Opportunities in the Lab
Prospective Graduate Students.There are outstanding opportunities at UCI for students to take advantage of expertise that spans from evolutionary ecology to earth system science, as well as to work with conservation organizations. A graduate student could be involved in many of the current projects listed on this website. However, I think a critical step in graduate training is to be able to intellectually develop a project that really excites you. I am looking for students eager to collaborate to develop a question that they are enthusiastic to pursue – there are a wide range of possibilities.
If you are interested to learn more about what it is like working with me and in our graduate program, please contact me and current members of the lab.
Students will be based in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and involved with the Global Change Ecology Group at UC Irvine. Funding is guaranteed for five years with a mixture of RA, TA, and fellowship support. The UC Irvine campus is located approximately half way between Los Angeles and San Diego, biking distance to the Pacific Ocean and one- two hours drive to mountain and desert areas.
Prospective Undergraduate Students.We have two openings for undergraduate 199 projects. These projects would enable undergraduates to work closely with me and graduate students in the lab on research about plants and the environment. There are also opportunities for summer or part-time work and for travel to some of our field sites outside California. Below are two possible projects:
(1) Landscape transitions in Southern California. We are using historical vegetation maps and fire history to determine how coastal sage scrub, grassland, and chaparral habitats have changed over the past century. This project will give us insight about how our landscape might change in the future.
(2) Exotic species stranglehold on California grasslands. Over 95% of all California grasslands have been invaded by annual exotic grasses. We work in the greenhouse and outside on experiments to investigate why native species are unable to re-invade these systems.