Opportunities to join the group

Graduate Students

Dr. Spero is currently interested in connecting with strong candidates who may be interested in a future MS or PhD opportunity (starting Fall 2027, Spring 2028, or Fall 2028, in the United States) in the area of rapid reconnaissance, extreme wave events, waves, and coastal hazards.

Strong candidates should have:

- Excellent mathematical and analytical skills

- Experience with MATLAB (or similar, e.g., Python)

- A high level of independence and initiative (varies MS vs PhD)

- Interest in both field work and laboratory research

For the PhD position, specifically,

- A Master’s degree in Civil, Coastal, Geotechnical, or Environmental Engineering (preferred) or Geosciences or Geophysics

- Initial research or professional experience (e.g., through internships, fieldwork, or prior projects)

If you are passionate about working at the interface of engineering, geoscience, hazards, and real-world impact, I would be happy to hear from you.

📩 Please send your application materials by email to: hannahsperoresearch[@]  gmail.com (as my email for South Alabama will be set up in February 2027)

Materials must include: (1) an introductory email that you have written (not AI) with your interests/alignment, your current status/position, when you would be able to start, and (2) an updated curriculum vitae,  (3) a one-pager on potential research projects and interests,  and (4) unofficial transcripts. 

If you plan on applying, please get in contact to discuss your application before submission. 

Undergraduates

If you are interested in research with me. Reach out! We can see if our interests align and what projects are available. This might look like weekly mentor meetings, lab group meetings, and working on any assortment of research projects with graduate student mentorship as well. There is no expectation of prior research to join this coastal research group.

Visitors

If you would like to undertake a visit in the group, then the Department of Civil, Coastal, and Environmental Engineering has schemes for visiting PhD and visiting scholars. More information to come.

Postdoctoral Opportunities

When available, funded postdoctoral positions will be advertised through the University website. Currently, we do not have internal funding for a postdoctoral scholar. 

We welcome inquiries from prospective postdoctoral fellows whose interests overlap with our own. We can help you prepare funding applications for external funding. Funding for postdoctoral work can be obstained from a wide variety of sources.