The Ragland lab is seeking a PhD or MS student to join the lab in Fall ’24. For MS students several research directions are available including life history and phenology of bark beetles or other pests of Rocky Mountain forests, developmental regulation of dormancy, physiology and evolution of responses to acute thermal stress, and the evolution of transcriptional plasticity. PhD students would initiate research in these topic areas with options to expand or transition to new research topics depending on background and experience. There are also opportunities to participate in NSF-funded efforts to develop, maintain, and assess course-based undergraduate research opportunities (CUREs) designed to increase inclusivity and accessibility of undergraduate research experiences.
Students will be supported mainly by teaching (TA) during the fall and spring semesters, with research funding available for the summer. Research assistantships during the regular academic year are also possible, funding permitting. I am targeting an annual income of about $28,000 at the PhD level. TA compensation does not depend on MS/PhD status (~$20k/yr), but summer RA salary is commensurate with experience. We provide full tuition remission (MS/PhD).
We are housed in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Colorado, Denver. Faculty in the department specialize in areas ranging from molecules to ecosystems, and our department and university support a number of programs devoted to the science and application of inclusive pedagogy. We maintain relationships with the Denver Botanic Gardens and the Denver Museum of Nature and Science who also participate in our graduate programs. The downtown campus is also closely tied to the CU Denver medical school and associated resources and infrastructure. Denver is a mid-sized city surrounded by a large metro with fantastic recreational opportunities in town and the nearby Rocky Mountains.
Our lab is broadly interested in how organisms interact physiologically with their environment, and how those interactions evolve over space and time. We mainly work on insects and often focus on how life cycles are synchronized with environmental variation or how organisms directly confront temperature-induced stress. Students in the lab have applied a variety of approaches over the years including field observations and monitoring, population genomics, transcriptomics, respirometry, and laser confocal microscopy. I am excited about working with students from all backgrounds and maintain a friendly, inclusive, and welcoming environment.
Please direct inquiries to Greg Ragland (gregory.ragland@ucdenver.edu), including a brief message detailing your background, interests, and goals, a CV/resume, and unofficial transcripts.
The deadline for application to the graduate program is 1 December 2023.
See here for more information about:
The lab: https://raglandlab.wordpress.com
The graduate program in Integrative Biology: https://clas.ucdenver.edu/integrative-biology/academics/graduate-programs
