PhD - Tracing Controls Gold Fertility in Archean Greenstone Belts

Position: PhD - Tracing Controls on Gold Fertility in Archean Greenstone Belts
Location: Montreal

PhD
- Tracing Controls on Gold Fertility in Archean Greenstone Belts
- Research Affiliate Program
Natural Resources Canada
- Geoscience & Earth Monitoring Sector - Geological Survey of Canada - GSC-Central
Selection process number
2026-RSN-EA-GEMS-682411

Employment tenure
This PhD RAP Bursary will start January 2027 and end December 2029. It is expected that the student will work part-time hours for a three-year period (nine semesters) with the possibility of a one-year extension.

Salary
Scholarship of approximately $30,000 (year
1), $32,700 (year
2) and $35,700 (year
3) divided into 3 equal installments each year.

Who can apply
Persons residing in Canada, and Canadian citizens and Permanent residents abroad.

To be considered for RAP opportunities, students must be:
1. Recognized as having full-time student status by the post-secondary academic institution at which they are presently enrolled OR be a part-time student who is recognized by their academic institution as a having a disability;
2. The minimum age to work in the province or territory where the job is located; AND
3. Enrolled in an academic program that requires research as part of their curriculum.

Duties
The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) is seeking a highly motivated PhD student from a Canadian university with an interest in economic geology, igneous petrology, isotope geochemistry, or a related field.

The Superior Province hosts numerous Archean greenstone belts that vary considerably in their gold endowment, yet the geological factors controlling this variability remain poorly understood. This project will investigate how mantle source characteristics, tectonic processes, and magmatism contributed to differences in gold prospectivity across the province. The research will focus on intermediate to felsic intrusions to determine whether they preserve evidence of changing mantle sources and tectono-magmatic conditions associated with variations in gold endowment.

The project will combine apatite and zircon geochemistry, geochronology, and isotope analysis to investigate the evolution of Archean mantle sources and their relationship to gold endowment. A particular focus will be sulfur isotopes in apatite, providing a novel approach to investigating Archean tectonic and mantle processes. The student will gain experience in secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), and other microanalytical techniques, with potential opportunities for fieldwork in the Superior Province.

The research will develop novel mineral-scale indicators of Archean tectonic processes and geological conditions associated with gold fertility, with potential applications to mineral exploration. The student will work closely with researchers at the Geological Survey of Canada, academic collaborators, and industry partners, with opportunities to contribute to scientific publications and present research at conferences.

Work environment
At Natural Resources Canada, a Federal government job means developing leadership skills, fostering teamwork, and supporting creativity and innovation. Canada's governments depend on geoscience to inform policy, manage the country's landmass and develop its natural resources responsibly. The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) is the national organization for geoscientific information and research. Since 1842 the Geological Survey of Canada has produced cutting-edge, authoritative geoscience to support mineral exploration, climate change research, marine and coastal resilience, and natural hazards mapping.

Our work supports decision-making in the mining and energy sectors, as well as national sovereignty, hazard risk management, and more. The GSC is proud to create a workplace that supports an accessible, equitable, inclusive, and diverse workforce at the ready to tackle current and future science challenges. The GSC provides a stimulating work environment with a passionate team and promotes work- life balance.

The candidate will work in laboratory settings as part of their research program.

Intent of the process
The intention is to staff one student for the completion of a doctorate degree, under the supervision of Dr. Joshua Davies at UQAM (Montreal, Quebec) and Dr. Jennifer Smith at the Geological Survey of Canada (Ottawa).

Positions to be filled
1

Important messages
You must provide proof of your education credentials, and a list of courses may be required.

Persons are…