Summer Research Positions in Alaska for Undergraduates and Recent
College Graduates
For more information on these projects, contact Dr. Syndonia Bret-Harte
(ffmsb [at] uaf.edu)
Applications must be received by April 15, 2003
We are seeking enthusiastic undergraduates and recent college graduates
who are interested in summer field research in Alaska. The overall
objective of our research program is to understand the ecosystem and
global consequences of potential future changes in arctic and boreal
vegetation. There are two separate experimental projects. For each of
them, successful applicants will be expected to assist with field data
collection and also complete independent research projects on a topic
related to the program and their own interests.
One experiment is focused on how plant species affect community
structure, diversity, and ecosystem cycling of carbon and nitrogen in
Alaskan tussock tundra. We have removed key species and groups of plant
species in a factorial design with nutrient addition, as past
experiments have shown that fertilization leads to dramatic changes in
community structure and ecosystem productivity. Successful applicants
will assist with measurements of above- and belowground biomass and
nutrient content, species diversity, and soil nutrient availability and
C and N content. We will be labeling with 15N in different chemical
forms to assess whether species have shifted their realized niches when
neighboring species were removed. We expect the research to be
particularly exciting this year, because this is the first year that we
can assess species effects both above and belowground. Successful
applicants will be based at Toolik Field Station, north of the Brooks
Range in arctic Alaska (http://www.uaf.edu/toolik/).
Our other project is focused on how different plant species affect
nitrogen retention in a boreal forest community following fire. We
established plots in boreal forest within the Caribou-Poker Creek
Experimental Watershed and treated the plots with a 15N tracer following
burns in summer 1999. We manipulated plant species composition and are
using the 15N tracer to see how these plant species affect the flux of
nitrogen through the different plant and soil components of the
ecosystem. Successful applicants will assist with maintenance of the
treatment plots, surveys of leaf area index to monitor canopy
development, and biomass harvests and soil core collections. We are
harvesting the vegetation manipulation treatments this summer, so we
expect the research to be particularly exciting. Successful applicants
will be based in Fairbanks, Alaska, but may spend some time camping near
the field sites.
For more information these projects, contact Dr. Syndonia Bret-Harte
(ffmsb [at] uaf.edu).
There are 6 positions altogether, 3 positions associated with each
project. For each project, there are two positions for undergraduates
or recent college graduates, and one for a field crew leader who has
already graduated from a 4-year college or university. Undergraduate
positions pay a stipend of $375 per week (before taxes). These
positions are open only to US citizens who are undergraduates or who
have graduated since Dec. 2002. Field crew leader positions for recent
graduates pay $475 per week. These positions are open only to US
citizens who have graduated from a 4-year college or university. The
length of the positions varies from one to three months, but all occur
between late May and early September.
Travel from your university to and from the field site will be covered.
Class background in plant ecology, botany, and/or soil science,
experience in field or laboratory, and experience with data analysis is
preferred for all positions. Field crew leaders should have advanced
undergraduate study in ecology or statistics, skills with data analysis,
prior field experience, and experience supervising others in a work or
school setting. Applicants must be willing to work long hours in the
field, occasionally under adverse weather conditions. Competent,
careful, emotionally mature, and enthusiastic people desired! We want
the work to be both fun and challenging. We encourage applications from
women and minorities.
To apply, send an email containing 1) completed UA Applicant form (may
be downloaded from
http://www.alaska.edu/hr/forms/PDF_ent/applicant_form_ent.pdf), 2) a
cover letter and 3) a c.v. or resume with the names, phone numbers, and
email addresses of three references to Marta Conner at fnmrc [at] uaf.edu,
with copies to Dr. Syndonia Bret-Harte at ffmsb [at] uaf.edu. In the subject
line of your email to Marta Conner, please state "Bret-Harte jobs".
Applications must be received by April 15, 2003. Your cover letter
should explain why you are interested in this program and how it fits
into your long-term education and career goals. Also, describe anything
that you think would convince us that you are the most appropriate
person for these research positions, and specify which project you are
most interested in.