Applications are invited for a PhD to be carried out in University College Dublin (UCD) between the School of Agriculture and Food Science in collaboration with Atlantic Technological University (ATU).
Funding: This PhD Fellowship is part of the Breeding Waders European Innovation Partnership (EIP), funded by the National Parks and Wildlife Services (NPWS), the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), and the European Union, under the EIP Funding programmes.
Description: Ireland’s breeding wader populations have suffered dramatic declines in population size and national breeding range, particularly in the last 40 years. Many of these declines are so significantly reduced that the remaining breeding populations are on the edge of extinction.
In response to this, the Breeding Wader EIP has been set up to implement a multi-stakeholder programme to secure existing breeding wader populations, which includes species such as Curlew, Dunlin, Lapwing, and Golden Plover among others, at key sites. The EIP also aims to support population recovery via wider landscape management and policy development.
A PhD student will investigate strategies to understand the acceptability, feasibility and effectiveness of systematic predator management as a conservation tool. They will use interviews, other forms of engagement and citizen science approaches to obtain data from farmers and cross the stakeholders. In addition, the student will investigate the outcomes from DNA metabarcoding techniques to describe variation in predator diet.
Qualifications required: The successful candidate will hold a minimum of an Honours Degree, with a minimum award classification of 2:1 or equivalent in a cognate discipline (Agri-environment Sciences, Conservation Biology, Ecology, Ornithology, Zoology, Ecology, or a related discipline). However, experience of social science methodologies, such as interviews, would be beneficial. A full clean EU driving licence is essential. The candidate will be expected to work on their own initiative and be willing to acquire the broader skills necessary for the successful completion of a PhD. The candidate will be registered on a structured PhD programme and will be required to undertake modules and training worth 30 ECTS. The student will be based in the UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science under the primary supervision of Dr Barry McMahon and co-supervised by Drs Ian O’Connor and Dr Allan McDevitt at ATU.
Project Duration: 48 months
Conditions:
- €25,000 Stipend per annum.
- Postgraduate fees will be covered by the project.
- In addition, any necessary travel and material costs incurred during the project will be covered.
If either English or Irish is not the applicant’s first language, evidence of English language proficiency is required for registration.
PhD Start Date: Autumn 2024
To apply, please send a current CV and covering letter to Dr. Barry McMahon ((opens in a new window)barry.mcmahon@ucd.ie) by 19th July 2024. Please ensure all documents are emailed as a single Word or PDF file.
