Interested in working with the Wildlife & Water Lab? We’d love to hear from you! I am happy to correspond with potential undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdocs about research ideas and mentorship.
To inquire about joining the lab, please send a CV and a brief description of your background, career goals, and interests for a research project to the email provided on the Odum School of Ecology website. For more detailed information, see below!
Undergraduate Researchers
Opportunities for undergraduate research in the WWL depend on ongoing projects and collaborations. If you’re a UGA undergraduate, feel free to reach out with interests, ideas, or desired skillsets and we can talk about options. Considering contacting current undergraduates in our Research Team to hear more about their experience!
Graduate Students
During most years, there will be one or more openings for M.S. or Ph.D students in the WWL. All admitted students will conduct their degree program in the Odum School of Ecology. Because graduate degrees involve a more rigorous approach to research, applicants should demonstrate their experience conducting independent research. I strongly encourage students to develop proposal-writing skills throughout their graduate tenure. Especially competitive candidates will consider potential funding opportunities like the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship prior to or during the application process.
Looking for tips on applying to graduate school? Check out this podcast!
M.S. Students
Prospective M.S. students should be able to provide a CV emphasizing their prior research experience, as well as thoughts and insights on their research interests and goals. Because M.S. degrees involve a fairly short timeline, it is helpful to have very specific project ideas so that these can be planned out well in advance.
Ph.D. Students
Ph.D. programs involve a longer time horizon, allowing more room for exploration of research ideas. While research themes, questions, and potential study systems are helpful for prospective students, research ideas do not need to be as thoroughly developed when applying to the lab. Competitive applications for Ph.D. student positions should include experience with writing peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts, or at least demonstrated ability in scientific writing.
Students interested in more interdisciplinary work should look into UGA’s Integrative Conservation (ICON) Ph.D. Program, which provides training and limited fellowship support for successful applicants.
I strongly recommend that eligible prospective Ph.D. applicants consider applying for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program in parallel with their applications to the graduate school at Odum. The program provides excellent funding support for students and, even if not awarded, presents a valuable and challenging learning opportunity to practice communicating research ideas and writing competitive proposals. I am open to working with prospective students in developing their proposals, and have helped several colleagues compete successfully in the past.
Postdocs
I am always interested in hosting postdoctoral scholars and am excited to discuss proposals for fellowships, collaborations, and mentoring arrangements. Postdocs in the WWL will be offered opportunities for mentoring graduate and undergraduate students, as well as co-developing research proposals for additional projects.
Interested postdocs should provide a CV emphasizing publication history, technical research skills, and competence in scientific writing. Prior consideration of potential grant or fellowship opportunities is a helpful conversation starter.
Here are some potential sources of funding for postdoctoral researchers to join the WWL: