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Proposing a project: Points to consider

What kind of areas can you offer projects in?
Here is a list of some possible project areas:

• behavioural science
• mental health
• nudge / influence
• decision making
• stereotypes
• diversity
• memory
• language / communications
• audience engagement
• risk
• consumer neuroscience
• behavioural change in health
• psychometrics / HR
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• client feedback
• social bias
• non-verbal behaviour
• acoustic models (can be used diversely i.e.ÌýtoÌýpredictÌýdisease,Ìýphysiological or psychological, toÌýfinding acoustic predictors from first interactionsÌýthat could predict eventual relationship decisions)

If there is a specific topic of interest that is not listedÌýcontact us anyway.Ìý We have several hundred scientists working across a huge range of areas.

Which Masters' programmes are involved with BIX?
Students from the following Masters' programmes will be offered the opportunity to work on the BIX projects:

1.ÌýMSc Cognition and Decision SciencesÌý

2.ÌýMSc Social CognitionÌý

3.ÌýMSc Psychological Sciences

4.ÌýMSc Cognitive Neuroscience

5.ÌýMSc Behaviour Change

6.ÌýMSc Human-Computer Interaction

7.ÌýMSc Language Sciences

Students submit an application of interest and the student(s) with the most relevant skill set and interests is selected.

What should you do if you have a project proposal ready to submit?ÌýÌý
Complete theÌýProject Proposal Form.ÌýIf you have any further questions about the Behavioural Insights Exchange initiative, please contact theÌýadministrative lead in the first instance, Pia HorbackiÌýp.horbacki@ucl.ac.uk. You can also contact one of our academic leads:ÌýDr Alicia Melis or Professor Nichola Raihani.

What if an academic already has a contact in industry who may be interested in this scheme?
These pre-existing relationships are a perfect way to start a BIX project. You shouldÌýcontact Pia Horbacki for guidance or you can ask your industry contact to complete the Project Proposal Form.

ResponsibilitiesÌý

Who will mainly be responsible for the day-to-day supervision of the project?
The industry supervisor will be mainly responsible for the day-to-day supervision of the project and must meet with the student at a minimum of 3 times in the academic year. This should be around November, February and May. The academic supervisor will also be providing guidance.

Who can be an industry mentor?
This person must be a current employee of the company and should be someone who will remain as the contact for the duration of the project.

Who selects students to work on the project?
Students from participating programmes can apply andÌýthe academic supervisor will be able toÌýreview and select the successful applicant(s). The academic supervisor is best placed to determine who will be the bestÌýcandidateÌýfor the project.

What can the studentÌýexpect from their academic supervisor?
Each student will have a minimum of 3 meetings with the academic supervisor throughout the year. The academic supervisor monitors the project and provides assistance in the event of difficulties. The academic supervisor will read and provide feedback on one version of the student’s project proposal and on one draft of the student’s projectÌýwrite-up,Ìýas well as acting as the first marker for the project.

Will the industry partner be expected to provide IT, software packages, and a working space?
If a projectÌýrequiresÌýa studentÌýto use specialist equipment or softwareÌýunavailable at ×î×¼µÄÁùºÏ²ÊÂÛ̳, then the partner companyÌýwould need to provide this. Otherwise, students can use all software and facilitiesÌýwithin their academic department. Industry partners do not need to provide a workspace unless needed.

What if the project results are not what I expected?
ProjectsÌýcannotÌýguarantee a specific result.ÌýMethodsÌýcannotÌýbe changed if initial dataÌýdoes notÌýprovide the preferred/desired result.

Terms of agreement

Are there any terms and conditions to consider?
Yes. We have a standard agreement that is usedÌýacross ×î×¼µÄÁùºÏ²ÊÂÛ̳ for this kind of collaboration with industry, which covers matters such as confidentiality and data protection. You will be asked to review and sign this contract which outlines the terms and conditions. This must be signed by the end of AugustÌýbefore students are assigned to a project. Students will also be asked to sign an agreement.Ìý

Are the terms and conditions of the contract flexible?
Unfortunately, we cannot amend the contract for individual projects. The terms and conditions are non-negotiable.

Who will own the intellectual property?
The IP will be owned by ourÌýindustry partner after the completion of the project.Ìý×î×¼µÄÁùºÏ²ÊÂÛ̳ will beÌýallowed the use of this in any standard academic activity, but it excludes commercialisation.Ìý Our contract also ensures that our industry partners willÌýview any submission to a journal or third party and has the right to ask forÌýappropriate protection of their information andÌýmay object to publication based on the publication including the organisation’s confidential information or patentable material that requires protection, in which case:
(a)ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýthe University shall delete any identified Confidential Information from the Publication; and
(b)ÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýin the case of patentable material, delay publication for no more than three months to enable patent applications to be filed by the organisation.

