PhD Assistantship: Designing a Mixed-Mode Survey for Collecting Deer Hunter Harvest Data in North Dakota
Website: http://arts-sciences.und.edu/biology/ Salary: Approximately $26,000 per year plus tuition waiver A graduate research assistantship (PhD) in wildlife harvest management is available at the University of North Dakota (UND) in Grand Forks through support from the North Dakota Game and Fish Department (NDGF). To help inform wildlife harvest management decisions, the highly-motivated student will work closely with NDGF and UND project staff to design a mixed-mode survey for collecting deer hunter harvest data in North Dakota. The first objective of this study is to evaluate strategies for supplementing existing mailed deer harvest surveys with electronic versions. Second, a series of power simulations will be conducted to evaluate trade-offs between sample size and response rate, and to evaluate precision of harvest estimates. Finally, time permitting, the student may include additional harvests (e.g., fall turkey, furbearer) and test alternate vehicles (e.g., phone app) for delivering electronic surveys. This position will be primarily lab-based within the Department of Biology at UND. The student will receive her/his PhD in Biology and be part of the Boulanger Lab (http://arts- sciences.und.edu/biology/faculty/jay-boulanger.cfm). Minimum qualifications: MS degree in human dimensions, wildlife, fisheries, natural resources or related discipline, with GPA of 3.5 or higher Excellent oral and written communication skills Strong GRE scores in quantitative and verbal areas Demonstrated research experience (data collection, analysis, and writing) Ability to work independently and with project teams Preferred qualifications: Experience developing survey research instruments Interest in game management and social science research Experience publishing scientific research Advanced quantitative skills including analysis in SPSS or R To apply: Please send an electronic application via email in PDF format (preferably a single document) consisting of 1) a cover letter clearly articulating your background, experience, research and education interests, and career goals; 2) C.V.; 3) transcripts and GPA for undergraduate and MS graduate program (can be unofficial); 4) GRE scores (taken within 5 years; can be unofficial); and 5) name, position, phone number, email address, institutional affiliation, and research area of three references to Dr. Jay Boulanger, Assistant Professor of Wildlife Ecology and Human Dimensions (jason.boulan...@und.edu) with the words “Hunter harvest PhD student application” in the subject line. The preferred, official start date is January 2018, with the possibility of starting earlier in the fall semester. Expected project funding and duration is 4 years. Review of applicants will begin immediately and continue until a suitable candidate is found.
