Waipapa Taumata Rau - The University of Auckland

Homepage: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en.html

Description

The Institute of Marine Science at the University of Auckland is seeking a highly motivated PhD student to join the new Te Moana Mahana research team. This PhD is funded by the recently awarded 2025 MBIE Endeavour Research Programme Te Moana Mahana (https://te-moana-mahana.org) and will support the activities of the Ocean Impacts work package. The PhD project will develop research to understand the impact of extreme weather and ocean events on ocean physical-biological coupling in two coastal areas, the Hauraki Gulf Tīkapa Moana Te Moananui a Toi and the Otago shelf.

You’ll join a collaborative, trans-institutional team of ocean and climate scientists working across observation and modelling over a range of scales relating to New Zealand’s coastal oceans. The project offers access to a pool of oceanographic equipment and infrastructure as well as supercomputing resources and simulation archives. The work will include development of links to government, Māori, industry, and international partners.

Candidate Requirements

• MSc/First-class Honours (or equivalent) in some form of environmental science – particularly physical, biological or chemical oceanography, climate science, or atmospheric science.
• Demonstrated interest in physical-biological interactions in the ocean.
• Aptitude for working with observational data and model outputs.
• Demonstrable skills in Python or Matlab for quantitative analysis.
• Good communication and writing skills

What we offer

• Full PhD scholarship for 3.5 years (fees + stipend, subject to funding conditions). Please note the scholarship will not be extended beyond this.
• Access to world-class research facilities and mentorship.
• Opportunity to be part of a major research project funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
• Opportunities to collaborate with leading researchers in New Zealand and internationally.
• You will be supervised by Dr. Alice Della Penna, Assoc. Prof Melissa Bowen, Dr. Rob Smith at the University of Otago, and Dr. Charine Collins (Earth Sciences New Zealand).

For academic information about the PhD and the MBIE Research scholarship opportunity, please contact Dr. Alice Della Penna (alice.penna@auckland.ac.nz).

Interested applicants should email the following to Dr. Alice Della Penna (alice.penna@auckland.ac.nz):

1. A cover letter (1 page max) outlining:
   1. The reason for your interest in the topic.
   2. The reason for your interest in undertaking a PhD.
   3. Any relevant prior experience (professional and/or academic) in the field of research.
2. Curriculum Vitae including:
   1. Any prior professional, industry and/or academic experience.
   2. Any prior collaboration with research activities.
   3. The details and links on any publications.
3. Full academic transcripts.
4. Contact details of two academic referees.

Please include the following in the email subject “CoastalPhyBio - Doctoral Application”. Any email received without this subject will not be considered.

A selection panel comprising three representatives from the project team will assess all applications.

Shortlisted applicants will be invited to an online interview.

Key dates

• Closing dates for applications: 15 September 2026, 4:00pm NZDT.
• End-September 2026: interviews with shortlisted candidates.
• Mid-October 2026: candidate selected.
• Candidature commencement date: First or second quarter of 2027