Science Summer Research Scholarships

Each year the Faculty of Science offers several exciting scholarships through the Summer Research Scholarship Scheme. These scholarships provide students with a unique opportunity to pursue an area of research they are passionate about.

To apply for a scholarship, get in touch with the supervisor directly.

Important application instructions for late round of Summer Research Scholarships:

• Before applying, please review the eligibility criteria and regulations to ensure you meet the necessary requirements.
• Note that applicants should only apply for one project that best matches their area of interest.
• To apply, click the "Apply" button for the project you are interested in, which will direct you to send an email to the respective supervisor. Please attach both your CV and a copy of your transcripts.
• In the subject line of your email, clearly state the project number and title. In the body of the email, include a brief introduction and express your interest in the project.
• All applications will be forwarded to the respective supervisors. If your application is suitable, they will contact you directly by October 18.
• The application deadline is strictly the close of business on October 11, 2024. All projects will be closed at this time, and applications received after this date will not be considered.
• For Ngā Motu Whakahī scholarships, which are exclusively for Māori and Pasifika students, active engagement in Ngā Motu Whakahī activities throughout the summer is expected.

This Summer project will involve four strands of work:

1. Evaluating relationships between individual differences in auditory imagery and verbal working memory.
2. Evaluating relationships between individual differences in visual imagery and changes in pupil size when participants imagine bright and dark scenes.
3. Analysing and interpreting data obtained from a survey study investigating links between mental imagery neurodiversity.
4. Initiating a new survey study, focusing on links between mental imagery and takiwātanga – the autism spectrum.

Supervisor:
Professor Tony Lambert
Psychology

This project would involve the synthesis of analogues of a biologically active natural product with potential as a treatment for cancer. The student would be trained in a range of synthetic organic chemistry techniques and advanced spectroscopic methods. The student should have completed undergraduate organic chemistry courses to have a basic understanding of the reactions completed.

Supervisors:
Professor David Barker, Keely Bowler (Ngāti Whātua, Ngā Puhi, Te Roroa)
Ngā Motu Whakahī, Chemical Sciences

These Beyond Prediction internships (up to four students) will match students with a supervisor/topic based on their skills and interests. Indicative topics include:

• Continuing work finding, digitizing and displaying historical Māori cancer data, and other Māori health equity data, and developing a data visualization tool for these data.
• Applying tikanga and mātauranga Māori to data science, including in the genomics space.
• Exploring the use of algorithms in selections of Citizens’ Assemblies including how we could apply them in NZ to gain fair Māori representation.
• Documenting the difference between population projections, census rates, and population estimates – a historic comparison.
• (i) creating trusted explanations from research literature using AI or (ii) building a ‘live’ research article—one that refreshes itself as new data and methods become available.

Supervisors:
Assoc Prof Lara Greaves (Ngāpuhi), Prof Mark Gahegan (Pākehā), Eric Marshall (Ngāpuhi), Tori Diamond (Ngāpuhi), Assoc Prof Andrew Sporle (Ngāti Apa, Rangitāne, Te Rarawa), Assoc Prof Phil Wilcox (Otago University; Ngāti Kahungunu, Rongomaiwahine, Ngāti Rakaipaaka), Tauiwi collaborators/co-supervisors on specific projects: Dr Luke Oldfield (Victoria University), Dr Nicole Satherley (University of Auckland, iNZight Analytics), Dr Rituparna Roy (University of Waikato)
Ngā Motu Whakahī, Computer Science, Statistics

Wastewater-Based Epidemiology (WBE) is a relatively new technology that involves the chemical analysis of wastewater for biomarkers of interest to gain information on the habits of a population.

This project will involve analysing wastewater samples collected from around Aotearoa to identify and quantify human biomarkers of interest.
Examples of human biomarkers that may be analysed include alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug consumption. Newer human biomarkers that are currently being investigated include biomarkers of human cancer.

