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A full-time Ph.D. position (three years) is available immediately in the
Department of Plant Chorology and Vegetation Science (in collaboration with the
Department of Higher Plant Systematics and Evolution) of the Institute of
Botany of the University of Vienna, Austria. Salary in this position is 27,000 Euros
per year. The successful applicant will work on a doctoral thesis in the University
of Vienna in context of research funded by the Austrian Science Foundation dealing
with phylogeny and phylogeography of Androsace sect. Aretia (Primulaceae).
This plant group occurs mainly in the European mountain ranges and comprises
ca. 20 taxa, which exhibit complex disjunction patterns within and among
mountain ranges. The following questions will be addressed with this model
system: (1) Is the species-richness in the Alps and Pyrenees due to in situ-
radiation (cladogenesis) or multiple colonization events with subsequent
anagenetic speciation? (2) What are the phylogeographical patterns of widely
distributed but disjunct species? Are these disjunctions due to (ancient) range
fragmentation or due to recent long-distance dispersal events? (3) How deep are
the major splits within widely but disjunctly distributed species compared to
those between sister-taxa? Are there cryptic taxa to be discovered? The applied
methods will include DNA-sequencing, fingerprinting techniques (AFLP, PCR-
RFLPs of cpDNA) and classical and molecular cytogenetic techniques. Funds are
available for all bench costs, equipment and reagents for the three years of
the thesis duration. Laboratory training of the student will be through technical
staff and post-docs. Academic training is through seminars and graduate-level
courses in the Institute of Botany and within the University of Vienna. The student
should be familiar with molecular and/or cytogenetic techniques. Experience in field-
work (especially in alpine regions) is desirable, but not required. Good
English skills are necessary (knowledge of German is not essential, but obviously
helpful for living in Vienna). A Master's degree (or Diplom) is required. Please send
electronically a letter of application, CV, university transcripts (personal
copies acceptable), and two letters of recommendation (these can also be faxed: 43-1-
4277-9541) to: { mailto:gerald.schneeweiss at univie.ac.at
}gerald.schneeweiss at univie.ac.at. Evaluation of applicants will
begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.
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