Honey bee social behavior, neuroscience, and genomics

Dr. Clare Rittschof’s lab at the University of Kentucky (Lexington, KY) is recruiting undergraduate students from other institutions to participate in research projects funded by the National Science Foundation during Summer 2022.

Description of opportunity: Honey bees live in large cooperative colonies. Individual “worker bees” work together to manage the needs of the colony, including collecting food, producing honey, defending the colony, and caring for the queen and developing bees. Undergraduates will work with teams of beekeepers and graduate students on projects that investigate how interactions with nestmates shape worker bee behavior and genome dynamics. Students will participate in field experiments, lab-based behavioral assays, specimen collection, tissue dissections, molecular analyses, and data presentation. Students will learn about the scientific research process, science careers, basic beekeeping practices, and bee biology and health.

Students will join a diverse, interactive research group studying wild bee agroecology and honey bee health and social behavior. More information about the Rittschof lab can be found on our website. The University of Kentucky is in Lexington, KY, a historic, mid-sized city situated among beautiful horse farms in the heart of bourbon country. We are near renowned outdoor recreation areas, including the Red River Gorge and Mammoth Cave National Park.

Payment: Students will receive a $500/week stipend for 8 weeks. Exact start and end dates are negotiable (suggested timeline: June 1, 2022 – July 27, 2022).

Eligibility: Undergraduate students in anyfield of study and at any level are eligible to apply. Experience working with honey bees or any of the above research techniques is not required, but applicants should be enthusiastic about performing research and interacting with honey bees.

Application process: Please provide the following in an email to Dr. Clare Rittschof (clare.rittschof@uky.edu):

1. An unofficial transcript
2. A cover letter (1 page) describing why you are interested in this research position, including an explanation of any coursework or experience that you think will help you succeed
3. One letter of recommendation. Letter writers may submit their letters directly to Dr. Rittschof with “NSF REU Recommendation [applicant name]” in the subject line

Application deadline: Please submit materials by March 31, 2022 for full consideration.