It is hoped that this analysis will be able to provide insights into population health and habits and provide organisations with knowledge to direct resources and provide positive change to our communities.

Skills preferred (but can be taught during the summer scholarship):
Analytical chemistry skills, including Liquid Chromatography – Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) and wet laboratory skills.

Supervisors:
Dr Lisa Pilkington, Miriama Wilson (PhD student) Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairoa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Raukawa
Ngā Motu Whakahī, Chemical Sciences

Suppose a population has been evolving randomly over time. Now we sample individuals at random from the current population. What will be the structure of the genealogical tree relating the chosen individuals and their ancestries? This project in probability theory will investigate the reconstructed phylogenetic trees that arise under age-dependent branching processes – the stochastic process that encodes population growth when individuals may have varying numbers of offspring over the course of their lives. The project will look at “spine” techniques and other techniques from exciting recent research.

Supervisors:
Assoc Prof Simon Harris, Dr Jesse Goodman
Statistics

As part of a Marsden-funded project to understand the origins of the Auckland Volcanic Field, we deployed a network of seismometers in Auckland, Waikato and Northland. The successful candidate would help us service the seismic stations, download, process and analyze seismic data. This project is the perfect mix of fieldwork in some of the most scenic spots in Aotearoa, mixed with learning about (seismic) waves, programming, and the volcanic field we live on. A background with physics or earthscience is beneficial but not absolutely necessary.

Supervisor:
Assoc Prof Kasper van Wijk
Physics

Two species of Caulerpa seaweed were recently discovered in the Hauraki Gulf and have spread quickly to many other locations. These species form a dense mat on the seafloor displacing native species and reconfiguring natural ecological processes. Recently, a sap-sucking snail was found on some patches of the invasive seaweed, and initial observations indicate their feeding behaviour may have a significant impact on the growth of this seaweed. It is possible that the culture and release of this snail may help with the control of this troublesome seaweed invader. Therefore, the aim of this summer studentship project is to learn more about the biology of this species, its feeding on Caulerpa, reproduction and larval development, with a view to initiating some pilot scale control experiments.

Supervisor:
Prof Andrew Jeffs, Dr. Irene Middleton
Biological Sciences

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the causative agent of tuberculosis, is the leading cause of death worldwide from a single infectious agent. Isocitrate lyase (ICL) enzymes enable Mtb to efficiently use lipids as a carbon source during chronic infection, playing a crucial in the persistence, virulence, and antibiotic tolerance of Mtb. This project aims to investigate how ICL enzymes regulate central carbon metabolism in Mtb.

Students with a background in protein science will be suitable for this position. The selected applicant will receive training in protein expression and purification techniques, as well as various biochemical, biophysical, and structural tools.

Eligibility: This project is funded by the Marsden Fund to support Māori or Pasifika applicants.

Supervisor:
Assoc Prof Ghader Bashiri, Dr Jamie Taka
Biological Sciences

The extended Bose-Hubbard model shows a fascinating multitude of phases transitions including superfluid and Haldane phases to insulating ones. A recent study by us using quantum Monte Carlo methods has revealed an unexplored parameter regime that shows signs of new phase transitions. In this project we want to explore this regime further to identify these possible new phases. We use a self-written Julia package of the so-called full-configuration quantum Monte Carlo method. The student would be involved in applications of this code, interpretation of the results and if interested could also be involved in the code development. This research is a collaboration with Prof. Brand’s group from Massey University.

Supervisors:
Dr Elke Pahl, Joachim Brand (Massey University)
Physics

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most common and lethal brain-tumour type, is an aggressive cancer with a dreadful prognosis – the five-year survival rate is ~6%.The standard therapy consists of surgical resection to an extent that is safe, followed by radiotherapy and the frontline chemotherapeutic temozolomide (TMZ), approved for clinical use over thirty years ago.

