Details
The ACCE DTP is committed to recruiting extraordinary future scientists regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, faith or religious belief, pregnancy or maternity, parental or caring responsibilities or career pathway to date. We understand that a student’s potential can be shown in many ways and we strive to recruit students from all backgrounds, and support them on their scientific journey.
We have designed our application systems to identify candidates who are likely to be successful in research regardless of what opportunities may have been available to them prior to their application.
Various support and guidance on applying for an ACCE DTP studentship, including how to apply; what we’re looking for (including our assessment rubric); details of financial support, training, and placement opportunities available; and details of our recruitment process, can be found at accedtp.ac.uk, in the ‘prospective applicants’ tab.
Project Overview
Background: Land surface properties, such as topography, and soil moisture content, influence land-atmosphere (L-A) energy and moisture exchange. Moreover, alterations in land surface characteristics can have far-reaching consequences, impacting the water cycle, air quality, and the frequency/severity of natural disasters, all of which significantly affect human well-being. Consequently, gaining a profound understanding of these L-A interactions, is of paramount importance when addressing critical societal concerns such as food/water security, and enhances our ability to predict weather/climate patterns, particularly with climate change.
The Andes-Amazon transitional region is particularly significant for L-A. The Amazon Forest plays a crucial role as a significant source of heat and moisture for atmospheric circulation. Moreover, the transport of Amazon evapotranspiration by the South American Low-Level Jet is essential for generating precipitation to the east of the tropical Andes. The intricate and unique L-A interactions within Andes-Amazon play a critical role in the management of Andean water resources.
Objectives:
1. Undertake comparative analysis of existing Convection-Permitting Climate Model (CPCM) simulations, and evaluate model performances over the Andes-Amazon.
2. Conduct new model simulations, with altered land-use-land-change (LULC) of deforestation/reforestation.
3. Quantify how LULCs alter L-A interactions.
4. Investigate the impacts of changing L-A interactions on water resources in the Andes-Amazon.
Novelty and Timeliness:
Recent observational and modelling advancements provide unique opportunities to study L-A interactions over Andes-Amazon, especially the development of high-resolution CPCMs, with improved representation of shallow groundwater dynamics, surface energy fluxes, and convection. The stores of water in snow and glaciers of the tropical Andes are vital for managing water resources and ensuring regional water security. Given the ongoing depletion of these stores of water in this already fragile region, it becomes crucial to comprehend how LULC in the Andes-Amazon region (resulting from climate change and human activities) impact local water resources.
Essential Criteria
Background in climate science
Demonstrable ability of quantitative analysis and communication skills
Some experience of programming (e.g., Python, R, Matlab)
Desirable Criteria
Knowledge and experience with HPC environment
Experience with running numerical models
Understanding of land-atmosphere feedback
How to Apply
Notes and details of how to apply are available here: https://accedtp.ac.uk/phd-opportunities/
All applicants to ACCE must complete the ACCE personal statement proforma. This is instead of a personal/supporting statement or cover letter. The proforma is designed to standardise this part of the application to minimise the difference between those who are given support and those who are not. Candidates should also submit a cv and the contact details of 2 referees.
Informal enquiries may be made to [email protected]
Part-Time Study Options
All ACCE PhDs are available as part time or full time, with part time being a minimum of 50% of full time. Please discuss potential part time arrangements with the primary supervisor before applying to the programme.
Project CASE Status
This project is not a CASE project. While individual applicant quality is our overriding criterion for selection, the ACCE DTP has a commitment for 40% of all studentships to be CASE funded - as such, CASE projects may be favoured in shortlisting applicants when candidates are otherwise deemed to be equal or a consensus on student quality cannot be reached. This will only be done as a last resort for separating candidates.
Funding Information
NERC ACCE DTP programme starts from October 2024.
UKRI provide the following funding for 3.5 years:
• Stipend (2023/24 UKRI rate £18,622)
• Tuition Fees at UK fee rate (2023/24 rate £4,712)
• Research support and training grant (RTSG)
Note - UKRI funding only covers UK (Home) fees. The DTP partners have various schemes which allow international students to join the DTP but only be required to pay home fees. Home fees are already covered in the UKRI funding, meaning that successful international candidates do not need to find any additional funding for fees.