospatial visualisation – Designing intuitive tools to communicate data, in high demand in planning, mobility services, and digital industries.
  • Stakeholder collaboration – Working with non-academic users, enhancing communication and co-design capabilities.
  • Technical development – Gaining practical experience in web platform development using interactive data tools.

This placement offers a unique opportunity for the student to bridge academic research and practical application, expand their professional network, and build a profile well-suited to roles in data science, urban analytics, digital consultancy, and public sector innovation.

Skills Required

Essential: 
  • Background with strong quantitative component, e.g. geography, computer science, or similar
  • Proficiency in R or Python
  • Experience working with geospatial data, including processing, visualisation, and spatial analysis
Desirable: 
  • Experience building interactive maps or interactive dashboards
  • Familiarity with version control and collaboration using Git-based workflows
  • Understanding of API integration and database connectivity

Eligibility

Academic placements are open to SGSSS funded students whose ESRC funding began after October 2024 only.

Contact for Queries

Dr J Rafael Verduzco Torres, JoseRafael.Verduzco-Torres@glasgow.ac.uk

How to Apply

Please submit an application via SGSSS Apply.

The deadline to apply is 17 November 2025 at 4pm. Shortlisted applicants may be invited to interview.

For further information, please consult the Research in Practice Guidance for Students. If this does not answer your questions, please contact SGSSS: team@sgsss.ac.uk.

 

Submit application via SGSSS Apply
Download Placement Information Document
Download the Research in Practice Guidance for Students

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Privacy Policy

© 2024 All rights reserved​

Scottish Graduate School of Social Science, proudly funded by