Finding a Major Professor

So you're looking for a Major Professor...

Your Major Professor is the Principal Investigator (PI) of the lab you will join*. Their role will be to act as your primary mentor.

You understandably might be worried about finding a major professor as an entering first-year PhD student. Although this can be a daunting task, try not to worry too much as your first year will primarily consist of rigorous core coursework. Students can generally expect to join a lab by/during their second year, so the first year is useful for getting to know and talk to multiple professors. Talk to as many people as possible! You will spend the next 4-6 years of your life working with this person so make sure they are a good fit in terms of work style, organization, personality, and attitude in addition to your desired research topic. Sometimes the best mentors are not who you expect them to be. A nurturing mentor can be more important for your personal well-being than someone with many publications. Please reference the list to the right for some departments where students have found major professors.

Here are some things to consider while you're looking:

Talk to other graduate students in the lab! Ask about their experiences, the work environment and expectations of the lab, and how they are funded.
Figure out what kinds of projects the lab does - lab work, field work, data analytics - and how these overlap with skills you want to cultivate or new skills you want to learn.
Talk about funding: how involved is the PI you are talking to willing to be with helping you acquire funding? Everyone's situation is different, and some may already have received fellowships or grant money. For some, funding from your lab may mean that you and your PI are part of a grant or write one together, or it might mean you have a research position (GSR) paid by your lab. You may also have different sources of funding at different times from teaching (TA or AI) or other fellowships you seek on your own. (See the Funding tab for more information!)
Prioritize character fit over research fit. Searching for a PI based on research can be helpful to narrow down who to look into more. However, the most important thing a PI can do is mentor you. That means that finding someone that matches your personality and mentoring preference is more valuable than finding someone doing your exact niche research interest.

GGE is involved with a growing list of many different departments.

If you are close with a faculty member not part of GGE, you can have them as a co-PI alongside someone in GGE. It is also possible for faculty to join the grad group if they are willing.

Animal Biology
Avian Sciences
Biological and Agricultural Engineering
Biostatistics
Chicana/o Studies
Evolution & Ecology
Entomology
Environmental Science
Health Informatics
Internal Medicine (Medical campus)
Maternal & Child Nutrition
Medicine & Epidemiology
Nutrition
Pathology, Microbiology, & Immunology
Pediatrics (Medical campus)
Plant Pathology
Population Health & Reproduction
Public Health Sciences

*Note: GGE does not have lab rotations.

How to reach out to faculty about possibly joining their lab

Cold-emailing is the norm. It can be intimidating as a student to reach out this way, but just remember that faculty are expecting emails like this.

Tips for your email:

The goal of this email is to see if the professor would be willing to meet with you to talk about you potentially joining their lab.
Start with a brief introduction to yourself (e.g. name, year, research interests).
Reference specific things about the professor's work that you find interesting.
Link the professor's research interests to what you bring (e.g. past research experience) or what you hope to learn from working with them.
Be honest about your funding needs. Are you willing to join a lab without funding established for you yet? Do you have other funding sources?
Update and attach your CV to the email.

Tips for your meeting:

A huge goal of this meeting is to see if you and the professor's personalities are compatible. Not only are they figuring out if they want to take you on as a student, but you should be figuring out if you are willing to work with them.
Ask questions about their research interests, funding, and mentoring style. Think to yourself if they would be able to provide what you need from a mentor.
Be prepared to talk about your interests, background, and experience as well. It can be helpful to research the professor's work prior to the meeting, so you can speak directly to what you find interesting.
Do not expect to plan out your whole dissertation direction. You might discuss which projects you could work on, but the goal of this meeting is ultimately a huge vibe check.

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