The Carrillo Lab at the University of British Columbia (Faculty of Land and Food Systems) is recruiting PhD and MSc students for Fall 2017 and Spring 2018 start dates for research in plant-insect ecology and evolution. Students from underrepresented groups are particularly encouraged to apply.
Research in the lab is in fundamental plant ecology and evolution, but many projects have an applied component concerning plant interactions with herbivores. Students will have the opportunity to develop their own research questions, but can also work on ongoing projects in the lab. For example, we are currently researching: 1) trait loss in populations due to ecological or evolutionary divergence (e.g. native vs. invasive plant populations, domesticated crops vs. their wild relatives); 2) soil and plant-mediated performance of parasitoids and natural enemies on insect herbivores; and 3) the evolution and ecology of plant tolerance of herbivory. See http://lfs-carrillo.sites.olt.ubc.ca/ for more information. The lab is affiliated with the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at the UBC Farm (http://ubcfarm.ubc.ca/), an interdisciplinary group of plant, soil, and social scientist with strong community ties to local growers and food producers. The Carrillo Lab is also a member of the Biodiversity Research Centre (http://www.biodiversity.ubc.ca/), which offers a rich academic program in ecology and evolutionary biology and brings together a diverse group of faculty, postdocs, and graduate students across campus. Applicants will ideally have a background in ecology, evolutionary biology, or entomology and must have previous research experience. To apply, please email juli.carri...@ubc.ca no later than Dec 15th (for a Fall 2017 start), and preferably much sooner, a brief description of your research interests and future directions, your CV and unofficial academic transcript, as well as the contact information for three references. Full applications to the Faculty of Land and Food Systems and the Graduate School at UBC are due by January 1, 2017 for the September 2017 semester. Information on the application process as well as funding information can be found here: http://www.landfood.ubc.ca/academics/graduate/grad-admissions/.
