Graduate Students
Prospective Graduate Students
I am always looking for creative, hard-working students interested in marine resource economics and policy. I accept students through the Economics and Ecology and Environment Sciences programs.
Qualifications: A degree in economics, mathematics, statistics or related field. Experience or coursework in policy, quantitative methods, and/or applied econometrics is preferred.
Support for graduate students comes from research projects and grants, such as my current research project on the Gulf of Maine northern shrimp fishery, scholarships, fellowships, or graduate assistantships (based on merit). Nine- and twelve-month graduate assistantships and scholarships are available in the School of Economics on a competitive basis. Graduate assistantships provide funding support to cover stipends, tuition costs, and subsidized health insurance coverage.
Current opportunities include:
School of Economics Research Assistantship (School of Economics)
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships
Environmental Protection Agency Research Fellowships
Current Graduate Students
Alissa Miller-Gonzalez
Degree: MS in Resource Economics and Policy (2023)
Research project: Understanding U.S. seafood markets - opportunities for farmed and wild-capture products; SEANET (aquaculture)
Research objective: I am working with Dr. Evans and Dr. Noblet to study U.S. consumer preferences for seafood products, focusing on farmed versus wild-captured seafood and the efficacy of labeling.
Jaeheon Kim
Degree: PhD in Ecology and Environmental Sciences (expected 2023)
Research project: Maine lobster fishery
Research objective: My project working with both Dr. Evans and Dr. Chen involves understanding and modeling the multidisciplinary aspects of the Maine lobster fishery over time. I will be working with both economic and biological data to model fisher’s response to climate change, and patterns in the biological distribution of lobsters in the Gulf of Maine.
Future goals: I’m interested in the sustainability of fisheries and hope to work within sustainable fisheries management.
Past graduate students
Nick Alvarez
Degree: MS in Economics (2021)
Research project: SEANET (aquaculture)
Thesis: "NIMBY: A Look into Public Perceptions of Aquaculture."
Awards: Most Outstanding Graduate Student in School of Economics, 2021.
Future goals: I am interested in working as a data analyst focusing in renewable energy.
Hannah Merriam
Degree: MS in Resource Economics and Policy (2020) (nonthesis)
Research project: Soft-shell clam fishery
Research objective: My research with Dr. Evans investigates the relationship between environmental closures in clam flats (due to concerns about biotoxins and bacterial pathogens) and harvesters. We measure the forgone revenue and landings from these closures and explore spatial-temporal adaption strategies by clam harvesters.
First placement: Economic Consultant at Opinion Dynamics.
Amy Bainbridge
Degree: MS in Resource Economics and Policy (2019)
Research project: SEANET (aquaculture)
Thesis: "Citizen Preferences for Marine Environmental Policy."
First placement: Resource Economist at The Balmoral Group
Olga Bredikhina
Degree: MS in Economics (2019)
Research project: SEANET (aquaculture)
Thesis: "Examining Citizen's Preferences for Aquaculture using Discrete Choice Experiments."
Awards: Most Outstanding Graduate Student in School of Economics, 2019.
First placement: Assistant Research Economist at University of Alabama, Alabama Transportation Institute.
Ashley Charleson
Degree: MS in Marine Policy and MS in Marine Biology (2019)
Research project: Gulf of Maine northern shrimp fishery
Thesis: "Examining the Northern Shrimp Fishery in a Changing Gulf of Maine."
Future goals: I am interested in working in coastal resource management focusing on issues related to aquaculture and connections with wild-capture fisheries. I am also interested in operating my own marine farm.
Avery Cole
Degree: MS in Economics (2019)
Thesis: "Grower Risk and Community Perception: Impediments to Growing Maine's Aquaculture Industry."
Research project: SEANET (aquaculture)
First placement: Research Analyst at DNV GL.
Joshua Donnelly
Degree: MS in Financial Economics (2019) (nonthesis)
First placement: Research Analyst at Southwick Associates.
Shuling Chen
Degree: MS in Marine Policy (2018)
Thesis: “Analysis Supply Chain and Water Quality Management in the Soft-Shell Clam (Mya arenaria) Fishery under the Impact of Shellfish Closures in Downeast Maine.”
Research project: Soft-shell clam fishery
First placement: NRDC China Fisheries Science Fellowship.
Chelsea Liddell
Degree: MS in Resource Economics and Policy (2018)
Thesis: “Timber Harvest and Recreation in Maine’s North Woods: Attitudes, Impacts, and Strategies for Coexistence.”
First placement: Research Analyst at Southwick Associates.
Drew Rosebush
Degree: MS in Resource Economics and Policy and Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Services (2018) (nonthesis)
First placement: Pricing Analyst at Collins Aerospace
Nguyen Dinh Tuan Vuong
Degree: MA in Economics (2018)
Thesis: “Off-farm Labor Supply, Health Impact of Pesticide Use and Communist Party Membership in Vietnam: An Economic Analysis.”
Awards: Best Paper at the Vietnam Economist Annual Meeting, 2018.
First placement: PhD student in Economics at University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Christina Robichaud
Degree: MS in Resource Economics and Policy (2017)
Thesis: “A Spatial Analysis of the Impacts of Marine Aquaculture on Coastal Housing Prices.”
Peer-reviewed publication: Evans, K.S., X. Chen, and C.A. Robichaud. (2017) "A hedonic analysis of the impact of marine aquaculture on coastal housing prices in Maine." Agricultural and Resource Economics Review. 46(2): 242-267.
Research project: SEANET (aquaculture).
Awards: Most Outstanding Graduate Student in School of Economics, 2017.
First placement: Research Analyst at DNV GL.