Mark Bush is looking to recruit a PhD researcher to the “Neotropical Palaeoecology Research Group” at Florida Institute of Technology.
Applications are invited from qualified and highly-motivated students for an exciting PhD studentship in the areas of paleoecology and community ecology of South American lowland rainforests.
The project is part of a collaborative NSF-funded interdisciplinary research effort involving investigators at Wake Forest University, Tulane University and the University of California at Berkeley, to investigate the impacts of Pre-Columbian humans on species composition in tropical forests. The applicant will be responsible for generating paleoecological histories of target forests using fossil phytoliths, and assessing whether modern forest composition results from past human activities. Paleoecological training would involve close liaison with collaborators at the University of Amsterdam. While most of the work will be laboratory-based microscopy, field work in remote areas of Amazonia and the Chocó of Ecuador is anticipated. Applicants that choose to participate in the field work must be comfortable with the prospect of hiking and camping in extremely remote areas.
Applicants who already hold an MSc are preferred, but those with a BSc in a relevant discipline who are exceptionally highly qualified would be considered. Applications from candidates belonging to traditionally under-represented groups in STEM disciplines are especially welcome.
Applicants should have a robust background in ecology, and while prior knowledge of phytolith analysis is not expected, involvement in paleoeoecology, GIS, working with R, and tropical ecology would all be seen as strengths.
Support will include a stipend and full tuition, but a requirement of my laboratory is that all students spend a minimum of one year as a Teaching Assistant; hence, complete fluency in English is expected.
At Florida Tech a PhD in Biological Sciences requires 73 credits, 30 of which can be transferred from a Masters program. Credits are a blend of taught classes (a minimum of 18 credits) and research credits. The expected graduation time is 4 years with an MS or 5 years from a BS.
The start date is flexible, but a target date is August 1st 2021.
Applicants should send a CV and ~500 word statement of interest to Dr. Mark Bush mbush@fit.edu. Review of applications will begin March 21st, the last date to apply is March 31st, 2021.
Florida Tech is a private, Tier-1 university on the Atlantic coast of Central Florida. The region has surf beaches, large areas of protected lands, low crime rates, good schools, and a moderate cost of living. Florida Tech actively supports an educational environment that fosters diversity and inclusion for all and is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer.
Ecology of the past 