Employment Opportunities

MS Research Assistantship - Forest Operations

Position: A 2-year M.S. Research Assistantship is available in the Forest Operations Research Lab at the University of Idaho, beginning in Summer or Fall 2013.

Duties: The Research Assistant will address research questions associated with a USDA-funded research project evaluating economic impacts of biofuels in the Inland Northwest. The assistantship involves (1) evaluating different woody biomass removal methods in the field, and (2) using GIS and models to study regional options for producing aviation biofuels from woody biomass. The student will have the opportunity to conduct field work on the University of Idaho Experimental Forest and evaluate regional biomass utilization scenarios with forest managers and a multidisciplinary group of faculty in the Office of Community Partnerships, the Dept of Forest, Rangeland, and Fire Sciences, the Dept. of Business, and the Dept of Geography.

Qualifications: The successful applicant will have an undergraduate degree in forestry or a closely related field, good GRE scores and transcripts, and a genuine interest in conducting science that both improves the field of forestry and provides alternatives to the use of fossil fuels.

Assistantship: An out-of-state tuition waiver and graduate stipend is available.

To apply: Students interested in applying should contact Rob Keefe, Assistant Professor of Forest Operations, by email as soon as possible to discuss the opportunity. Please attach a copy of your CV. Transcripts, names of three references, and GRE scores will also be required for application to the Graduate School.

PhD student research assistantship: MODIS-Landsat data fusion for high spatial resolution burned area mapping

Dr. Luigi Boschetti is seeking a highly motivated student to pursue a Ph.D. in Natural Resources at the Department of Forest, Rangeland and Fire Sciences at the University of Idaho. The successful candidate will be involved in NASA funded research on burned area mapping with MODIS and Landsat satellite data, using automatic image understanding techniques. The student will interact with project personnel at partner institutions of the University of Maryland and South Dakota State University.

The research assistantship will have duration of three years, starting in August 2013. The assistantship includes a stipend of $19450 per annum, plus coverage of tuition, fees and medical insurance. Applicants should have a master's degree, a background in remote sensing, with preferably computer programming and quantitative analysis skills. Strong writing skills and the ability to communicate effectively are essential. US citizenship is not required; the university is an AA/EEO employer and encourages applications from women and minorities.

The University of Idaho is located in a small and friendly university town, with low cost of living, a stimulating cultural life and exceptional opportunities for outdoors activities. UI was ranked in 2012 among the top 25 colleges for adventure-seekers by ‘Outside’ magazine.

To apply, please email Luigi Boschetti a cover letter describing your research interests, goals and relevant experience, a complete CV, college transcripts, GRE scores and contact information of three referees.

Review of applications will begin immediately, and the position will remain open until a suitable candidate is found. After the selection, the successful candidate will apply to be admitted to the College of Graduate Studies of the University of Idaho; detailed information about the application procedure for national and foreign students is available online.

Fire History in Alaskan Tundra Ecosystems 

Overview: A two-year research assistantship is available to join an interdisciplinary effort focused on understanding causes and consequences of tundra fire regimes in the North American Arctic, funded by National Science Foundation’s Arctic System Science program. Recent climate warming has resulted in profound environmental changes in the Arctic, including shrub-cover expansion, permafrost thawing, sea-ice shrinkage, and unprecedented tundra burning. Knowledge of tundra fire-regime responses to climate change is essential for projecting Earth system dynamics, developing ecosystem management strategies, and preparing arctic residents for future change, yet this knowledge is limited by short observational fire records and a paucity of fire-history studies. This current project utilizes the complementary properties of paleoecological and modeling approaches to (1) quantify the pattern and causes of tundra fire regimes over the past 50 to 15,000 years, (2) modify two ecosystem models linking climate, vegetation, fire, and ecosystem processes, and (3) model tundra fire regimes under a suite of IPCC climate scenarios for the 21st century. A project summary is available at: webpages.uidaho.edu/phiguera/ ARCSS_tundraFire_summary.pdf

The successful candidate will develop long-term records of fire history and ecosystem change utilizing a network of existing lake sediment records. This information will be used to inform ecosystem models and test hypotheses based on modern and simulated data. The student will be based in the Paleoecology and Fire Ecology Lab within College of Natural Resources or the Program in Environmental Science. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to propose and conduct field research in Alaska, including the North Slope, the Noatak National Preserve, of southwestern Alaska during the summer of 2013 and/or 2014, dependent on research progress and research goals. As part of an research team, the student will also interact with project personnel at partner institutions of the University of Illinois and University of Alaska, Fairbanks. 

Qualifications: 

• BS or BA degree in ecology, biology, Earth sciences, geography, or related field 
• Familiarity with fire ecology, plant ecology, paleoecology, and/or statistics and modeling 
• Research experience including experimental design, field work, and/or laboratory analyses 
• Strong verbal and written communication skills 
• Willingness to work in a collaborative setting 
• Enthusiasm and curiosity 

How to Apply: Interested candidates should e-mail the following information to Philip Higuera in a single PDF file: (1) letter of interest, including research interests, professional goals, and relevant prior experiences; (2) CV, including undergraduate/graduate GPA and GRE scores (with percentiles); (3) contact information for three references familiar with your academic and/or research experiences. 

Review of applications will begin immediately, and the position will remain open until a suitable candidate is found. The position could initiate immediately. After a phone interview and screening, the successful candidate must apply the University of Idaho’s College of Graduate Studies.

PhD Assistantship–Carbon Cycle impacts of Using Forest Harvest Residues for Bioenergy

The University of Idaho is one of the few universities in the US that use energy generated from logging residues to heat its campus (Science 2009, 323:1432-3). The presence of the UI Experimental Forest on nearby Moscow Mountain provides an opportunity to study the long-term effects of collecting the residual material that is usually left to decay or burned after forest harvest. We offer a Ph.D. assistantship that would address the practical, but scientifically compelling question of how greenhouse-gas emissions are affected by either a) burning residues on-site or b) collecting residues for fuel compared to unharvested controls. The student will be responsible for the measurement of forest carbon pools as well as the fluxes of carbon (CO2, CH4) and nitrous oxide from the soil after the various treatments. We would also encourage the parameterization of models that describe these fluxes and changes in forest productivity under the varied treatments. We encourage creativity and student initiative in designing the remainder of the dissertation. The PhD student will be part of the PhD program in the UI College of Natural Resources and will be primarily advised by Dr. John Marshall, with additional supervision by collaborators Dr. Alan Talhelm and Dr. Mark Coleman. Another related and concurrent forest bioenergy research project overseen by Dr. Coleman, which investigates impacts on tree growth, soil quality, wood decomposition, and diversity of fungi and invertebrates, provides clear opportunities for collaboration among a large group of investigators and a cohort of several new graduate students. Funding has been granted for a 3.5 year research assistantship, covering tuition and a stipend. To enquire about this position or to apply send an email to John Marshall (jdm@ uidaho.edu) or Alan Talhelm (atalhelm@uidaho.edu). Applicants should send 1) a letter of interest and qualifications, 2) a resume that includes three references, 3) GRE scores, and 4) transcripts. We will begin to review applications on September 1st.