STOR-i Programme

The STOR-i training programme spans four years, consisting of a foundation year resulting in the award of a Masters of Research (MRes), followed by a three year period of study leading to a PhD.

MRes Programme (Year One)

During your first year you will undertake a Masters of Research in which collaborative and co-operative work will play an important part. The first year includes taught courses, projects and group activities providing you with a grounding in Statistics and Operational Research, an overview of thriving research areas, and an opportunity to develop a formal research proposal for your PhD.

PhD Programme (Years Two to Four)

In years 2-4 you will complete a PhD project, encountering real-life commercial challenges, developing leading-edge STOR research and making a real impact on major industrial and scientific applications. During this time you will also participate in a range of training activities to help develop other essential transferable skills.

Personalised Development Pathway

Your Personalised Development Pathway takes you through your PhD study and consolidates all your hard work on skills and personal development. There are defined courses you can choose from to build your expertise and knowledge on aspects including key inter-personal and leadership skills and effective communication. Get involved with industry partner-led development with skills for the real world. Towards the end of your PhD, you can benefit from training on presentation and interview skills. All aspects are set to build you personally with the skills from writing your PhD to career planning. Get what you need for your future career.

Technology
Technology

Outreach and Engagement

Undertaking your PhD in STOR-i gives you a wealth of experiences you may not otherwise access. All students undertake an element of outreach and engagement. There are three varied options to appeal to different students. 

  • Charity-based internships – students will work with a specific charity for a short period of time on an internship. During this time they will support the work of the charity using their developed STOR skills.
  • Science Festivals - students will run events and give presentations at leading UK science festivals. This will include events such as the Royal Society Summer Festival and the Cheltenham Science Festival. 
  • Schools’ Outreach – student will deliver motivational workshops based on their research, to Maths students in year 12 at a variety of schools and colleges.

Our student centred approach allows everyone to give back to the local and national community. 

Students keen to do more will have the optional opportunity to develop research management skills. They will produce written proposals to a £150k research fund with small grants awarded for research adventure and international collaboration. If successful, they will plan and undertake the supervision of a STOR-i intern over the summer and take a lead role in research cluster events.

Masterclasses

For the continuing development of STOR-i students’ research knowledge we hold five STOR-i masterclasses per year. Typically these masterclasses are given by visiting international experts in areas of STOR not covered by our in-house training. The STOR-i students are responsible for nominating speakers and organising the masterclasses.

Masterclasses for 2019/20 will be announced shortly.

Past masterclasses

  • February 21-22, 2019 Dr Claudia D'Ambrosio, LIX Ecole Polytechnique, France. Title: Fundementals of Theory and Practice of Mixed Integer Non Linear Programming
  • March 14-15, 2019 Professor Jim Smith, University of Warwick. Title: Frontiers of Bayesian Decision Analysis: Its Challenges and Potential
  • March 21-22, 2019 Professor Irène Gijbels, KU Leuven, Belgium. Title: TBC
  • March 25-29, 2019 Professor Barry Nelson, Northwestern University, Evanston, US. Area: Simulation
  • 1st-2nd March 2018, Professor Jim Smith
  • 6th-7th March 2018, Dr Jonathan Lilly
  • 13th-14th March 2018, Professor Anna Nagurney
  • 19th-23rd March 2018, Professor Barry Nelson
  • 6th-7th February 2017, Professor Neil Lawrence
  • 15th-16th February 2017, Professor Stein Wallace
  • 27th-28th February 2017, Professor Gerda Claeskens
  • 20th-24th March 2017, Professor Barry Nelson
  • 29th February - 1st March 2016, Professor Ruth King
  • 7th-8th March 2016, Professor Peter Grünwald
  • 18th-21st March 2016, Professor Pitu Mirchandani
  • 18th-22nd January 2016, Professor Barry Nelson
  • 23rd-24th March 2015, Professor David Leslie
  • 16th-20th March 2015, Professor Barry Nelson
  • 10th-12th March 2015, Professor Eric Kolaczyk
  • 4th-6th March 2015, Professor Chris Glasbey
  • 12th-13th May 2014, Dr Simon Rogers
  • 26th-27th March 2014,Professor Jared Tanner
  • 13th-14th January 2014, Professor Peter Frazier
  • 5th-6th June 2013, Professor Anthony Davison
  • 18th-19th April 2013, Professor Richard Weber
  • 26-27th February 2013, Professor Havard Rue
  • 13th December 2012, Professor Barry L Nelson
  • 30th March 2012, Professor David Ryan
  • 6th March 2012, Professor Suvrajeet Sen
  • 17th January 2012, Professor Mark Girolami
STOR-i Computing Group (STORC)

STOR-i Computing Group (STORC)

STORC is a computing group organised by STOR-i students, for STOR-i students. It is a chance for students to share knowledge on common programs and techniques that can be useful when tackling academic research. The sessions also allow for the introduction of new software and engagement, in a friendly and understanding environment.

The idea for the group came from a specific problem faced by a large research group. By giving each student a basic grounding in common computing techniques the group aims to support each other. An online forum available to STOR-i students also allows for collaboration and help across all years and subject areas. This avoids unnecessary duplication for all year groups. 

The group meets twice a term with sessions led by students and staff on a variety of computing issues. For more information, please contact Harry Spearing

Student Experience

At STOR-i we are committed to providing a challenging and rewarding student experience. The primary source of support and direction for each student is their supervisory team. Cross-disciplinary work is intrinsic to the operation of STOR-i and all students will be supervised by a team representing at least two of STOR-i’s four constituencies (statistics, OR and industry, international partners).

Projects are presented to the students in written form and via a series of talks at a Project Market. The students then have the opportunity to engage in in-depth discussions with the supervisors towards the end of the second term, taking advice from current PhD students as well. Over Easter students are given time to investigate areas of interest and contemplate which projects are best suited to them. The final project allocation will be made by the Executive Committee after meeting individually with the students to discuss their preferences and motivation.

People talking

At STOR-i we are dedicated to providing a diverse programme. With that in mind, in addition to the training in all four years we offer: 

  • Team building and an annual away day for the group to get to know each other well, through structured activities. 
  • Mentoring from students in the year above and social interaction, with a weekly coffee meeting for all STOR-i staff and students. 
  • Monitor progress in twice-yearly meetings with the STOR-i director 
  • The annual STOR-i Industrial Workshop to build information and skills as well as dissemination on an annual basis.
  • Networking with industry through substantial opportunities made available with our industry partners
  • Research career development - through extensive funding made available to students via the STOR-i Research Fund and STOR-i Impact Fellowships.

The STOR-i forum, STORC, STOR-i research kitchens, STOR-i support group (self-electing help network) and STOR-i cluster networks are all further ways to get involved.

STOR-i students assume a high degree of ownership of their research. They have wide-ranging opportunities to practice and develop the skills they learn such as:

  • Applying for and managing grants via competitive proposal to the STOR-i Research Fund. Successful applicants manage the award and report outcomes.
  • Mentoring - Students develop mentoring experience through being a mentor to an individual STOR-i student 
  • Dissemination - Development and regular updating of a personal web-page with material accessible to both specialists and non-specialists. 
  • Influencing - Students have responsibility and resources for influencing many aspects of their training programme.
  • Management - Students are involved in nominating, inviting and organising visiting researchers for STOR-i Masterclasses and the organisation of the annual STOR-i Conference. 
  • Impact Fellowships - On PhD completion, STOR-i students will be eligible to apply for a 1 year post-doctoral Impact Fellowship in STOR-i.