Graduate Student position in Community Ecology. 

Funding is currently available to support a graduate student (M. Sc. or Ph.D.) working with Dr. Lonnie Aarssen (Queen’s University) and Dr. Brandon Schamp (Algoma University).  The student will be based at Queen’s University.  We are looking for an enthusiastic, motivated, and curious student to work with us as we try to understand the mechanistic underpinnings of natural patterns in plant biodiversity.  In particular, we are interested in developing a project with a graduate student that addresses the relative contributions of competition and dispersal to plant communities.   We encourage applications from those interested in natural history, field research, and computational biology to apply.   Interested applicants may contact Dr. Aarssen (aarssenl@queensu.ca) and/or Dr. Schamp (brandon.schamp@algomau.ca) and send a cv/resume with contact information for two references and a cover letter outlining your interest and qualifications.  

Graduate Student Prospects (General)

I am always interested in hearing from enthusiastic students interested in working with me. Positions are generally dependent on the availability of funding. I encourage all prospective applicants to apply for NSERC funding, as well as an Ontario Graduate Scholarship. Keep your keyboard peeled for opportunities that may be posted on this page.

Are You Interested?

How do you know if you'd like to work with me? Here are a few suggestions on how to decide:

1. Talk to students I have worked with in the past. I can put you in touch.
2. Meet me and ask me questions...I enjoy talking about cats, politics, music, and oh yeah, science
3. Ask me hard questions about money, expectations, and weird quirks I might have. 
4. Read the methods sections of my papers. These will tell you what kind of work my lab does. Ask yourself whether this is the kind of work you'd enjoy. Note: I really don't work with anything cuddly or even cute. So if you come work with me, it's BYOFA (Bring your own fuzzy animal) or you can offer to babysit my cat.

If you contact me, I'll likely ask you to provide a few things that will help me determine whether you are the right student for me. I'll ask for a copy of your transcript (can be a photocopy or unofficial copy at first), two references that I can call to find out what kind of person/worker you are, and a sample of your writing (this can pretty much be anything, from poem to science fiction novel to actual science writing.

Algoma University (Why would you want to come here?)

Algoma University does not currently have a graduate program in biology. However, I am an adjunct professor at both Laurentian University in Sudbury, and Queen's University in Kingston. This basically means that I can host graduate students, who will then earn a graduate degree from either Laurentian or Queen's. Ask me for details about how this would work. There are interesting opportunities for collaborative work as a result of this

Sault Ste. Marie (More on why you might want to come here)

The Soo, as it is called, sits at the foot of beautiful Lake Superior on the St. Mary's River. The city has much to offer, especially to those who crave nature, and good Italian food. There are dozens of hiking trails nearby, with over 50 km of trails within the city borders at Hiawatha Conservation Area, and Lake Superior Provincial Park is well within a day's drive. Pukaskwa National Park, one of Canada's most beautiful parks, is also only a few hours away. The city is at the northern border of the mixed hardwood forest region and therefore yields a blindingly beautiful fall display, with the hills nearly bursting into flame with colour. The region is famous for its contributions to Canada's identity as driven by the work of the Group of Seven. Click here for some of Canada's most celebrated paintings of this area. The Soo is a city in the wild, with animal life thriving all around. Click here to see the 2008 bear map in Sault Ste. Marie and here to see a map of local trails.