PhD volunteers sought for Antarctic science and adventure

In 1913, the Anglo-Irish explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton allegedly ran the following advert in The Times newspaper:

Shackleton's famous advert

Men wanted for hazardous journey, small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful, honor and recognition in case of success.

Although it seems unlikely this call was actually ever made, it is very much in the spirit of the great Antarctic explorer. Inspired by the likes of Shackleton and Mawson, the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 2013-2014 is making a similar call for volunteers. In this more enlightened age though, we’re looking for volunteers of either gender to join us on our journey south. To be eligible you must be a registered student working towards a PhD and be able to place your studies on hold for a minimum of 3 weeks between the 23 November 2013 and the 6 January 2014. 

Sir Ernest Shackleton (1908; courtesy of the State Library of Victoria) 
Sadly this will not be a holiday or go towards supporting your own research programme.  Instead, you will be working closely with the science leaders and public members of the expedition in a hostile environment, supporting the science program to help communicate the results generated during the expedition. Applications are invited from all disciplines and nations. While on the expedition all costs will be covered but you must be able to fund your travel to and from southern New Zealand.

To apply we are looking for a two-minute YouTube movie clip explaining why you want to join the expedition and how you feel this will help you in your future career. Submissions must be uploaded using a YouTube account and the URL sent to us via the ‘Contact AAE’ page along with the title of your PhD and the name and contact details of your two supervisors. Make sure your submission is set to ‘Privacy Settings: Unlisted’ or you will be sharing your application with the world!

This will be a once in a lifetime opportunity but the deadline for applications is fast approaching: submissions must be made by this Friday (13 September). Just one week to go.

For the successful applicants, honour and recognition will be assured!

 By Chris Turney (at +Intrepid Science)


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