Will the student be able to submit a course assignment that contains the collected data, methods and results?
Yes, in accordance with the regulations of the University, subject bound by appropriate confidentiality obligations.

Can students be prevented from publishing their findings?
No. We cannot enter into an agreement that completely prohibits our students from publishing their findings.Ìý We cannot agree to anything where the external organisation can indefinitely delay or prevent publication. Publication normally happens a long time after critical work is complete and used for whatever purposes it is needed.ÌýAll published material can be viewed by the partner and canÌýobject to publication based on the publication including the organisation’s confidential information or patentable material that requires protection, in which case, you canÌýrequest any confidential information to be removed or in the case of patentable material, delay the publication (for no more than three months)Ìýto enable patent applications to be filed by the organisation.

Will theÌýstudent or the University be able to publish theÌýresearch or present at a conference?
Yes. However, the organisation will have an opportunity to review thisÌýand to also request any confidential information to be removed or in the case of patentable material, delay the publication (no more than 3 months) to enable patent applications to be filed by the organisation.ÌýAny publications made by theÌýUniversity shall include an appropriate acknowledgement of the organisations contribution to the project.

Does personal information ever get released?
We cannot release personal data under GDPR except when it is legally required (i.e. FOIA, certain ethic audits, etc). We acknowledge that organisations will also be subject to FOIAÌýrequests. Our research guidelines require us to collect the absolute minimum personal data necessary for the experiment.ÌýTypically, we do notÌýcollect personal information in experiments unless it is needed for the experiment (e.g. if it is an experiment about mental health,Ìýsome personal mental health data will need to be collected). So, the specifics of the personal information in any given project depend on the project.

Deliverables and what to expect

What can an industry partner expect from theÌýstudent at the end of the project?
The student(s) will deliver either oneÌýshort presentation or oneÌýshortÌýreport. The report will be approx. 2-3 pages and willÌýincludeÌýa front page with an executive summary. This is usuallyÌýsubmitted by the end of September.

If there are multiple students working on one project, how many final executive reportsÌý / presentations will be submitted?
If there are multiple students working on one project only ONE presentation / report will be submitted to our industry partner.

How many hours will theÌýstudent be expected to spend on the project?
The student will be expected to spend no more than 600 hours on the project. This should include time in meetings, reading and researching around the topic, experiment design,Ìýdata collection,Ìýproject write-up etc. We advise our students to focus on the dissertation write up around the end of July and it's therefore usual that communication from the student will slow down or stop at this point.Ìý

What is the difference between a BIX project and a traditional, lab-based research project?
The main difference is that students on a BIX project have the ability to work on a real-world problem rather than a lab based problem. With a traditional project, the student tends to work mainly with their academic supervisor. With a BIX project, the student will work mainly with the industry supervisor. The student may also be required to work onsite, within the company and to produce either a presentation or a short report (for the industry partner), whereas students doing traditional projects are not required to do this.

What tools do students have access to?

• Electroencephalography (EEG)
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
• Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS)
• Eye tracking
• Biometrics (heart rate, electrodermal activity)
• Motion tracking
• Psychophysics
• Online behavioural testing
• Causal modelling
• Advanced multivariate statistical approaches
• Computational modelling
• AI/machine learning approaches

Fees

What happens to the £1000 research fee and £1500 project adminÌýfee?
Industry partners payÌý£1000 for research fees. This fund canÌýbe used by the student assigned toÌýthe project for any research expenses i.e. paying participants for testing.ÌýThe additional £1500 project admin fee is used to help fund 2 PhD scholarships.ÌýIf you offer more than oneÌýproject in one academic year, you will only pay the project admin fee once.ÌýIf you offer a project in another academic year, this feeÌýwill apply again.

When should payment for the project costs be made?
The payment will be madeÌýin 2 instalments. Half in December/January andÌýhalf in August/September.

BIX Contacts

Who makes up the BIX team?
Dr Alicia Melis, Prof Nichola RaihaniÌýandÌýPia Horbacki (Enterprise Manager/admin lead).

What should you do if you have further questions?Ìý
If you have any further questions about the Behavioural Insights Exchange initiativeÌýplease contact the administrative lead in the first instance,Ìý Pia Horbacki.
You can also contact one of theÌýacademics leads,ÌýDr Alicia MelisÌýorÌýProfessor Nichola Raihani.

Contact usÌý