Joan Wrench Kirstenbosch Scholarship Fund

(Honours x 2, Masters x 6, Doctoral x 2)

The Joan Wrench Scholarship Fund was established in 2018 to recognise academic achievement of young professionals and to provide financial support to pursue practical training or postgraduate studies in relevant biodiversity fields.

The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) is pleased to announce a call for applications for Honours, Masters and Doctoral scholarships for full time studies in 2020.

Projects:

Only projects relevant to SANBI’s mandate and identified as a priority will be considered. For other projects, please contact us before submitting an application to check if your proposal is suitable.

Please see a list for specific research projects below:

• Assessment of wild honey bee harvesting densities, genetic diversity and economic beekeeping benefits in the Western Cape
• Drivers of floral diversification in the Dimorphotheca pluvialis-sinuata species complex
• Evolution of fruit form and function in the Cape daisy tribe Calenduleae
• Generic circumscriptions within the Cape endemic tribe Stilbeae (Stilbaceae)
• Impacts of pesticide use on insect pollinators in agroecosystems a case study for the selected areas of the Western Cape Province
• Improve understanding of relationships among wetland catchment hydrology
• Land degradation in South Africa
• Phylogeny and taxonomy of the Cape daisy genus Osteospermum
• Refining the delineation and description of Western Altimone Sandstone Fynbos (FFs30)
• Species-level phylogenetics in the Namaqualand daisy genus Dimorphotheca
• Survey of morphological characters across the southern African Thymelaeaceae
• Systematics of African Vernonieae (Asteraceae)
• Systematics of the genus Argyrolobium (Genisteae, Papilionoideae, Fabaceae)
• Systematics of the genus Microdon (Scrophulariaceae)
• Systematics of the Gnidia juniperifolia clade (Thymelaeaceae)
• Systematics of Ursinia subgenus Sphenogyne (Asteraceae)
• Systematics, ethnobotany and chemotaxonomy of Alepidea (Apiaceae, Apioideae, Saniculeae)

Requirements:

Candidates must be pro-active, enthusiastic, and interested in doing excellent research that can make a difference. These scholarships are only available to South African citizens and will be awarded in line with national equity targets. Students need to apply for university programmes themselves (only at universities in the Western Cape) and the scholarship is conditional upon them securing their placement in a postgraduate programme and having provisional acceptance from prospective academic supervisors, of which one should be from SANBI.

Scholarship values: (to cover living expenses and university fees)

• Honours: R96 000 for one year only
• Masters: R144 000/year for two years
• Doctoral: R180 000/year for three years

Project running expenses will be covered separately and will vary depending on the project.

Conditions:

• Applicants must be South African citizens
• Applicants must register at universities in the Western Cape
• Applicants must reside in Cape Town for the duration of the studies
• Only research projects in line with the SANBI mandate will be considered
• Only full time studies will be supported
• Existing studies will not be considered
• Registration for a second Honours, Masters or Doctoral degree will not be considered
• Applicants must not be employed
• Applicants must not hold other scholarships/bursaries 

Application procedure:

Each application is to be accompanied by a standard application cover sheet – attached.

Applications are to include a letter of interest; full CV; certified copies of academic record/transcript and highest qualification; as well as ID and driver’s license;  a project outline; two letters of academic reference; a letter from prospective supervsior indicating willingness to supervise and provisional registration from the university. Send all documents to students@sanbi.org.za with “Joan Wrench Scholarship Fund studentships” in the subject line.

SANBI reserves the right not to fill these scholarships.

If no response has been received within 30 days of the closing date, candidates may assume that their applications were unsuccessful.

Successful candidates will be notified by 1 October 2019.

Enquiries:
Dr Ferozah Conrad
Email: f.conrad@sanbi.org.za

Ms René du Toit
Email: r.dutoit@sanbi.org.za