PhD Student at The Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry in Jena

Overview

The Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry in Jena is inviting applications for a 3-years position of a PhD student in Modelling the effects of air pollution on terrestrial carbon and nitrogen cycles.

The PhD-project will be integrated into a large-scale European research effort to better understand the effects of air-pollution on land ecosystems. Using a global carbon-nitrogen cycle ecosystem model, the project will exploit ecological data bases and/or ecophysiological theory to improve the representation of critical plant physiological processes and plant-soil interactions. The improved model will then be evaluated using results of ecosystem studies and manipulation experiments and used to estimate the likely present-day and future effects of air pollution on terrestrial carbon sequestration and reactive nitrogen losses.

The project would be most suited to students with a background in a quantitative science (e.g. geo-ecology, environmental science, biology, applied mathematics, physics, and computer science) with an interest in applying their expertise to terrestrial ecology and global change researchand numerical modelling. The project will involve mainly data analyses and computer simulation modelling. The position will be in the Department of Biogeochemical Systems (http://www.bgc-jena.mpg.de/bgc-systems/index.shtml).

The successful applicant is encouraged to apply for admission to the International Max Planck Research School for Global Biogeochemical Cycles, a structured PhD program that offers complementary courses and other helpful additions to the thesis project. For detailed information, see www.imprs-gbgc.de.

The conditions of employment, including upgrades and duration follow the rules of the Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Sciences and those of the German civil service. The Max Planck Society seeks to increase the number of women in those areas where they are underrepresented and therefore explicitly encourages women to apply. The Max Planck Society is committed to employing more handicapped individuals and especially encourages them to apply.

Please send your applications including letter of interest, and CV, and the names and contact information of one or two references either via email by the 30th September 2011 to szaehle@bgc-jena.mpg.de, or directly to the institute’s address

Max-Planck-Institut für Biogeochemie
Postfach 10 01 64
07701 Jena

http://www.mpg.de/4397014/PhD_Student

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