Opportunities to join the lab
The Lab is a community of researchers that share a passion for plankton and contributing to improved understanding of ocean ecosystems so collectively we can better manage the oceans we so much rely on. We are excited you are considering joining our research group. Members of our lab are highly-motivated, curious, open-minded, kind, diligent, creative, persistent, enthusiastic and we all work very hard. The hard work pays off, our research is a lot of fun and we have amazing opportunities for exciting research, contributions to humanity, global travel and wonderful colleagues. Alumni are successful. To find out more, contact current and former members (see people and alumni pages). A positive, can-do attitude and intellectual curiosity are very important. If you are considering applying to join the lab, please spend some time reading our publications to get an idea of the types of questions we address before contacting Susanne Menden-Deuer. People are typically fully funded to pursue their research but funding is always limited, so consider applying for fellowships. Specific information is found below.
Prospective Graduate Students and Post-doctoral fellows
Thank you for your interest in the graduate program at GSO and in our research in plankton ecology. Post-docs and students work on a wide range of topics, including a combination of laboratory, field and modeling work. Everyone typically works on their own research project – see publications denoted with an * to identify work by current and former students or post-docs. Graduate students acquire skills and knowledge in many disciplines, including biology, mathematics, statistics and of course troubleshooting. Positions are often fully funded through research fellowships associated with my grants or funding that students have acquired through scholarships. Funding is often a limiting factor in accepting people and I strongly encourage you to apply for your own funding to increase your chances. However, funding is not the deciding factor on whether you would make a good fit in the lab and if we want to work together.
For graduate students, formal admittance to my lab is contingent on your acceptance at the Graduate School of Oceanography. For information on the application process and technical details please see the GSO website. In addition you may wish to contact the GSO academic admissions advisor.
If after reading some publications you are interested in joining the lab, please contact me at (smenden at uri dot edu), be as specific as you can about your research interests, experience and why you want to work particularly in this lab. Students are typically funded through research grants or funding they obtained through awards or scholarships. Students in my lab are not typically supported by TA ships, except for a semester or two. Ph.D. students are required (by me) to TA at least one semester to gain teaching exposure.
Please consider before contacting me, that you are not applying to a general program that admits many, many people. If we are to work together, we will engage in a very intense professional relationship that could last for the rest of our lives. Make every effort to find out about your future lab and think about how well your interests fit with the opportunities in the lab and how your goals might be met by what my lab can offer. It is OK if you can’t answer exactly what you want to research or give every detail but in order for me to consider working with you, I need to see some evidence of your goals and motivation.
Undergraduate Internships
Motivated undergraduate students are welcome to join the lab for a directed research project. Student projects can cover a wide range of topics and methods, including oceanography, microbiology, ecology, image analysis, computer simulations and many more. Students in my lab have successfully completed independent internships, the Coastal Fellow and SURFO programs. We have hosted students from other institutions as well as overseas. See lab alumni on the people page for examples.
If you would like to be considered, please contact (smenden at uri dot edu) with your resume, prior research experience (if any) and a brief statement describing your goals for an internship. I offer both paid internships as well as research credit (for URI students 1 credit/3 hrs in the lab every week for the duration of the semester).