The Stabryla Lab led by Dr. Lisa Stabryla is looking for a motivated PhD student to join her group in the Department of Civil, Materials, and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Chicago, starting in the fall of 2024. The student will begin working on potential projects pertaining to understanding fundamental pathways for evolution and transmission of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the environment, developing new monitoring strategies for identifying AMR hotspots, and informing design of nano-enabled antimicrobial agents.
The Stabryla Lab focuses on understanding how we can more effectively respond to emerging resistances in natural and built environments, including both through the sustainable design of next-generation, nano-enabled antimicrobial materials and the development of novel AMR monitoring strategies (https://cme.uic.edu/profiles/stabryla-lisa/). Our research specifically considers microbial evolution and fitness as strategies to be incorporated into their design as well as investigating new phenotype-to-genotype relationships that can enable development of novel phenotypic and genotypic methods for broader pathogen detection. Our group is also working to understand the impact that climate change, changing environmental conditions, and extreme weather events has on the evolution of antibiotic resistance in microbial communities and other emerging pathogens.
The review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. Applications received by February 15 for international students (and April 1 for domestic students) will be given full consideration.
Candidate Requirement:
- Bachelor’s or Master's degree in relevant fields (e.g., environmental engineering, chemical engineering, chemistry, biology/microbiology, material science and engineering, etc.)
- Previous research experience with nanomaterials and/or environmental microbiology is preferred
- Be able and willing to conduct independent research projects as well as exhibit an ability to function well in a team setting
- Have and/or be willing to develop excellent scientific writing and communication skills
Student will receive:
- Stipend and benefits (tuition fully covered)
- Supportive research environment with access to state-of-the-art facilities and equipment
- Multidisciplinary collaboration
- Professional development opportunities, including travel fund for attending conferences and workshops, leadership development, and mentorship
To apply:
Interested candidates are encouraged to contact Dr. Lisa Stabryla and email the following documents to stabryla@uic.edu:
1. Cover letter describing in a few paragraphs your research interests and career goals, why you want to join our group, and your academic and research background
2. Resume/Curriculum vitae
3. Contact information for 3 references (including names, affiliations, and emails)
For admission policies and applications, please visit the UIC Graduate School Website. For general questions, please contact Prof. Stabryla.
More about University of Illinois—Chicago (UIC):
-UIC, located in the heart of downtown Chicago, is Chicago’s groundbreaking public research university (https://www.uic.edu/) and one of the nation’s most ethnically and culturally rich college campuses in America. This diverse and stimulating urban environment is home to 34,000 students, nearly half of which are first-generation students.
-It has been federally designated as a Minority-Serving Institution, serving high enrollments of racial and ethnic minority and low-income students.
-It was ranked No. 73 in Best Engineering Schools (https://engineering.uic.edu/) according to the latest U.S. News & World Report (UIC’s ranking in the 2024 edition of Best Colleges and National Universities is #82).
-It has also been ranked 8th in social mobility among public and private universities according to The Wall Street Journal and within the top 50 most innovative according to the U.S. News & World Report.
-The Department of Civil, Materials, and Environmental Engineering is comprised of outstanding research faculty conducting world-class research, with CME researchers among the top 2% in their fields (https://cme.uic.edu/graduate/).
-UIC is also home to the largest medical school in the country.
-UIC is leading the way in efforts to address climate change by becoming a carbon neutral, zero waste, net zero water and biodiverse university, and is leading as a transformative scholarship university.
-At UIC, you will have access to the resources of a major U.S. metropolitan area, including the architectural, engineering, and construction firms that create and maintain one of the most iconic skylines in the world; the offices of dozens of key federal, regional, and state government agencies; and the Discovery Partners Institute research consortium, which positions the University of Illinois system at the center of a research network that also includes the Northwestern University, the University of Chicago, and universities in India and Israel.
-Chicago, as America’s third-largest city, also offers you life experiences that you can’t get in most college towns: 77 varied neighborhoods, world-renowned museums, eclectic music and theater, restaurants that attract food enthusiasts from all over the world, and six major-league sports teams.