Building impact: Embedding design PhD researchers in industry contexts

PhD candidates are increasingly seeking to address real-world, demand-driven research challenges. Traditional models of PhD scholarship have been criticised as being too theoretical, narrow, and ill-equipped for graduates to develop the skills necessary for employment in industry-based research contexts. This paper investigates the value of industry-embedded PhD research in the design field. The embedded PhD model discussed in this paper seeks to create a balance between research training and industry practice to better train candidates for emerging complex research contexts. We detail features, methods, challenges and opportunities of conducting embedded PhD research with industry, highlighting seven key areas of learning. These include: forging a common mission; navigating the entanglement of industry and academia; attracting the right candidate; reducing uncertainty; evolving support ecosystems; recognising challenges to the agency of the researcher; and providing adequate research training for all parties. These findings and insights seek to inform the negotiation of academic and industry collaborations in the future, with the purview of improving the quality of research training in design research, experiences of PhD candidates and their supervisors, and the overall quality and impact of embedded research training.