Graduate student opportunity: PhD studying fungal foliar endophytes of Vanuatu at the University of
Hawaii
The Amend lab at the University of Hawaii at Manoa is recruiting a PhD student to research plant fungal
interactions as part of a NSF-funded collaboration. The student will collaborate with a broad consortium
of researchers to examine the fungal, botanical and linguistic diversity of Tafea province, Vanuatu, in the
South Pacific. This will be the first systematic survey of this oceanic, tropical, biodiversity hotspot. The
student will be responsible principally for documenting the endophytic fungi of native host plants using
cultivation and high-throughput DNA-sequencing techniques. This will involve long stretches in the field
under uncomfortable, remote and staggeringly beautiful conditions. The student will have the
opportunity to develop research questions consistent with lab interests in microbial community ecology,
biogeography and evolution.
The student will enroll in the Department of Botany
<http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/>http://www.botany.hawaii.edu, a small, research-active department
that values organismal and natural history research. We have access to modern facilities including
greenhouses, growth chambers, a rainforest arboretum, a campus supercomputer with excellent
administrators, and sequencing/microscopy cores. Hawaiian field sites are spectacular and easily
accessed; our native flora is 90% endemic.
Full stipend and tuition as a research assistant is guaranteed for 3 years. The student will enroll Fall
2016.
The successful applicant should have some of the following
attributes: experience devising, conducting and completing independent research; coursework and
interest in fungi and/or plants; skills in molecular biology and bioinformatics; ability to make a
convincing case that he/she will be happy spending extended periods in the field.
Please take a look at the Amend Lab website <http://amendlab.com/>http://amendlab.com to get a
sense of the type of research we conduct. If you think you're a good fit, please send your CV and
unofficial transcripts to Anthony:
<mailto:amend@hawaii.edu>amend@hawaii.edu. In a cover letter please
describe 1) why you're interested in this opportunity 2) a research question or questions you'd be
interested in exploring and 3) what approach you'd use to do so. Full applications are due January 15,
please contact me sooner.
_______________________________
Anthony S. Amend
Assistant Professor
Department of Botany
University of Hawaii Manoa
3190 Maile Way, Room 101
Honolulu, HI 96822 U.S.A.
Email: <mailto:Amend@hawaii.edu>Amend@hawaii.edu
Lab website: <http://www.amendlab.com>http://www.amendlab.com
Office phone: 808-956-6429
Lab phone: 808-956-0936
Fax: 808-956-3923
Schedule: <http://tinyurl.com/m8dyrt8>http://tinyurl.com/m8dyrt8