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Job Posting Forum
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The Vanderbilt Institute for Energy and the Environment (VIEE), the university’s Climate Change Research Network (CCRN) and the Consortium for Risk Evaluation with Stakeholder Participation (CRESP) are pleased to invite applications from qualified candidates for several two-year postdoctoral fellowships. We anticipate that three appointments will be made. Applications are sought from candidates with primary experience in one or more of several relevant fields, for example sociology, social psychology, environmental sciences, systems engineering, the decision sciences and ethics. For the first of these appointees the basic thrust of the work will be on quantitative social psychological or sociological studies of the influences on energy use and environmentally significant behavior by individuals and households. For the second, the focus will be studies related to the water-energy nexus, including how changes in environmentally significant behavior would alter air and water quality variables. A third appointee will pursue other policy-focused studies to understand the relationship processes that promote transparency and community assent on the one hand and improved decision making about energy sources, environmental mitigation and other environmental impacts on the other.
The positions will allow the applicants to interact with faculty, graduate students, and other postdoctoral fellows representing a wide range of disciplines, including regulatory and environmental law, political science, economics, psychology, human and organizational development, management, earth and environmental sciences, and engineering. The fellows will have the opportunity to and will be expected to work on joint research projects involving interdisciplinary teams drawn from these fields.
The postdoctoral fellows will function together as part of this postdoctoral fellow program. With their primary and secondary mentors, each will work in concert with the other collaborating faculty to develop his or her research plan for the postdoctoral fellowship. The plan will identify the specific activities for the fellow, including the following:
• Research: We expect that the fellows will be involved in multiple research projects, including conducting research project(s) and working on faculty research projects.
• Building Knowledge Base: We expect that the fellows will leave the Program with an expanded knowledge base concerning his or her particular area of research. Thus, the plan of work will identify activities to build this knowledge by enrolling in graduate courses, participating in directed studies and research seminars, attending research conferences, etc.
• Writing for Publication: We expect that the fellows will demonstrate strong writing skills and will demonstrate an ongoing work ethic around publications and writing. Thus, we expect that the fellows will develop and submit three to four manuscripts for peer-reviewed publication per year during the postdoctoral program.
Qualifications:
For the first position, a Ph.D. in social psychology or sociology or a related field is required. The second appointment will require a Ph.D. in engineering or natural sciences, for example, in environmental or Earth sciences, environmental engineering, or systems engineering. The third appointment will require a Ph.D whose graduate work demonstrates understanding of both technical and policy aspects of energy and/ or environmental decision making. In addition, all candidates should have a strong interest and demonstrated expertise in their particular field, persuasive communication techniques, and skills in quantitative methods. The candidates also should all have either experience or demonstrated interest in research on energy- and/or environmentally significant behavior. The candidates also must demonstrate strong writing skills. Strong interpersonal skills are also required as this is a collaborative, team-based effort. The candidates must be self-starters who are comfortable taking initiative and who can play a major role in helping to bring several projects to completion.
Primary Faculty Mentors: Four Vanderbilt faculty will serve as the primary initial mentors for these three postdoctoral appointments. These faculty are George M. Hornberger, Distinguished Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Charles W. Powers, Professor of Environmental Engineering, Kenneth Wallston, Professor of Psychology in Nursing, and Michael P. Vandenbergh, Professor of Law. See resumes at: http://sitemason.vanderbilt.edu/site/hHIIZW
Postdoctoral Fellow Selection:
The deadline for applications is December 31, 2008 for fellows who will start in academic year 2009-2010. Applications should be submitted electronically to viee@vanderbilt.edu and should include the following:
• Curriculum Vitae (CV) or Résumé
• Three (3) letters of reference from supervisors or professors signed and on letterhead with email addresses and phone numbers included.
• Essay (3-5 pages) describing:
o Reasons for applying
o Goals to be accomplished in the Program
o Plan for conducting research during the Program
o Identify the faculty member(s) who would potentially serve as a primary or secondary mentor
o Identify how completion of the Program will help accomplish career goals
An interview will be conducted with individuals who present a strong statement and appear to be qualified based on a review of their CV and strength of letters of reference. The applicant will be interviewed by a committee comprised of faculty who are affiliated with the VIEE, CRESP and CCRN. The faculty committee will review the applications and the outcome of the interviews to determine which individuals should be offered a postdoctoral fellowship.
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