Graduate position advertisement below and attachedThe Phillips Lab in the School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences (BEES) at the University of Southern Mississippi (Carnegie R1) is recruiting a PhD student in Biology to develop and use environmental DNA (eDNA) tools to study the status and ecology of highly threatened ‘rhino rays’, including sawfish, wedgefish, and giant guitarfish. The successful candidate will join a diverse lab group and work as part of an international research team dedicated to shark and ray conservation. The successful candidate is expected to take initiative in developing and completing the scope and direction of their dissertation under the guidance of their PI and committee.Required Qualifications:BSc in Biology or a related fieldHighly self-motivatedCapacity to work independentlyStrong written and oral communication skills Interest in eDNA science Detail-orientedPreferred Qualifications:MS in Biology or related fieldPrevious experience with DNA extractions or PCR Peer-reviewed publication(s)A stipend will be provided via Teaching (initially) and/or Research Assistantships and include a full tuition waiver. Students are also encouraged to apply for additional scholarships that are available, to be discussed on a case-by-case basis.Interested candidates should email a cover letter/expression of interest and CV that includes contact information for three references to:N.Phillips@usm.edu. Review of materials will begin immediately. Candidates will also need to formally apply to the USM Graduate program by February15 2024 for Fall 2024 admittance (preferred) or October 15 for a Spring2025 start.Helpful links:Graduate admissions process:https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usm.edu%2Fgraduate-admissions%2Findex.php%23apply&data=05%7C02%7Cmid14018%40uconn.mail.onmicrosoft.com%7C13b96526bdd44c02fcf508dc2272a1ac%7C17f1a87e2a254eaab9df9d439034b080%7C0%7C0%7C638423122932746094%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=WaClRGOHq9ZkYPJAqyvJLgxZNtkdEBSOEcTckTN52OU%3D&reserved=0.Admission requirements (School of BEES):https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcatalog.usm.edu%2Fpreview_program.php%3Fcatoid%3D33%26poid%3D16664&data=05%7C02%7Cmid14018%40uconn.mail.onmicrosoft.com%7C13b96526bdd44c02fcf508dc2272a1ac%7C17f1a87e2a254eaab9df9d439034b080%7C0%7C0%7C638423122932754172%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=KAj9GgznkHCkZsFA8Gx3z5Nc1fWpHgCWotjXKmC64BY%3D&reserved=0Info about the Phillips Lab:https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.usm.edu%2Ffaculty-directory%2Fprofile.php%3Fid%3D1937119&data=05%7C02%7Cmid14018%40uconn.mail.onmicrosoft.com%7C13b96526bdd44c02fcf508dc2272a1ac%7C17f1a87e2a254eaab9df9d439034b080%7C0%7C0%7C638423122932759155%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=i2FpNZV9yzxv4rvtR0IZT3V0V14oVUeqICrnKSg1io4%3D&reserved=0