A graduate student assistantship is available to start in the Summer
of 2012 in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at the
University of California, Santa Cruz. The position is supported by a
recently funded NSF grant aimed at understanding the web of social and
ecological processes linking climate, human land use, wetland ecology,
avian conservation and mosquito-borne disease. The graduate students
research will focus on the impacts of climate, land use, and hydrology
on mosquito population dynamics and West Nile virus transmission in
Northern California. Graduate research will require intensive field
work and quantitative analysis. The most qualified applicants will have
substantial field experience, a quantitative background, and a strong
interest in disease ecology, entomology, conservation, and
interdisciplinary projects. Interested applicants should submit the
following items: 1) a C.V. with GPA, GREs, and contact information for 3
references, 2) a 1-2 page description of research interests and
experience, and 3) a 1-2 page statement outlining 3 potential research
questions for projects aimed at understanding the interactions between
human land and water use decisions, climate, and mosquito-borne disease.
Each of the three proposed thesis ideas should include a testable
hypothesis, justification or rationale for its importance, and a brief
description of methods for how the research could be carried out to test
the hypothesis.
Applications should be submitted in a single file (pdf, Word, or
.rtf) by email to: Dr. A. Marm Kilpatrick (akilpatr@ ucsc.edu) with the
Subject line: GRADUATE STUDENT ASSISTANTSHIP CNH. Information about
Dr Kilpatricks research can be found at:
http://bio.research.ucsc.edu/people/kilpatrick/
