General advice:

I recommend searching for an advisor, not a program. Use the web to find professors who have interests that are generally consistent with yours. They will rarely be identical; if you find someone intriguing, email them and open a dialog.

Find out what the potential advisor’s philosophy is toward graduate research, and where he falls on the continuum between director and advisor. A DIRECTOR will assign you a project, provide funding, require you to adhere to their vision, and establish a relationship similar to employer-employee. An ADVISOR will leave you to develop your own questions, do your own reading, and seek out your own resources, offering advice and support if asked, and establish a relationship similar to senior colleague-junior colleague. There is no right or wrong relationship, but there is a right and a wrong relationship for YOU, so know what you are comfortable with. If you have ideas and desire the independence to pursue them, get someone who is more like an advisor. If developing your own question seems intimidating and the thought of finding your own funding petrifies you then get someone more like a director. However, remember that your success or failure in science ultimately depends on your own ability to ask and answer questions that advance your field. You need to develop the expertise and confidence to succeed on your own no matter whether you have and advisor or a director.

I recommend that you try to visit those schools in which you have the strongest interest, if you have the financial resources. There is no substitute for face-to-face contact when making a decision this important. Determine whether the potential advisor fits your needs and whether you can work with them closely, as you are making a commitment of at least 3-4 years. Grill the potential advisor and his students on what it's like to work there. Seek out students from other labs as well, and pay particular attention to what they say about their experience in the department, positive or negative. Be sure to talk to the Graduate Coordinator and Department Chair and ask questions about time limits, institutional support (TA, RA, and Fellowship opportunities), and whether or not there is internal funding for research. Get offers of support in writing. If someone offers you support, take it; it means the program thinks more highly of you than a program that offers admission only, no matter how dynamic the potential advisor may be.

Students interested in the Ph.D. in Conservation Biology:

I accept doctoral students interested in working on 1) Behavioral ecology, broadly defined; 2) Ecology of invasive species, particularly terrestrial plants and animals; 3) Insect ecology, broadly defined, especially that of social insects; 4) Plant-animal interactions, including herbivory, pollination, protection, and dispersal. Research topics may be basic or applied, but prospective students should be willing to accept a degree in Conservation Biology. I'm particularly interested in students with good quantitative and excellent communication skills, who are self-motivated, and who have had at least a little experience so they aren't starting from scratch in trying to define their interests. A Master’s degree is not necessary but is very helpful in gaining the kind of experience that makes it easy to hit the ground running in a Ph.D. program.

I expect Ph.D. students to write an NSF predoc, and later on a dissertation improvement grant. This is particularly important if their interests are far enough from my own that funding agencies would see it as a stretch for me to propose the project myself. After the first year or two I expect students to present talks or posters at regional or national meetings when the opportunity arises. I generally expect Ph.D. students to do most of the development of their project. Ph.D. students should also expect to begin writing papers for publication as data and analyses become available; these can be bound together to constitute the dissertation. I do not insist on authorship on papers produced by Ph.D. students. I expect Ph.D. students to be senior or sole author on most of the papers from their dissertation projects. However, if I contribute materially to your data collection, analysis or writing, or if the paper is produced as part of a grant to me, on which you are supported, I will probably be a junior co-author.

Students interested in the M.S. Program in Biological Sciences:

I will accept students interested in behavioral ecology, broadly defined; ecology of invasive species, particularly terrestrial plants and animals; insect ecology, broadly defined, especially that of social insects or plant-animal interactions, including herbivory, pollination, protection, and dispersal. I am equally willing to accept M.S. students who have clear ideas on what they want to do and those who may seek guidance in exploring their interests. In either case I try to be very involved in helping M.S. students develop their projects.

I expect all M.S. students to have the mindset that they will publish something from their thesis, even if it is a small note in a regional journal. I do not take students who are more interested in a certificate than in research. If you can write and submit a paper from your thesis on your own, you are free to be sole author. If I contribute materially to your data collection, analysis or writing, or if the paper is produced as part of a grant to me, on which you are supported, I will probably be a junior co-author. If you graduate and walk away from your M.S. project without writing a paper, and I have to write and submit it, I will be senior author.

Information for prospective undergraduates:

I regularly have opportunities for undergraduates to participate in research projects. I have projects that can accommodate a variety of skill levels although the less challenging projects are usually somewhat less interesting. I particularly value students who are interested in spending two or more semesters working in the lab, as learning the project always takes time and students who work only one semester rarely have the opportunity to do the most interesting work. You may choose to participate in one of several ways:

As a paid assistant: Depending on funding and skills required for the task. Funding is very spotty, and is most reliably obtained through the work-study program.

By taking BIOS 2092, Sophomore Research: Students should have completed Bios 1073/71, 1083/81 and statistics.

By taking BIOS 3092, Independent Research: Students should have completed Bios 2014, 2114, and statistics.

By taking BIOS 4091, Senior Honors Thesis: Students should have a 3.5 GPA, 15 hours in Biology and have the approval of the director of the University Honors Program.

No more than 6 hours of 2092, 3092, and 4091 combined may be counted for Biology credit. You should consult with me prior to the beginning of the semester to determine if there is a project in which you might participate. Consult the list of current lab projects:

• Foraging by leafcutting ants
• Curation of UNO insect collection
• The invasive tree species Triadica sebifera at Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge
• Behavior of captive primates at the Tulane Regional Primate Center