Field Assistantships
Think this sounds like something you’d like to do? Do you already have some experience with camping, primates, the tropics, biology, etc and want to get some more? I'm searching for several self-reliant and durable field assistants to work on projects! Assistants may be responsible for collecting social behavior, foraging, ranging, demographic, and life history data as well as fecal samples for hormonal and genetic analyses from multiple social groups in South American taxa, or for helping with trapping and data collection with wild vervet monkeys in sites around the Free State and Eastern Cape of South Africa. Other responsibilities may include monthly plant phenological monitoring, tree and trail mapping, data entry, and opportunistic data collection for other ongoing primate studies at any given site.
Assistants will not be allowed to collect data for publication independent of established research projects - e.g. for their own theses. Ideally, this experience will be seen as an internship for your own future research. I do, however, strongly encourage assistants to work with me coauthoring papers based on or stemming from the data they assist in collecting. If you are interested in pursuing a graduate degree that involves fieldwork in the tropics, this should be a fantastic experience.
Qualifications/Experience
Applicants should have a BS/BA in Biology, Ecology, Animal Behavior, Genetics/Genomics, Physical Anthropology, Primatology, or a related field. Although previous experience with primates is not necessary, previous experience with animals, camping, or working outdoors is strongly preferred. The ideal applicant should have prior experience with living or working in a foreign country, preferably a developing country in the tropics. For Latin American sites, knowledge of Spanish is helpful, but not necessary. Experience with collecting systematic data in a scientific context is preferred, and a strong interest in primate behavior, physiology, and ecology a must. In general, applicants must be in good condition; feel comfortable being far away from family and friends; be emotionally mature, energetic, and very patient; have an excellent eye for detail; not be afraid of bugs, snakes, or being alone in the forest; have very good social skills, especially in small groups; and be able to maintain a positive and humorous attitude towards challenging and tiring work.
This work will be rigorous and demanding. Assistants will be expected to work about 12 hours in the field each day, about 25 days out of each month. The terrain in the research sites can be quite hilly in places, seasonally floods in others, and the climate is often hot, humid, and rainy (while in South Africa it can be quite cold) - thus persistence, maturity, dedication, and good humor are very important. Preference will be given to applicants with previous outdoor experience in demanding environments.
Salary/Funding
Funding depends on the project. Generally, applicants must pay their own round-trip airfare to sites and for travel within country to and from the research locale (although these may be reimbursed at the end of the research period). Assistants are also responsible for the costs of obtaining a visa to work in country, for health insurance and immunizations that permit that work (proof of yellow fever immunization is a must; vaccination against tetanus, typhoid, rabies, hepatitis A and B, etc., are all also strongly recommended), and their own personal field clothes and gear.
Term of Appointment
Minimum 3 month commitment; 6-12 months commitment preferred.
Application Details
Applicants will be taken until all positions are filled, year-round. Interviewing will be done as prospective candidates are found. Starting dates are negotiable, with multiple positions available. Serious applicants please email to receive a field guide describing projects in more detail. If still interested after reading the guide, please submit via email the following:
1. CV including relevant coursework, previous field/outdoor experience, where/how you can be contacted.
2. Letter of interest (please include dates you are available).
3. References from two persons (preferably professors or research supervisors with whom you’ve worked closely) in which they provide information about your experiences, skills, and training.
Contact Information
Please direct all initial inquiries to Christopher Schmitt: caschmit [at] bu [dot] edu
For more information about the field sites, research, and previous work in the area, please look around this site and see the Links page or email me at the address above.
Assistants will not be allowed to collect data for publication independent of established research projects - e.g. for their own theses. Ideally, this experience will be seen as an internship for your own future research. I do, however, strongly encourage assistants to work with me coauthoring papers based on or stemming from the data they assist in collecting. If you are interested in pursuing a graduate degree that involves fieldwork in the tropics, this should be a fantastic experience.
Qualifications/Experience
Applicants should have a BS/BA in Biology, Ecology, Animal Behavior, Genetics/Genomics, Physical Anthropology, Primatology, or a related field. Although previous experience with primates is not necessary, previous experience with animals, camping, or working outdoors is strongly preferred. The ideal applicant should have prior experience with living or working in a foreign country, preferably a developing country in the tropics. For Latin American sites, knowledge of Spanish is helpful, but not necessary. Experience with collecting systematic data in a scientific context is preferred, and a strong interest in primate behavior, physiology, and ecology a must. In general, applicants must be in good condition; feel comfortable being far away from family and friends; be emotionally mature, energetic, and very patient; have an excellent eye for detail; not be afraid of bugs, snakes, or being alone in the forest; have very good social skills, especially in small groups; and be able to maintain a positive and humorous attitude towards challenging and tiring work.
This work will be rigorous and demanding. Assistants will be expected to work about 12 hours in the field each day, about 25 days out of each month. The terrain in the research sites can be quite hilly in places, seasonally floods in others, and the climate is often hot, humid, and rainy (while in South Africa it can be quite cold) - thus persistence, maturity, dedication, and good humor are very important. Preference will be given to applicants with previous outdoor experience in demanding environments.
Salary/Funding
Funding depends on the project. Generally, applicants must pay their own round-trip airfare to sites and for travel within country to and from the research locale (although these may be reimbursed at the end of the research period). Assistants are also responsible for the costs of obtaining a visa to work in country, for health insurance and immunizations that permit that work (proof of yellow fever immunization is a must; vaccination against tetanus, typhoid, rabies, hepatitis A and B, etc., are all also strongly recommended), and their own personal field clothes and gear.
Term of Appointment
Minimum 3 month commitment; 6-12 months commitment preferred.
Application Details
Applicants will be taken until all positions are filled, year-round. Interviewing will be done as prospective candidates are found. Starting dates are negotiable, with multiple positions available. Serious applicants please email to receive a field guide describing projects in more detail. If still interested after reading the guide, please submit via email the following:
1. CV including relevant coursework, previous field/outdoor experience, where/how you can be contacted.
2. Letter of interest (please include dates you are available).
3. References from two persons (preferably professors or research supervisors with whom you’ve worked closely) in which they provide information about your experiences, skills, and training.
Contact Information
Please direct all initial inquiries to Christopher Schmitt: caschmit [at] bu [dot] edu
For more information about the field sites, research, and previous work in the area, please look around this site and see the Links page or email me at the address above.
