Graduate Student Philosophy

I really enjoy working with graduate students.

In some lab groups the number of students is limited by the number of funded slots that are available. In my lab group the philosophy is quite different. I intentionally do not open ANY funded slots to graduate students so there are never open, funded slots for graduate students. If you are looking for a funded slot, then please look elsewhere. We think differently here.

I don't really have a cap on students but rather accept any who appear to fit into my lab group philosophy. There are often about 50 qualified applicants for ethnobotany who apply to work in our program each year but only 1-2 are accepted. I am picky.

Applicants are accepted who have made an effort to develop a mentor relationship with me PRIOR to submitting an application. These applicants have also made it clear that they understand the expectations that I have of students working in the group.

I personally like to work with very independent students who:

• work on their own projects at their own pace and without a lot of interference from me
• develop creative research hypotheses
• find their own sources of funding
• write their own research proposals
• write their own research publications

I work with students as a sounding board in the above efforts assisting when needed, but at the end of the day they sink or swim by their own efforts. They learn survival and because of this are exceptionally well qualified to be independent scholars when they graduate.

Students who need their hand held and nose wiped don't do well in my research group.

My research group consists of individuals who sometimes work together on certain projects, but mostly each of us head in our own directions and come together to discuss how things are going and bounce ideas off of each other. We have a fun and egalitarian lab but we are not at all the typical graduate school experience.