This project is part of the DPhil in Biology at the University of Oxford
While most animal species are usually comprised of separate male and female individuals, plant mating systems are far more diverse, with multiple independent origins of separate sexes (dioecy) from ancestral hermaphroditic state. What happens at the genome and gene expression levels when an organism evolves separate sexes?
In this project the student will focus on arguably the most interesting and peculiar part of the genome – the sex chromosomes – to unravel the evolutionary processes driving the change in gene expression and chromosome structure over the first few million years since the origin of dioecy and sex chromosomes. The project will focus on plant genus Silene where separate sexes and sex chromosomes evolved only 10 million years ago, which provides a rare opportunity to study the early stages of sex chromosome evolution.
The project will include a combination of molecular and bioinformatic work and it will provide extensive training in evolutionary genetics and bioinformatic analysis of high-throughput sequence data.
This project is part of the Evolutionary Biology theme in the Department of Biology.
Funding
This project is part of the DPhil in Biology programme, and is not a funded course at the University of Oxford, as such, students are expected to explore options for funding. However, we anticipate being able to offer around 6 full graduate scholarships to incoming DPhil Students in 2023-24
You will be automatically considered for the majority of Oxford scholarships, if you fulfil the eligibility criteria and submit your graduate application by 20 January 2023. Scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic achievement and potential to excel as a DPhil student.
For further details about searching for funding as a graduate student visit the University’s dedicated Funding pages.
Eligibility
For full entry requirements and eligibility information, please see the main admissions page.
How to apply
The deadline for applications for 2023-2024 entry is midday 20 January 2023. We will continue to accept applications submitted after 20 January 2023, but these late applications will not be considered for scholarship funding.
You can find the admissions portal and further information about eligibility and the DPhil in Biology Programme at the University's graduate admissions page.
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