Letter to Prospective Students
Photo: Alex Tran http://www.alextranphotography.com/
My lab works collaboratively on projects related to understanding the ecology
behind ecosystem services management. Ecosystem services such as food, water,
soil formation, and erosion control reflect the way in which societies extract
resources from the environment. Despite their importance, management of most
ecosystem services is poorly understood because it lies in a gray area between
natural and social sciences. Many environmental crises, policy debates, and
uncertainties in ecosystem management are related to lack of fundamental,
empirically-grounded, theoretically consistent information about ecosystem
services.
We employ a combination of fieldwork, multi-scale spatial analysis, and modeling to address questions about the provision, use, and management of ecosystem services. My current interest in ecosystem services is focused on agricultural production and water quality and the interactions between these services. Agricultural production has been greatly increased by use of fertilizers; however, phosphorus (P) in these fertilizers can move downhill in runoff and become nonpoint source pollution that reduces water quality and causes eutrophication. Thus, provision of food can have a major impact on supply of water. Developing an understanding of the interactions between water quality and agricultural production will be of great consequence as human population continues to grow and demands for both food and water increase.
To learn more about the work done in my lab, check out our website. You will find descriptions of my current research interests as well as a list of recent publications, pages for the various students and postdocs involved in the lab, and links to information about graduate school at McGill. The NRS home page and the MSE graduate option page also provide much information relevant to prospective applicants.
I believe that graduate training is one of the most important tasks of a professor, and I tend to invest a lot of time and energy in my students. I am thus very selective in choosing students. I work hard to provide my students with mentoring and advice, space to work, equipment, funding, connections to the broader world of ecology, and a positive lab community. In turn, I expect my students to take an active role in their education and to work hard to do the best work they can do and to make a contribution to ecology, to the lab, and to society. While I spend considerable time with my students, I do not assign topics or projects. Instead, I plan to invest a considerable amount of time helping each student discover their interest and develop their own research questions. While the independent development of a research question can be quite stressful for some students, my opinion is that it is well worth it for the ownership students feel in their projects as a result.
In making decisions about whether to take on a graduate student, I look primarily at three things: the quality and interests of the applicant, the availability of funding, and the current number of students in the lab. In a student, I'm looking for research experience, publications in scientific journals, good grades, passion for science (and life!), and a strong interest in the work we do in the lab. It is not necessary to have all of these, but it helps to have at least a few.
If you are interested in being a student in my lab, please email me a short note introducing yourself, including your CV and grades (to elena dot bennett at mcgill dot ca). It helps if you can be fairly specific concerning how your interests overlap mine and what you would be interested in working on during your time at McGill. I look forward to hearing from you!
--Elena
For specific opportunities available now, click here.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Key Information
Departmental Deadlines for Application:
Canadian residents and citizens:
Funding sources:
For Canadians and Permanent Residents:
We employ a combination of fieldwork, multi-scale spatial analysis, and modeling to address questions about the provision, use, and management of ecosystem services. My current interest in ecosystem services is focused on agricultural production and water quality and the interactions between these services. Agricultural production has been greatly increased by use of fertilizers; however, phosphorus (P) in these fertilizers can move downhill in runoff and become nonpoint source pollution that reduces water quality and causes eutrophication. Thus, provision of food can have a major impact on supply of water. Developing an understanding of the interactions between water quality and agricultural production will be of great consequence as human population continues to grow and demands for both food and water increase.
To learn more about the work done in my lab, check out our website. You will find descriptions of my current research interests as well as a list of recent publications, pages for the various students and postdocs involved in the lab, and links to information about graduate school at McGill. The NRS home page and the MSE graduate option page also provide much information relevant to prospective applicants.
I believe that graduate training is one of the most important tasks of a professor, and I tend to invest a lot of time and energy in my students. I am thus very selective in choosing students. I work hard to provide my students with mentoring and advice, space to work, equipment, funding, connections to the broader world of ecology, and a positive lab community. In turn, I expect my students to take an active role in their education and to work hard to do the best work they can do and to make a contribution to ecology, to the lab, and to society. While I spend considerable time with my students, I do not assign topics or projects. Instead, I plan to invest a considerable amount of time helping each student discover their interest and develop their own research questions. While the independent development of a research question can be quite stressful for some students, my opinion is that it is well worth it for the ownership students feel in their projects as a result.
In making decisions about whether to take on a graduate student, I look primarily at three things: the quality and interests of the applicant, the availability of funding, and the current number of students in the lab. In a student, I'm looking for research experience, publications in scientific journals, good grades, passion for science (and life!), and a strong interest in the work we do in the lab. It is not necessary to have all of these, but it helps to have at least a few.
If you are interested in being a student in my lab, please email me a short note introducing yourself, including your CV and grades (to elena dot bennett at mcgill dot ca). It helps if you can be fairly specific concerning how your interests overlap mine and what you would be interested in working on during your time at McGill. I look forward to hearing from you!
--Elena
For specific opportunities available now, click here.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Key Information
Departmental Deadlines for Application:
Canadian residents and citizens:
- March 15th for September registration
- October 15th for January registration
- January 15th for September registration
- August 15th for January registration
Funding sources:
For Canadians and Permanent Residents:
- FQRNT funding: http://www.fqrnt.gouv.qc.ca/nateq/bourses/
- NSERC funding: http://www.nserc.ca/index.htm
- Fellowships: http://www.mcgill.ca/gps/postdocs/fellowships
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Interested students should also look at the following web-sites for information about graduate school at McGill: http://www.mcgill.ca/nrs/ http://www.mcgill.ca/nrs/graduate/ http://www.mcgill.ca/mse http://www.mcgill.ca/mse/programs/envroption/ |
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