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  Understanding genomic structural variation for cattle complex phenotypes


   PHD Opportunities

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  Dr Bingjie Li  No more applications being accepted  Competition Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)

About the Project

Funding

This PhD project is part of a competition funded by SRUC. This opportunity is open to UK and International students and provides funding to cover tuition fees at the UK rate, plus a stipend to support living costs.

The proportion of international students appointed through this competition is capped at 30%. All students must meet the entry criteria for the PhD in Agriculture, Rural and Environmental Studies.

The Project

Understanding the genetic basis of complex traits has been one of the essential topics in cattle production. This PhD project aims to train a PhD researcher to learn the methods of deciphering genetic background of complex phenotypes using cattle data and explore the importance of genomic structure variation underlying cattle complex phenotypes.  

This PhD study builds on SRUC’s large cattle data accumulated over the past 50 years. The student will work in a research team and supervisors with rich experience in cattle genetics, genomics, and breeding for complex traits. In the project the student will work on genomic structure variants using DNA sequence data and assess the impact of structure variants on cattle complex phenotypes (with focus on production, feed efficiency, and molecular phenotypes) using large-scale cattle data.  

The student will obtain research training on quantitative genetics and genomics, statistical modelling, and bioinformatics. The student will also obtain valuable training in scientific writing, project management skills, and career development skills. In addition, the student will be offered with valuable opportunities to collaborate with researchers and industry in the UK, EU and US.  

Candidates are preferred to have some previous experience or education in genetics, genomics, animal breeding, computational biology, or bioinformatics. Advanced scientific training for the PhD project will be offered to the successful candidate.

This project will be based at SRUC, Edinburgh.

Eligibility

For entry to PhD study, applicants are expected to have at least one of the following:

• an undergraduate degree, usually with first or upper second (2:1) class honours or equivalent in a relevant subject, or

• a relevant master’s qualification or equivalent evidence of prior professional practice.

International applicants and candidates from non-English speaking countries will need to meet the minimum language requirements for admission onto the programme of study. These can be found in the Entry Requirements section of the PhD in Agriculture, Rural and Environmental Studies webpage

How to Apply

To apply for an SRUC PhD studentship, please follow the guidance below or on the SRUC Postgraduate Research Opportunities webpage. The SRUC Doctoral College can provide you with support for your application.

Informal enquiries about the project and your application should be addressed to the project supervisor, Dr Bingjie Li - [Email Address Removed]

After you have approached the project supervisor and discussed your application with them, you should:

1) Complete the online SRUC Equality, Diversity and Inclusion survey; the survey will automatically generate a completion receipt number that you should copy and paste on the relevant section of your SRUC Application Form.

2) Download and fill in the SRUC Application Form.

3) Download and send the Academic Reference Form to your two academic/professional referees, and ask them to submit the references directly to [Email Address Removed] by 31 January 2025

4) Submit your complete application, along with academic transcripts and certificates to [Email Address Removed] by 31 January 2025

If you require any additional assistance in submitting your application or have any queries about the application process, please don't hesitate to contact us at [Email Address Removed]

Agriculture (1) Biological Sciences (4)

Funding Notes

This PhD project is fully funded for 3.5 years. It is part of a competition funded by SRUC and is open to students worldwide. Funding will cover tuition fees at the UK rate, plus a stipend to support living costs and an annual research grant of £3,000 for the first three years of the PhD research (this is reduced to £500 in the writing-up year of the PhD).


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