Key information
- Funding
- Self-funded
- School
- Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society
- Location
- Edinburgh
- Delivery type
- Full-time, Part-time
- Start date
- September
An 'Ecohouse' is harmoniously connected to its environment and to the well-being of its occupants. It can harvest renewable resources including water and energy. It provides all the fundamental functions of a good house, namely, to offer a safe environment with multiple comforts for those within it. A good house must provide a healthy, quiet, peaceful, thermally comfortable and safe environment, and it must be affordable.
Heriot-Watt's Ecohouse team are developing approaches to house design that will create homes with these qualities: homes that run well with low energy bills, produce minimal life cycle and carbon emissions and are pleasing places to inhabit.
The development of the Ecohouse approach calls upon a wide range of research expertise, skills and resources. The Ecohouse team uses some of the best research laboratories in the UK, namely Heriot-Watt's leading acoustic, water and materials labs, wind tunnels, and its artificial sky, heliodon and climate chambers. Our specialists work in interdisciplinary groups that build on their links with government and industry to produce innovative solutions to inform a new generation of housing approaches.
Our aim is to help to produce buildings that tread lightly on the earth. Our Ecohouse approach offers the genuine promise of sustainable, durable and climate-safe buildings that can future-proof us against twenty first century challenges.
Project supervisor
Staff contributing to this research area include:
- Professor Sue Roaf
- Dr Fan Wang
- Kate Beckmann
- Kevin Bowe
Fan Wang
Assistant Professor
Entry requirements
Candidate criteria
We welcome applications from suitably qualified candidates. Please visit our How to apply page.
Funding information
| Status | Full Time | Part Time |
|---|---|---|
| Scotland | £5,151 | £2,575.50 |
| England / Wales / N Ireland | £5,151 | £2,575.50 |
| International | £20,456 | £10,228 |
- Status: Your residency status is usually defined as the country where you have been ordinarily resident for the three years before the start of your course.
- International: 'International' includes applicants from European Union countries who do not hold Pre-Settled or Settled status in UK. (This does not include students from the Republic of Ireland - see above).
We offer a number of competitive funded scholarships for research degrees. Full or partial support may be available for well-qualified candidates from UK research councils, research pools, charities or industry.
View our full range of scholarships.
Why Heriot-Watt
We have been producing career-ready graduates since 1821. With our roots as the world’s first Mechanics Institute, Heriot-Watt is a pioneering university with a global reach.
At Heriot-Watt, learning goes beyond the lecture theatre. We tackle real world challenges through extraordinary research – from climate change to protecting our oceans, to advancing life-saving medical breakthroughs and shaping the next generation of AI. We are also committed to developing forward-thinking design and sustainable business practices that impact industries worldwide. On our campuses you’ll find some of the world’s most advanced facilities, while our strong industry links set you up for career success. This is why almost 90% of our graduates are in employment or further education (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2024).
