Posted on behalf of Jayajit Chakraborty:
Seeking PhD student for NSF-funded project Applications are invited for a doctoral level research assistant position in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Planning at the University of South Florida, to begin in August 2012. Jayajit Chakraborty, Associate Professor of Geography, is seeking a new Ph.D. student to participate in a project funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Infrastructure Management and Extreme Events Program. The student will receive a graduate research assistantship for a minimum of three years, based on fulfilling all requirements for admission to the Geography track of the Ph.D. program in Geography and Environmental Science & Policy at the University of South Florida. The appointment includes a monthly stipend, tuition waiver, health benefits, and travel funds for conference presentations. The Ph.D. level graduate assistant will be part of an interdisciplinary research team which also includes faculty (Dr. Timothy Collins and Dr. Sara Grineski) and students from the University of Texas at El Paso. This NSF-sponsored collaborative project aims to address limitations associated with current research on social inequalities in the distribution of environmental hazards, and advance knowledge of social and spatial influences on residential exposure to hazards. The research involves parallel analyses of two high-impact hazards, air pollution and flooding, in the two largest coastal metropolitan areas in the U.S. South: Houston, Texas and Miami, Florida. This study will provide a comparative, multi- level, multi-method framework for modeling exposure to both technological (air pollution) and natural (flooding) hazards, and transform current understandings of factors contributing to environmental and social injustices. The Ph.D. student will be expected to provide assistance in all phases of this project, including data collection, analysis, presentation, and dissemination. Applicants must hold a B.S., B.A., or a Master’s degree in geography or a related field, and possess the ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing. Preferred qualifications include proficiency in the use of GIS and statistical methods, and research interests in environmental justice and/or social dimensions of environmental hazards. Women and members of underrepresented minority groups are strongly encouraged to apply. Those interested should contact Dr. Jayajit Chakraborty ([email protected]) with a current C.V. and a one-page statement of their research interests and qualifications for this position, by January 15, 2012. Applicants are encouraged to visit http://gep.usf.edu for information on the department and http://gep.usf.edu/grad/admission/ for Ph.D. admission requirements.
