PhD Position Available
Arctic Vegetation Science
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Fairbanks, Alaska
Application deadline: 15 January 2020
For more information and questions, contact:
Skip Walker
Email: dawalker [at] alaska.edu
Phone: 907-474-2460
Amy Breen
Email: albreen [at] alaska.edu
Phone: 907-750-1311
The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) invites applications for a PhD fellowship focused on Arctic vegetation science and its application to ecological research themes related to a new National Science Foundation Navigating the New Arctic project, “Landscape Evolution and Adapting to Change in Ice-Rich Permafrost Systems.” This full-time, four-year fellowship will be located in Fairbanks, Alaska.
This project seeks to increase the understanding of these systems and their connection to the human, built, and natural environments in Alaska and across the Arctic.
The PhD candidate will:
- Sample, map, and analyze natural vegetation in Arctic Alaska;
- Apply these data to issues of changing permafrost, trace-gas fluxes, biodiversity, and climate;
- Apply research findings to issues related to village infrastructure and oil fields in northern Alaska; and
- Work with a multi-disciplinary team of researchers that includes permafrost scientists, hydrologists, engineers, and other vegetation scientists.
Desired skills and experience include:
- Knowledge of vascular plant, moss, and lichen morphology, field identification, and taxonomy;
- Familiarity with vegetation mapping, Geographic Information System, and remote sensing;
- Analysis of vegetation data using ordination methods and other multivariate approaches;
- Outdoor experience and ability to be comfortable in Arctic environments; and
- Other training in Arctic systems including permafrost, soils, geology, periglacial environments, and Arctic wildlife.
This position is fully funded for four years through a combination of research and teaching assistantships. The fellowship includes tuition and fees for the UAF Arctic Alaska Vegetation, Permafrost, and Ecosystems field course in June 2020.
Applications should include a brief statement of interest, a curriculum vitae, an undergraduate transcript, and Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) scores (if available), and be sent via email to Amy Breen at albreen [at] alaska.edu.
Application deadline: 15 January 2020
For more information and questions, contact:
Skip Walker
Email: dawalker [at] alaska.edu
Phone: 907-474-2460
Amy Breen
Email: albreen [at] alaska.edu
Phone: 907-750-1311