Joining Our Team

We are happy to work with kind, hard-working, inquisitive individuals that are motivated to make a positive impact in ecology.

I supervise Honours and graduate (MSc and PhD via my Adjunct appointments) students, as well as postdocs in any area of research in which I feel confident that I can give useful guidance and support. Check out our research interests and read our publications to get a feeling for what we do!

If you are interested in joining our research group, please send Dr. Riley your CV and a cover letter attached to a professional email. You can check out a good example here. Please use this letter to introduce yourself and share your personal and career motivations for pursuing research, your experience with research so far, and a description of a project you would like to pursue.

I do take on students who don't have their own funding. However, you should look into and apply for any funding opportunities you are eligible for. A great place to start looking are the resources below, but please know it is not a comprehensive list! Please let me know what funding avenues you have investigated and where you are in the application process when you contact me.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Working as a team to capture an elusive Australian Tree Skink. Our lab is a collaborative community where we all help one another to achieve our goals.

Scholarship and Funding Opportunities

General Advice

There is a 'hidden curriculum' in academia - information most expect incoming and current graduate students to know but are rarely taught. Dr. Casey terHorst's lab has collated information they wish they knew before graduate school. Some of the info is specific to CSUN but most applies across institutions.

Looking for great general advice on all things academia (writing, giving talks, getting funding, getting jobs)?

Check out Dr. Scott Keogh's Resources and Advice for Students and Dr. Brian Todd's website with insightful resources about all things academic/scientific. They are not to be missed!

Scholarship Information

Some of the major players offering graduate scholarships in Canada are:

● Mount Allison University (MtA) funding opportunities for undergraduate & graduate students. For MtA postdoctoral opportunities in the Department of Biology, keep an eye out here (around Jan yearly) for advertisements.

● Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)

- Undergraduate Student Research Award | NSERC link | MtA link (Note, if you are an Indigenous student chat directly with me about benefits that you can access through this program)

- NSERC Master's Program | NSERC link | MtA link (refer to "Canada Graduate Scholarships - Master's" )

- NSERC Doctoral Program

- NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowships Program

● Government of Canada (Tri-agency funding)

- Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (doctoral, international applicants can apply)

- Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships (international applicants can apply)

● Mitacs | graduate students | postdocs

● New Brunswick Innovation Fund (NBIF)

- Graduate Scholarships | NBIF link | MtA link (refer to NBIF STEM section)

- Research Assistantships Initiative

● The O'Brien Foundation | Graduate Scholarships for residents of NB

● U.S. Fullbright Program

● Ontario Graduate Scholarships Program: There is potential for co-supervision at Ontario universities where I hold Adjunct appointments. Feel free to reach out to chat about this!

● Nova Scotia Graduate Scholarship, African Nova Scotia Graduate Scholarship & Indigenous Graduate Scholarships are available through Dalhousie University where there is potential for co-supervision via my Adjunct appointment. Feel free to reach out to chat about this!

● Mackenzie King Graduate Scholarships

● Canadian Wildlife Federation: Orville Erickson Memorial Scholarships

● Mitacs | graduate students | postdocs

● A variety of scholarships, fellowships, and awards are offered by the Canadian Federation of University Women

● Weston Foundation Fellowships for graduate students to conduct work in Ontario's Northern Boreal or the Northern Boreal Mountains

● Weston Family Conservation Science Fellowship Program from the Nature Conservancy of Canada for graduate students

● Liber Ero Fellowship Program (for postdocs)

There are also lots more opportunities out there! Do your own research. If there is an opportunity not on this list, I am still be happy to help with your application.

Looking for more information on and advice about applying for scholarships? Check out:

● Graduate Scholarship Info Session (a YouTube video in 2021) from the Canadian Herpetological Society. Check out the description for links to the presentation slides & helpful info sheets.

● Lauren Thompson's Funding Resources website. It includes a grant sharing resource that archives examples of scholarships applications that you can use to inform your own!

Research Funding Opportunities

Below are a variety of opportunities to get funding for your research. Each fund varies in their amounts and eligibility requirements. Check them out! Also, make sure to do your own research too.

There are also many travel funding opportunities for conferences! Make sure to look out for them too.

● Government of Canada

- Habitat Stewardship Program for Species at Risk

- Aboriginal Fund for Species at Risk

● New Brunswick Wildlife Trust Fund

● Government of New Brunswick: Environmental Trust Fund

● New Brunswick Museum: Florence M. Christie Research Grants in Botany/Mycology and Zoology

● National Geographic Society Grants Program

● Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution (CSEE): Excellence in Doctoral Research Award

● Canadian Society of Zoologists

- Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry Student/PDF Research Grant

- CSZ Student/PDF Research Grant