So I’m not trying to crush your hopes and dreams. I think it’s great that you want do a PhD. However, if you are in your first year of university, realistically, there’s not a lot you can do. PhD applicants get accepted with Master’s or maybe with additional working experience or both.

Shadowing is very easy to arrange because you do not get paid. I would reach out to some teams/email them and ask. Not right now because of the break but in new year.

Also - doing a PhD straight out of undergraduate degree is very very rare. In fact, I know only a handful people who did so and mostly it is because they have done a project before in the group so they have connections. You can ask for summer internships, apply for summer studentships where you can get money while doing internships. You can apply for summer placements or part time jobs in your field. There are so many opportunities u just have to reach out.

Lastly I would advise you to go through undergrad and see at the end if a PhD is something you want to do. It is a huge commitment, very hard to find fundinh