Research Assistant, Data Science and Egyptian Archaeology

Research Assistant, Data Science and Egyptian Archaeology
October 18 2021 – April 30 2022

The student will work with a team of archaeologists based at UNC-CH and in Lyon, France, to contribute to a project focused on archaeological material in the Eastern Desert of Egypt, a region bordering the Nile Valley, the Red Sea and the Sudanese highlands. The Desert Networks Project (CNRS/ERC) is in the process of building a public, online database of archaeological, historical, and spatial information relating to the archaeology of the Eastern Desert (https://desertnetworks.huma-num.fr/). The student’s work will contribute to this project, under the supervision of Dr. Jennifer Gates-Foster (Associate Prof. of Classics and Archaeology, UNC-CH). Specifically, the student will be responsible for gathering published archaeological surveys from the region and entering the cultural material (ceramics, coins, and other archaeological finds) from these surveys into the database. Apply by October 4 with an application statement & resume.

Working closely with members of the Desert Networks team based in Chapel Hill and France, the student will then pursue a sub-project during Spring 2022 in which they explore the relationships between the object types they have entered in the database and the functions of the archaeological sites where they were found. The student will gain experience in formulating research questions about ancient economy, cultural interaction, and land use, as well as learning how to answer these questions with complex datasets and the use of database and Geographical Information System (GIS) software. The student will receive credit as a co-author on a paper resulting from this work and also as a contributor to this international research project.

The student will:
Work 10-15 hours/ week
Gather information from published sources and enter it in a collaborative database
Pursue a research project in the second half of the position term

Skills desired:
An interest in archaeology
Some familiarity with FileMaker software or data entry
GIS experience a plus
Capacity for independent work and responsible reporting

Outcomes:
Salary: $15/hr
Experience with archaeological and spatial datasets
Experience with database and GIS software
Student-driven research project
Publication and collaboration credit with an international research project

Faculty Advisor: Jennifer Gates-Foster
Research Supervisor: Jennifer Gates-Foster
Faculty Email: gatesfos@email.unc.edu
Type of Position: Paid
Availability: Fall 2021, Spring 2022
Application Deadline: October 4 2021