Postdoctoral position in Landscape Ecology of Plant-Microbial Interactions (Department of Biology, University of Miami, Miami, FL)
Drs. Michelle Afkhami and Christopher Searcy are interested in hiring a co-advised postdoctoral scholar in Landscape Ecology of Plant-Microbial Interactions in the Department of Biology at University of Miami (Miami, FL). The postdoctoral scholar will conduct research to investigate the role of plant-microbial interactions in the landscape ecology and conservation of plant species in the imperiled Florida Scrub ecosystem. We envision approximately 50% of the postdoctoral scholar’s time (or more depending on her or his interests) will include projects focusing on the effects of plant-microbial interactions on landscape-scale species distributions and/or plant demography. The other ~50% of time will be spent on postdoc-developed projects. We are looking for a postdoctoral scholar who can bring his or her perspective to the system and develop new ideas to pursue. The postdoc will have the opportunity to collect, analyze, and integrate multiple forms of data (e.g., new greenhouse/field experiments, existing long term field data, soil microbial sequencing data) and/or learn new modeling and molecular skills (e.g., Species Distribution Modeling, Integral Projection Modeling, high-throughput single cell sequencing). He or she will also have the opportunity to mentor undergraduate and graduate students and write manuscripts as lead author. Dr. Chris Searcy is a landscape ecologist who will advise the postdoc on modeling and landscape ecology, and Dr. Michelle Afkhami will advise on plant-microbe and molecular methods. This research will be done at University of Miami and the nearby Archbold Biological Station (http://www.archbold-station.org/). Candidates must have a Ph.D. in Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, or a related discipline, and experience conducting research with plants, microbes, and/or modeling (ideally plant-microbial interactions). Other important qualifications are a background in statistical methods, a strong work ethic, problem-solving and time management skills, a track record of publications, and independent research experience. A background in microbial community sequencing, demographic modeling, species distribution modeling, and/or data analysis in R are desirable but not required. This is a one year position with an expectation for renewal provided that first-year performance is satisfactory. Start date is flexible, but an ideal candidate would begin immediately or as soon as possible. We will be at Ecological Society of America meeting next week and can meet with attending perspective postdocs there. All interested applicants, please send your CV (including contact information for 3 references), a description of previous experience (~1 short paragraphs), and reason(s) for wanting this job (~1 short paragraph) to Dr. Michelle Afkhami ([email protected]). Learn more about the position at https://michelleafkhami.wordpress.com/join-the-lab/. Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.
