Curious about whether the REAL Lives Lab might be a good fit?
We very much value creating a supportive and collaborative lab culture that respects and reflects our diverse identities and experiences as both whole humans and professionals in the field. Our lab meetings begin with check-ins, and a major focus of our time is supporting students' professional development, dissertation progress, and overall wellbeing. We also tend to share pet photos, self-care tips, and use both humor and authenticity to lift each other up.
Although many students in the lab have an interest in LGBTQ+ people and communities, this is by no means a required focus of your research interests or dissertation. In fact, most of our members have a broader interest in intersectionality, and are interested in any number of identities, cultural factors, and social systems that come together to shape people's experiences.
Given Dr. McConnell's clinically active role supervising in and directing the Sexual and Gender Identities Clinic, many of our students also have a strong interest in clinical work, applied research, and/or training and supervision. We consider ourselves a "choose your own adventure" lab, where your level and type of involvement in different projects is determined by your needs, interests, and overall professional goals.
If that speaks to you, we'd love to have you join us. Feel free to reach out to Dr. McConnell (emcconnell@paloaltou.edu) and/or one of the current lab members (emails listed on the Team page). We'd be happy to provide more information about what we do, schedule a time to talk, or have you join one of our lab meetings.
Expectations:
Contributing to a supportive lab culture.
Attendance and active participation in weekly lab meetings.
Making regular progress on your dissertation!
Individual mentoring meetings at least 1x/quarter.
Completing a variety of research-related tasks, including: literature reviews, study design, IRB applications, participant recruitment, data collection, data analysis, and dissemination of findings. Specific duties will be determined based on both student interests and project/lab needs.
Collaborating as co-authors on conference presentations and/or publications.
Openings:
2-3 students will be invited to join the lab each year.
Students with interests in LGBTQ+ mental health and/or mental health among members of marginalized communities are strongly encouraged to apply.
Application Instructions:
Please submit the following materials to Dr. McConnell (emcconnell@paloaltou.edu) by the application deadline:
Cover letter (1-2 pages) detailing your fit with the lab, previous research experience, research goals for graduate school, and long-term career goals
Curriculum vitae (including 3 references with email contact information)
Current unofficial PAU transcript
Research proposal from PAU’s Research Methods course
Select students will be invited to interview to learn more about their possible fit with the lab. Accepted students will be notified on the PAU uniform notification date, and will have the option to start in Spring.