Graduate assistantships are available at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale for bright, motivated students interested in studying the biology and systematics of liverworts, as participants of an NSF-funded PEET (= Partnership for Enhancing Expertise in Taxonomy) project. Under the mentoring of Dr. Barbara Crandall-Stotler and Dr. Raymond Stotler, student theses and/or dissertations will focus on monographic and phylogenetic studies of the pivotal simple thalloid taxa of the Pallaviciniineae and Pelliineae. The project will provide opportunities for field work in North America, Latin America, New Zealand and Tasmania, as well as participation in national and international conferences and workshops. Degrees are offered through the Department of Plant Biology and typically require 2 years of study for an M.S. or 4 years for a Ph. D. The Department offers a selection of more than 40 graduate courses and has excellent laboratory facilities. A detailed description of the department may be found at Department of Plant Biology.
The project provides training in standard taxonomic methods, including nomenclature and herbarium curation, as well as extensive involvement in modern approaches of systematics, such as morphometric methods for analyzing variation patterns, tissue culture techniques, SEM and/or TEM, starch gel electrophoresis and DNA sequencing methods. The application of computer technology to data gathering and dissemination is also integral to student training. This includes, but is not limited to, gaining expertise in image-capturing systems, database development and various formats of electronic data analysis and presentation via the World Wide Web.
Each assistantship provides a monthly stipend and complete tuition for the duration of graduate study. To obtain further information regarding application procedures, please contact:
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URL: http://www.science.siu.edu/bryophytes/stipends.html
last updated: 20-January-2000/ jrb, res