Come work with us

We are currently recruiting PhD students for the 2025-2026 admission cycle. Please see below and get in touch with Dr. Samuk!

Current opportunities

Graduate Students
train to become a scientist
Description

We are always seeking to recruit enthusiastic PhD students to learn and study along with us in the lab. All graduate positions in the lab are fully funded. Dr. Samuk will work with you to develop an individual research project spanning ~5 years, alongside your coursework.

Start date

Currently recruiting for Sept 2026 start dates (application deadline ~November 2025). See here more details.

Projects

The core of a graduate degree is developing and carrying a thesis research project. In the Samuk lab, projects generally evolve around the following themes:

  • Adaptation and speciaton
  • The evolution of recombination rate
  • The evolution of chromosomal inversions
  • Population genetics/genomics
  • The genetics of speciation

You can choose to work on sticklebacks, Drosophila, or another related system, in the lab and/or the field. Projects focusing on other topics related to evolution/behavior/genetics are also welcome.

Qualifications

A BSc is required, and a degree in Biology, Evolution/Ecology, Genetics, Psychology, Computer Science, Statistics, or a related field is strongly preferred. As of 2021, the GRE is no longer a requirement for application to the graduate program at UC Riverside.

How to apply

For full details about the position and instructions on how to apply, see the following document:
Information on Samuk Lab PhD positions