This project will involve the synthesis of edited temozolomide analogues with a longer half-life than the parent drug, providing lead compounds for biological testing in glioblastoma cell lines.

Supervisor:
Prof Jon Sperry
Chemical Sciences

The global chemical industry produces billions of tonnes of society enhancing chemicals each year. These processes are almost entirely reliant on toxic organic solvents and around 90% involve catalysis. These catalysts are commonly based on rare earth metals such as palladium and gold. In collaboration with Slovenian experts, we will extract complex polyphenols called tannins from New Zealand chestnuts and validate their use as natural, metal-free catalysts for common organic synthesis reactions in non-toxic water.

Supervisor:
Prof Jon Sperry
Chemical Sciences

Texture Analysis is a mathematical method to analyse spatial variation in grayscale values of medical images. For T1-weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of the brain, changes in texture features may reflect neuroinflammation and subtle microstructure changes, before neurodegeneration, thus offering potential as an early biomarker for Alzheimer’s Disease (AD).

We would like a summer student to review the latest literature and then use a TA toolbox to extract and analyse TA features from MRI data already collected by the Dementia Prevention Research Clinics.

Experience in MRI image analysis would be an advantage.

Supervisors:
Dr Catherine Morgan, Dr Reece Roberts, Prof Lynette Tippett
Psychology

Estimating population size is at the heart of wildlife conservation, enabling scientists to determine whether populations are stable or declining, and to assess which conservation interventions are successful. The 21st century is seeing a massive expansion of survey capability due to the availability of new remote-sensing technologies such as drones, satellites, acoustic recorders, and trail cameras. However, data from these technologies raise numerous statistical challenges, which will be the focus of this summer research scholarship.

The scholarship is funded by a Marsden grant and is part of an ongoing wider programme of research. The successful candidate will have exceptional skills in R programming and statistics, and an interest in application to wildlife surveys.

Supervisors:
Prof Rachel Fewster, Dr Ben Stevenson
Statistics

Terpenoids are molecules that show promising medicinal activities, synthesised by living organisms through remarkable biosynthetic transformations. Often, acquiring sufficient quantities of terpenoids for further research is environmentally unsustainable. This project focuses on the biochemical elucidation of terpenoid biosynthetic enzymes and applying this knowledge to establish microbial cell factories for the sustainable production of these molecules.

A background in biochemistry, biotechnology and/or organic chemistry is preferred.

To express interest, please reach out to tristan.de.rond@auckland.ac.nz with your CV, transcript, and scientific interests.

Supervisor:
Dr Tristan de Rond
Chemical Sciences

Rare repeat expansions in the NOTCH2NLC gene cause two neuromuscular diseases called neuronal intranuclear inclusion disease (NIID) and oculopharyngodistal distal myopathy (OPDM). NIID and OPDM cases have been identified in NZ but these diseases are understudied globally and particularly in NZ. We seek a student to conduct research at the lab/clinic interface including; contributing to the collection of skin biopsies, assembling clinical information, establishing a repository of literature and procedures for clinical stakeholders.

The successful candidate will have a clinical background, including at least undergraduate study in biology and/or neuroscience. The project will suit someone with strong organisational skills, good communication, and ability to liaise between different stakeholders. Undergraduate practical laboratory experience is essential.

This project is be undertaken for 10 weeks between 1st December 2024 and 28th February 2025.

Supervisor:
Dr Emma Scotter
Biological Sciences

Fruit are essential for our day to day diet. The aim of the project is to contribute to our understanding of the mechanisms that are important for fruit development especially fruit flesh and size. Candidate genes have been identified some mutated using CRISPR-Cas9. During the project, the aim is to either start characterising the kiwifruit-edited plants or looking at key transcription factors involved in fruit flesh development using yest-2-hybrid assays. Key techniques: Plant molecular biology such as Bioinformatics – yeast-2-hybrid - genotyping - gene expression analysis.

Supervisor:
Dr Karine David
Biological Sciences