MSc and PhD projects at the Swiss Ornithological Institute Sempach

MSc/PhD topics are offered within current research projects of the Swiss Ornithological Institute. Own research ideas can be proposed to see if they fit into projects of the Institute.

Current topics for MSc and PhD projects

The Swiss Ornithological Institute studies a variety of ornithological phenomena, ranging from basic research topics to applied conservation projects. Examples include analyses of bird distribution patterns, studies on the ecological requirements of species (e.g. space use, food, etc.) and on environmental factors affecting bird migration, evaluation of actions taken in favor of endangered species (e.g. in agricultural landscapes), investigations into the effects of disturbances on birds.

As the MSc or PhD will be conducted within a project of the Swiss Ornithological Institute, we are immediately interested in the results and make therefore high demands on work ethic, endurance, quality, data analyses and writing. Ideally, the written thesis reaches the level of one or several manuscripts ready for submission, but we acknowledge that due to time limitations results may not necessarily have the standards required for publication yet (particularly applies to MSc theses).

General zoological and ornithological knowledge is required for most topics. In many cases, however, specific field ornithological knowledge is necessary (e.g. identifying native species in the field). Most MSc and PhD projects comprise fieldwork, and long work hours (“24/7”) during fieldwork periods are the rule. Data often need to be analyzed with advanced statistical approaches. Even if basic statistics courses have been taken, most students will need to become acquainted with these advanced approaches, a fact that is often underestimated.

Most projects take place during the breeding season. For some projects, a driving license is mandatory.

We recommend that you contact the Swiss Ornithological Institute in time. We plan our projects in summer and fall of the year preceding fieldwork. You should therefore contact us no later than fall, if you plan to do your MSc project in the following spring. You can directly contact the supervisor indicated in the advertisements or the contact person at the end of this page. Please send us a CV including at least: primary and secondary subjects (major and minor), ornithological knowledge, anticipated period of MSc, your interests and motivations.

For PhD projects, we regularly advertise job openings here.

Students need to consider and respect all the administrative requirements of their home university. Besides a supervising researcher from the Swiss Ornithological Institute, a MSc or PhD project typically requires a professor from the university where the thesis will be handed in. It is therefore very important to clarify at an early stage, who your supervisor at the university will be. We commend you to contact us also in this respect.