The Bowker lab at the School of Forestry (SOF), Northern Arizona University,
seeks a motivated Ph.D. student to conduct field and greenhouse experiments
near Flagstaff, Arizona starting in Fall 2013. The student will use the
newly-established Southwest Experimental Garden Array (SEGA) to determine
the role of soil organisms (e.g. mycorrhizal fungi, pathogens, etc.) in
speeding or slowing plant migration under climate change. SEGA provides the
infrastructure and a rare opportunity to conduct cutting edge global change
research. Four years of funding are available to the student (Annual stipend
of $19,950, tuition remission, and student health coverage) in addition to
modest project costs. The student will be expected to seek additional
resources (grants, scholarships, etc.) to help extend the project.
Objectives: The southern Colorado Plateau is already exhibiting rapid
contraction of species distributions as climatic warming shifts the lower
elevation and latitudinal limits of plant species that may be faster than
expansion of species ranges at the upper elevation and latitudinal limits.
Specifically, the objectives of this research are to:
1. Determine whether stress-adapted soil communities can enhance growth and
fitness of less stress-adapted plant populations, thereby buffering against
die-back.
2. Determine whether the adaptations of soil organisms dictate the success
of assisted migration of plant species into cooler climates.
Within this general framework, the student will be encouraged to develop
their own additional research questions.
Research Environment: The School of Forestry is one of the top Forestry
Schools in the nation, and a productive research environment, with faculty
members specializing in a variety of ecological topics such as landscape
ecology, ecological restoration, plant ecophysiology, entomology, hydrology,
and soil ecology among other topics. The candidate will also have
opportunities to interact with members of the Soil Ecology lab of Nancy
Johnson who will also be involved in the project.
Preferred Qualifications: Master of Science in Forestry, Biology,
Environmental Science or related field, or a Bachelor of Science in these
fields supplemented with research experience (undergraduate thesis, capstone
or internship, or employment-related experience). Candidates with field
research experience will be strongly favored, especially in maintenance and
construction of field experiments. Candidates with previous experience in
soil ecology and/or climate change experimental manipulations will also be
favored. Due to manual labor needs in the experimental setup, physical
fitness is required. The candidate must satisfy all requirements set by the
School of Forestry, and Northern Arizona University.
Admissions requirements (Deadline March 15, 2003):
GPA of 3.0 or greater on a 4.0 scale in all college and university work
GRE scores in the top 40th percentile
If English is not your native language:
a score of at least 80 on the internet-based TOEFL or
550 on the paper-based TOEFL or
213 on the computer-based TOEFL
Three letters of recommendation
How to apply: First contact me directly ([email protected]) to state
your research interests, and motivations for attending graduate school, with
SEGA graduate student inquiry in the header. Please provide a resume or
C.V., and provide your GRE scores and GPA. If I agree that you are a good
match for the position, I will encourage you to apply to the program.
Useful Links
Dr. Bowkers web page -
http://nau.edu/CEFNS/Forestry/Faculty-and-Staff/Directory/Bowker/
School of Forestry - http://nau.edu/cefns/forestry/
SOF Ph.D. program - http://nau.edu/CEFNS/Forestry/Degrees/PhD/
Southwest Experimental Garden array -
http://www4.nau.edu/insidenau/bumps/2011/10_3_11/nsf.html
