PhD Scholarship in Dynamics Point Processes in Ecological Modelling

PhD Scholarship in Dynamics Point Processes in Ecological Modelling

This PhD scholarship gives the candidate an exciting opportunity to develop dynamic stochastic processes to model temporal evolution in spatial ecology.

This PhD Scholarship is funded by 2022 ARC Discovery Project “Modelling temporal evolution in spatial ecology with dynamical point processes".

The world is undergoing rapid environmental change, including global warming, shifting climates, eutrophication, habitat loss and fragmentation, and shifting disturbance regimes.

Both the distribution and abundance of organisms, which are fundamental components of ecology, are being severely disrupted by the rapid acceleration of these changes. Understanding variation and change in where individuals of given species occur is crucial for making predictions about future states of species populations and ecological communities.

The project will explore the application of dynamical point process models from probability theory to ecology so as to determine their applicability to problems of explaining and predicting variation and change in distribution and abundance of organisms.  In order to achieve this goal, the project will adapt, improve and advance the established theory, and apply the theory to a series of datasets consisting of configurations of individuals in space and time. The project will also develop and disseminate software to fit models and evaluate their performance.

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A stipend of $32,841 per annum pro rata (full-time study).

One scholarship available

Scholarships are awarded based on a competitive selection procedure that ranks applicants according to their academic performance, research outputs, and relevant professional experience. Each candidate on the shortlist will be interviewed prior to the final selection.

 

Applicants must:

  1. Meet RMIT’s entry requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy, including minimum English language requirements for international applicants, as outlined under 'Admissions' in PhD (Mathematical Science).
  2. Have a Master, first-class Honours or equivalent in one of the disciplines of statistics, mathematics, or data analytics/science.
  3. Excellent programming skills with R, C, C++ or Python.

 

Desired: 

  • Knowledge or experience with spatial statistics, spatial modelling or GIS;
  • Some knowledge with ecology; 
  • Excellent writing and communication skills;
  • Experience with journal article writing; 
  • Demonstrated capacity to work independently and as part of a team with different team member backgrounds.

Email Associate Professor Yan Wang (yan.wang@rmit.edu.au) directly with your statement of interest, cover letter addressing the desirable criteria, CV and academic qualifications.

Also see the HDR How to Apply website.

Applications are now open.

Application closes when this scholarship is filled.

This PhD project will fill the large gap between the profound theoretical work on elaborate diffusion-based and birth- and-death dynamical point processes, and their practical use in ecology. The project is expected to contribute to the ecological modelling theory, and make the field more accessible to ecological modelling practitioners.

Associate Professor Yan Wang via yan.wang@rmit.edu.au, Mathematics Discipline, School of Science

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