Miss Ellie Marsh,

11A Bathwick Street,

Bath,

England, BA2 7AY.

Email: em398@bath.ac.uk

ETH Zurich

Mobile: 07766307272

Mr. Matthias Steiger,

Human Resources,
CH-8092 Zrich

January 24th, 2016

Dear Mr Steiger,

I am a final year MEng Civil and Architectural Engineering student at the University
of Bath and I am applying for the doctoral program in Architecture and Technology. Through my
dissertation, design projects and work experience I have become interested in pursuing a PhD
research degree. This is, in part, because in the future I would like the opportunity to join an
interdisciplinary architecture and engineering faculty as a member staff, where I would be able to
continue to develop knowledge within my specialism, and collaborate with other researchers on
exciting and innovative projects in structural and architectural engineering.
During my time at Bath, I have seen what a thriving place it is for UK-leading and internationallyrecognised engineering research. Having worked with academics at the university and spoken with
research students and staff, I know that a research degree creates an environment where I would be
challenged and where I can develop the necessary skills to be an independent researcher with a view
to having a specialism within the subject in which I have such great passion and interest.

ETH Zurich has a world-leading reputation for its research in architecture and engineering, and sets
an example for interdisciplinary departments and research clusters. Studying in a university which
combines architecture and civil engineering in one department, I have enjoyed collaborating and
working closely with architects on group design projects. This has helped me garner experience in
the many challenges of large-scale design. I would love the opportunity to continue this level of joint
work in an international research environment. The form-finding and optimisation work completed
by the BLOCK research group is fascinating to me, and the AA-ETH pavilion that have emerged from
the DArch Structural design have been of great interest. If my application were successful, I would
love the opportunity to work with Prof. Dr. Philippe Block and Prof. Dr. Joseph Schwartz.
During my degree, and particularly the dissertation and advanced dissertation modules, I have begun
to develop areas of interest surrounding biomimetics, form-finding, optimisation, geometry and
computational design. My dissertation was focused around numerical and analytical form-finding
methods. As such, I have started to build experience in coding languages, such as C, C# and Java, and
a number of software packages, for example Grasshopper and Processing, which could have

applications in many projects in a research setting. In addition to this, as part of my advanced

research dissertation I am currently looking at perforated grid shells, differential geometry and the
theory of shell structures. This research module is exciting, and will help me gain skills in writing
journal papers, grant proposals and organising public engagement activities and events to further
my career in the future. Through both dissertation units I have enjoyed undertaking independent
learning and researching these complex design methods that are not included in degree modules, and
applying them to new investigations.
Since my initial interest in civil and architectural engineering I have sought out the opportunity to
gain industry experience. I have now completed several summer and year-long placements with
ARUP, working in buildings, bridges, highways and research and development sectors. This
experience has been valuable in not only gaining insights into the industry as a whole but observing
what each area of a large organisation has at its forefront. This experience, though, has made me want
to specialise in areas that involve independent research, experimentation and working with unique
design opportunities that are not yet always available outside of the research environment. I have
realised that researching novel methods and solving problems is exciting, challenging and can benefit
the building sector by bettering industry design methods and knowledge.
At university, I have been involved in both sporting and artistic activities. Playing for, and captaining,
the university badminton second team has been a highlight of my time in Bath and it has helped me
to gain organisational and team-working skills. I am a keen musician, and have been heavily involved
in the musical theatre society and have worked in the production team for numerous shows.
If any further information is required, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you for considering
my application, I look forward to hearing your response.
Yours sincerely,
Ellie Marsh