11 PhD Positions at Georg-August-University Göttingen 3340 views

The Georg-August-University Göttingen is currently inviting applications for 11 PhD Positions (f, m, d) in the Research Training Group (RTG) 2300 ‘Enrichment of European beech forests with conifers: impacts of functional traits on ecosystem functioning’. The positions will start on January 1, 2021. The positions are funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) for 3 years.

About the positions:

• The PhD students enrolled in this program investigate ecological challenges and societal demands on forests in a changing climate.
• The program focuses on European temperate forests. A central goal is to uncover the impact of mixed compared to monospecific forests on ecosystem functions and processes with a special focus on the importance of functional traits.
• The research approaches involve field studies in European beech, Norway spruce and Douglas fir forests and their mixtures, experimental studies to uncover cause-effect relationships, and statistical as well as economic analyses.

The following research groups are offering PhD projects:

• Silviculture
• Tree physiology (mycorrhiza)
• Plant ecology
• Soil sciences
• Animal ecology
• Wildlife sciences
• Forest nature conservation
• Forest modeling
• Forest economics
• Spatial forest structures
• Applied statistics

Requirements:

• Applicants must have completed their MSc or equivalent university degree in a subject area relevant for the RTG2300 program
• Applicants must be fluent in English and motivated to learn some German
• Applicants must be eager to conduct field work
• Applicants must have keen interest to collaborate and share data with their PhD colleagues

Applications:

Apply online (compiled as one pdf document) and application must include the following:

• CV including information on posters, presentations, awards and publication list, if applicable
• Motivation letter for the preferred project(s) (maximum 1 page), list up to three projects
• Certificates of studies (if a degree is not yet completed you may also provide a document listing current grades)
• 02 references (name and contact information of two senior researchers)
• Summary of MA thesis and if applicable one publication

Subprojects offering PhD positions

Subproject 1: ‘Root distribution, water uptake and growth responses’

Subproject 2: ‘Tree water relations and drought response’

Subproject 3: ‘Nutrient uptake and efficiency’

Subproject 4: ‘Ectomycorrhizal Functions for Tree Nutrition’

Subproject 5: ‘Decomposer community structure and decomposition processes’

Subproject 6: ‘Arthropod diversity and functioning in mixed versus pure stands’

Subproject 7: ‘Effects of small mammal communities on seed predation and seed dispersal’

Subproject 9: ‘Predicting structural changes and growth in pure and mixed stands of European beech, Norway spruce, and Douglas-fir’

Subproject 10: ‘Bayesian Semiparametric Regression’

Subproject 12: ‘Economic implications of species mixture and structural diversity in European beech stands enriched with coniferous trees’

Subproject 13: ‘Architectural traits of trees in response to different neighborhoods and their importance for stand structural characteristics’