[ES_JOBS_NET] 4-year PhD opportunity at UNSW, Sydney

[Martin De Kauwe]

Dear friends and colleagues,

Apologies for cross-posting, please forward this 4 year PhD opportunity to
potentially interested candidates ...

"How complex should a land surface model be to accurately predict extremes?"

We live in a data-rich world, yet the representations of the land surface
in climate models were largely conceived in the absence of observations.
Comparisons against observations identify model weaknesses; this then fuels
a drive towards increased model complexity. How much of this added
complexity is warranted? This project aims to build the simplest model of
the terrestrial biosphere that the data can support. The project will
combine a data-driven approach with the principles of optimality theory. By
delivering a simpler, data- and theory-driven model we will unlock new
understanding about climate model behaviour to improve predictions of
climate extremes.

The student will receive a stipend of 40K per year for four years, as well
as up to $10k each year for career development. The project is based
at the Climate
Change Research Centre <http://www.ccrc.unsw.edu.au/> at the University of
New South Wales (UNSW), Australia, under the supervision of Dr Martin De
Kauwe <https://mdekauwe.github.io/>, Professor Andrew Pitman
<http://www.ccrc.unsw.edu.au/ccrc-team/academic-research/andy-pitman>
and Associate
Professor Lisa Alexander
<http://www.ccrc.unsw.edu.au/ccrc-team/academic-research/lisa-alexander>.
Both international and domestic applications are strongly encouraged.

The successful candidate will be aligned with the Australian Research
Council Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes an international research
consortium of five Australian universities (The University of New South
Wales, Monash University, The University of Melbourne, The University of
Tasmania and The Australian National University) and a suite of outstanding
national and international Partner Organizations. The Centre provides
excellent opportunities for travel and graduate student development.

We are looking for expressions of interest from outstanding graduates with
a strong academic record including Honours Class I or equivalent. Graduates
with a strong background in mathematics, physics, atmospheric science,
engineering or a similar quantitative science are particularly encouraged
to apply. Programming experience with C, Fortran 90, Python or R is highly
desirable.

Questions should be directed to Martin De Kauwe (m.dekauwe at unsw.edu.au) -
the application process is a little involved and we will guide suitable
applicants through it. Further details about the Scientia PhD scholarships
can be found at https://www.2025.unsw.edu.au/apply and summarised in the
FAQ (https://www.2025.unsw.edu.au/apply/unsw-scientia-phd-scholarships-faqs
).

Many thanks,

Martin
---
Dr Martin De Kauwe

ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes
Climate Change Research Centre
Room 462
UNSW Sydney
NSW 2052 Australia

t:   +61293858481
m: +61478096086
w:  http://mdekauwe.github.io
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