Position Overview
The Energy & Stratigraphy Division of the Kansas Geological Survey (KGS) at the University of Kansas (KU) invites applications for a KGS Sedimentology & Stratigraphy Summer Research Assistantship position for the summer of 2025. The position is available for upper-level undergraduates, recent graduates, or graduate students with an interest in studying Mississippian-aged (~345 Million Years Ago) carbonate rocks from cores stored at the Kansas Geological Survey.

During Mississippian time, most of the continental United States was in a tropical setting and much of the area, including Kansas, was covered by a shallow sea. Organisms different from what we see today lived in this sea and were fossilized in the rocks we study in cores. These organisms and other sedimentary features in the rocks provide evidence of the environments in which they lived. In Kansas (and around the world), Mississippian rocks form important petroleum reservoirs, and potential units for subsurface CO2 storage.

This position will aid scientists who are studying the rocks to understand the original environments and conditions of deposition and the important characteristics that impact how these rocks behave as reservoir and CO2 storage units.

POSITION: KGS Sed&Strat Summer Internship

STARTING DATE: Week of May 19, 2025 (flexible based on student schedule)

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Review of applications will begin on February 24, 2025 and will continue until a qualified pool of applicants is identified.

SALARY: Intern will be paid $15/hr-$18/hr with an anticipated 12-week, full-time (40 hrs/week) work schedule. All work-related expenses will be provided by the KGS, but the KGS does not provide lodging nor expenses of travel to/from Lawrence.

RESTRICTIONS: Candidates must be currently authorized to work in the US (US citizen, F-1, OPT, etc).

About the KGS | Kansas Geological Survey (ku.edu)

Job Description
This assistantship is a 12-week summer position during which the intern will work with Dr. Diana Ortega-Ariza, an Assistant Scientist at the KGS who is leading the project. Dr. Ortega-Ariza will provide training and supervision during the period of the internship. The position will focus on collecting sedimentologic and stratigraphic data in Mississippian-aged cores in a laboratory at the KGS. The work includes describing types of rocks, textures, compositions (including fossils), and physical and biological sedimentary structures. The intern will produce a final report and give an internal presentation of findings at the end of the internship.

It is intended that the intern will participate as a co-author in future articles or conference presentations that include results produced during the internship. There is a possibility that the work from the summer internship could be continued as part of an undergraduate or graduate thesis.

Intern duties may include:

• 80% - Rock core description and template recording.
• 10% - Reading relevant Mississippian-aged literature for background and context.
• 10% - Preparing results for presentation and publication.

Required Qualifications

1. Enrollment in or completion of an undergraduate and/or graduate degree program in Geology.
2. Relevant coursework in geology as shown in application materials.
3. Clear communication skills as evidenced by application materials.

Preferred Qualifications

1. Experience with any of the duties described above as evidenced in application materials.
2. Experience with study of carbonate rocks as shown in application materials.

Contact Information to Applicants
For further technical information contact Diana Ortega-Ariza at dianalo@ku.edu.

For other HR information, contact Annette Delaney at adelaney@ku.edu.
Additional Candidate Instruction
In addition to the online application, the following documents are required to be considered for this position:

• PDF cover letter (max 2 pages) indicating your interests, how you meet the required and preferred qualifications, and how the internship will help you reach your career goals.
• PDF document (max 1 page) with responses to three short-answer questions:
  • (<150 words) What are you really good at professionally, academically, and/or technically? List 3 items with a brief example for each to put things in context.
  • (<150 words) What are you not good at or would like to improve academically, professionally, or technically? List 3 items. To help frame your answers, consider what past bosses, supervisors, or teachers might answer when we contact references.
  • (<150 words) Is there anything else that we should know about you that you would like to share?
• Full CV/resume.
• Contact information for 3 references (email address and phone number).
• Academic transcripts (unofficial copies acceptable).

Only complete applications will be considered.

Application review begins on February 24, 2025 and will continue until a qualified pool of applicants are identified.

Advertised Salary Range
15-18/hr, commensurate with experience
Application Review Begins
24-Feb-2025
Anticipated Start Date
19-May-2025
Primary Campus
University of Kansas Lawrence Campus
FTE
1.0
Reg/Temp
Temporary
FLSA Status
Nonexempt
Employee Class
U-Unclassified Professional Staff
Work Location Assignment
On-Site
Disclaimer
The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression, and genetic information in the university's programs and activities. Retaliation is also prohibited by university policy. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies and is the Title IX coordinator for all KU and KUMC campuses: Associate Vice Chancellor for Civil Rights and Title IX, civilrights@ku.edu, Room 1082, Dole Human Development Center, 1000 Sunnyside Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66045, 785-864-6414, 711 TTY.