Mesocarnivore ecology: Graduate student assistantship (Master of Science)
The University of Georgia’s Savannah River Ecology Laboratory is seeking a highly motivated student with strong academic credentials and previous field experience to join a collaborative research team working on mesocarnivore ecology and management. The student will primarily work on a USDA funded project aimed at quantifying the ecological factors affecting the success of rabies elimination programs in the Southeastern US. As part of the larger study, the Master’s student will work in close collaboration with other students, postdocs, faculty and agency personnel to: (a) quantify the spatial and demographic parameters of wild opossum populations using mark-recapture, telemetry, and genetic data; (b) evaluate the importance of various habitat types in the Southeastern US to support opossum populations; (c) quantify the levels of rabies vaccine bait uptake by opossums, and thus the realized levels of bait competition between non-target (opossums) and target (raccoons) species. The selected student will be responsible for developing and conducting an independent research project within this general framework. The successful applicant would be enrolled in UGA’s Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources starting Fall 2017, and stationed at the Savannah River Ecology Lab in Aiken, SC when not taking classes. Qualifications: Minimum qualifications for this position include a B.S. degree in wildlife ecology, ecology, or a related discipline. The candidate must be able to work in the field under adverse conditions and have excellent organizational skills. Prior experience working with mesocarnivores is not essential, although preference will be given to applicants with prior experience capturing and handling wildlife. Warnell requires a minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.0 and GRE scores of 1000 (~300 in new scoring system) for admission. Stipend and Benefits: This assistantship is based on a 40% stipend. Position will offer $20,138/year. The student will receive a full-tuition waiver but will be expected to pay some mandated fees (details can be found at http://busfin.uga.edu/bursar/). All students on assistantship are required to have health insurance, and a portion of the premium for the University System’s health insurance plan is paid by the University of Georgia. Further information: 1. The main faculty involved in the project include Prof. Olin E. Rhodes, Jr, Dr. Guha Dharmarajan and Dr. Jim Beasley. Details on their lab groups can be found at can be found at https://srel.uga.edu/directory/faculty/ 2. Details on the Savannah River Ecology Laboratory can be found at https://srel.uga.edu/ 3. Details on the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources can be found at www.warnell.uga.edu. 4. Details on the University of Georgia can be found at www.uga.edu 5. Details about the graduate program are available at https://www.warnell.uga.edu/graduate. Application details: 1. Interested candidates must follow instructions below prior to submitting an application to Warnell 2. Review of candidatess will begin immediately and continue until a suitable candidate is found. 3. For full consideration please apply by June 10th, 2017 4. Applicants should submit a letter of interest, CV (including GPA and GRE scores), and contact information for three references in a single PDF attachment to Dr. Guha Dharmarajan ([email protected]). 5. Short-listed candidates will be contacted and requested to submit an application to Warnell Contact: Guha Dharmarajan, Ph.D., Assistant Research Scientist The University of Georgia’s Savannah River Ecology Laboratory Phone: 803-725-3241; Email: [email protected] UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION INSTITUTION. <http://www.gdharmarajan.com/>
