PhD Studentship: Promoting Coral Recovery After Bleaching Events

The University of Essex offers a fully-funded PhD studentship in collaboration with the Tropical Marine Centre to study coral recovery after bleaching events. Working within the Essex Coral Research Unit aquarium, the candidate will employ advanced non-invasive imaging methods such as light-sheet microscopy and optical coherence tomography. The project involves examining symbiont dynamics, measuring internal environmental conditions with microsensors, and creating new strategies for marine conservation. The successful applicant will receive comprehensive training in coral husbandry, experimental design, and complex dataset analysis.

• Conduct experiments on coral recovery processes within a research aquarium facility
• Utilize advanced non-invasive imaging methods including light-sheet microscopy and optical coherence tomography
• Develop custom imaging pipelines to track symbiont dynamics and coral tissue changes over time
• Deploy optical and chemical microsensors to measure environmental conditions inside coral tissue
• Analyze complex multi-dimensional datasets and 3D imaging outputs
• Collaborate with industry partners at the Tropical Marine Centre to translate findings into commercial applications
• Communicate scientific findings effectively to both academic and non-academic stakeholders