PhD in Cultural Phylogenetics

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Applications are invited for a full-time PhD studentship in Cultural Phylogenetics at the University of Bristol in the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology. The closing date for applications is May 31st 2015. Interviews will be conducted in June.

Project: VariKin: Cultural Evolution of Kinship Diversity
Why do human societies differ in who they class as family? Why are cousins called the same terms as siblings in some languages and not others? Can we tell what kinship systems existed in the past? To answer these questions a PhD position is offered in the five-year European Research Council Starting Grant project entitled “VariKin: Cultural Evolution of Kinship Diversity” led by Dr Fiona Jordan in the Department of Archaeology & Anthropology at the University of Bristol. The PhD studentship is a full-time fixed term position of 3.5 years.

The successful candidate will:

  • Have a disciplinary background in a science or social science such as anthropology, biology, psychology, sociology, linguistics or another relevant field.
  • Demonstrate an aptitude for and/or experience with computational and quantitative skills.
  • Be familiar with cultural evolutionary research methods. Training in phylogenetic comparative methods will be given but some prior familiarity or experience would be preferable.
  • Display a genuine interest in cultural diversity and human kinship, and ideally, have familiarity with the anthropology and/or linguistics of kinship.
  • Be enthusiastic about working in a multi-disciplinary team and demonstrate evidence of interest or activities beyond their core discipline.
  • Fulfil the entrance requirements for a Department of Archaeology & Anthropology MPhil/PhD i.e. hold an M-level qualification in a relevant subject as well as an undergraduate degree at 2:1 or 1st class (or equivalent). See further details on requirements here: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/admissions-statements/archandanthpgr.html
  • Show evidence of experience in conducting independent research to completion, including skills for identifying and articulating a research programme, obtaining and synthesising relevant knowledge, analysing data, and writing and presenting results for dissemination.