Research (including postgraduate research)

• Overview - research possibilities
• Main postgraduate opportunities in Botany, NUI Galway
• Funding possibilities and practical details
• Contact points

Applicants for postgraduate degrees by research ( MSc or PhD) should hold an Honours primary degree (BSc, BA, and equivalent qualifications; minimum grade: Hons, upper 2nd class). Specialisation at undergraduate level in an area relevant to the proposed research is desirable.
Applications from overseas students are particularly welcomed. Botany at NUI Galway has a long tradition of hosting international students from both within and outside the EU.

Botany at NUI, Galway is ideally situated for botanical research. The coastline of western Ireland is ideal for marine algal investigations while the many bogs and lakes are unrivalled habitats for wetland studies. Proximity to the Burren is an unique advantage given the many possibilities for research in this botanically rich and varied karstic region.

Botany Research at NUI Galway has benefited considerably over several years from funding at institutional (HEA, PRTLI programmes), national (eg. Enterprise Ireland, EPA, Heritage Council, Discovery Programme, Marine Institute) and international levels (eg. EU Framework Programmes).

Botany has an active involvement in both the Environmental Change Institute and the Martin Ryan Institute so that its researchers can avail of the extensive facilities and support offered by these institutes. Botany has also strong research links with several Disciplines both within the University and in other Universities throughout Europe and further afield which greatly facilities co-operation and exchange. Much of the research by both staff and students has a multi-disciplinary character, and multi-disciplinary and inter-institutional research is strongly encouraged.
Botany has ready access to field stations such as Carron and Finavarra in the Burren - a considerable advantage for field-based research projects.
Finally, Botany is widely recognised for its research achievements in the areas of Environmental Change and Marine Plant Science.

Main research opportunities in Botany at NUI Galway

Botany provides several possibilities for pursuing research leading to the degrees MSc and PhD or also research by postdoctoral fellows. At present, taught MSc degree courses are not offered.

Environmental Change - long-term change
The Palaeoenvironmental Research Unit, Botany, specialises in research into long-term environmental change, including climate change and human impact.
Much of the research is of particular relevance to archaeology and so there are strong co-operative links with archaeology in both NUI, Galway and elsewhere.
Pollen analysis, supplemented by macrofossil analyses, radiocarbon dating, etc., is the main technique employed. Particular emphasis is placed on construction of pollen records with high temporal resolution. Recently purchased coring equipment enable high quality cores to be obtained from deep lakes and bogs. Many of the palaeoecological projects that are undertaken have a multi-disciplinary character and use a variety of proxies for the reconstruction of long-term environmental change.

Environmental Change - terrestrial plant ecology
Research is mainly focussed on land-use impacts on areas of conservation interest and the development of sustainable systems of farming in marginal areas. Turlough ecosystems are a current major focus of inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional research. Other research interests include low-intensity farming and the role it plays in the maintenance of species-rich grasslands of the Burren and midland eskers.
An important focus is the ecology of lowland blanket bog and associated rare species, as well as hill-farming in the Connemara region and the impact of over-grazing on degradation of upland blanket bog. Coastal ecology interests have concentrated on salt marshes and sand dunes.
Much of the research has been carried out with support from, and in active collaboration with, National Parks and Wildlife as well as HEA, Teagasc and other national bodies.
For details e-mail: Dr Micheline Sheehy Skeffington
Tel. +353-91-512010, or the Botany Secretary.

For research possibilities in Tropical Ecology see http://www.tropical-biology.org/
i.e. the web pages of the Tropical Biology Association (TBA) or
contact Dr Micheline Sheehy Skeffington who is a Board member of the TBA.

Marine Plant Science  and Algal and Aquatic Plant Ecophysiology
Current research by the Marine Plant Science group includes projects on the biodiversity and utilisation of seaweeds, biology and distribution of alien (introduced) species, pollution studies/ecotoxicology, environmental stress physiology, ecology of rockpools and intertidal seaweed, distribution and mapping of seaweed resources for future potential exploitation,  and algal-fungal relationships.
Research projects range from field-based studies, involving shore work, to lab-based projects using physiological techniques.

Close links are maintained with several research institutes and university  departments at NUI Galway, in Ireland and Europe.
For details see  Marine Plant Science and Algal and Aquatic Plant Ecophysiology
Email: Dr Dagmar Stengel; Tel: +353-91- 49 3192, or the Botany Secretary

Carbohydrate Research and Evolution of Land Plants 
The fundamental processes that have enabled plants to colonise and adapt to life on land are amongst the most exciting questions in evolutionary biology.
The primary cell wall performs many essential biological roles (including tissue cohesion, defence, ion exchange, the production of oligosaccharins and the regulation of cell expansion) placing it at the frontier of evolutionary processes.  Indeed, the demands placed on the cell wall, and therefore its optimal composition, have changed during periods of rapid evolution.  Notable changes in cell wall composition are associated with plant terrestrialisation and vascularisation.
Work in this lab aims to characterise cell wall composition to enable improved insight into the mechanisms of plant terrestrialisation and vascularisation.
For details see Dr Zoë Popper;  Email Dr Zoë Popper; Tel: +353- 91- 49 5431 or the Botany Secretary.

Funding and other practical details

The Faculty of Science offers a small number of Postgraduate Fellowships each year to support postgraduate research. Application deadline in normally in June. Deadlines for application for PhD fellowships from national sources are at various times of the year (e.g. www.ircset.ie).
It is important to consult timely with your potential supervisor before making application.
From time to time, research grants obtained by members of staff include research fellowships. These are advertised in these pages, the national press and journals such as Nature and New Scientist.

Departmental contact points:  www.nuigalway.ie/botany/botany_contacts.html

College of Science/University information relating to research is available at a number of locations,
eg. Research Office http://www.nuigalway.ie/research/

Information for prospective postgraduates (MSc, PhD) is available from the Postgraduate Office www.nuigalway.ie/graduatestudies/. Application forms are also available from this office. Prior to submitting a formal application, applicants are strongly advised to discuss possible projects with a member of staff.

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