Re: [ECOLOG-L] Some ideas for advancing grad education in the face of scarcity

[Reinhart, Kurt]

Ryan has many good points.  There are certainly roles for faculty, students, 
and groups of each.  My comments are on some low hanging fruit concerning 
graduate student training.


Recognizing the mentioned employment trends, highly motivated/passionate (grad) 
student groups should identify opportunities to have speakers from varied 
careers provide not only scientific talks but separate short talks on their 
careers.  Any school with a seminar series could easily increase their 
students' exposure to varied careers by 1) promoting career diversity among the 
roster of speakers and 2) asking relevant speakers to add content (5-10 min of 
their 45 min talk) on career/jobs stuff [or provide a separate mini-talk on 
their career as X working for Y to the student group].

I know of one large biology department that has acknowledged the cited 
employment trends and funded an annual roundtable organized by their students.  
The goal appears to be to empower students to organize a workshop and expose 
their students to varied career opportunities.  The professionals (6-12) were 
all non-academics and were pressed to talk about their unique career paths.  
ESA has done similar things.

Kurt
___
Kurt Reinhart, Experimental Plant Ecologist
USDA-Agricultural Research Service
Fort Keogh Livestock & Range Research Laboratory
243 Fort Keogh Rd.
Miles City, MT 59301
Ph: (406) 874-8211
Lab website


-Original Message-
From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news 
[mailto:ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU] On Behalf Of Ryan McEwan
Sent: Monday, August 25, 2014 6:01 AM
Subject: Some ideas for advancing grad education in the face of scarcity

 As the semester kicks off, I wanted to share some thoughts I had over the 
summer on graduate eduction:
---

August 25, 2014



Some ideas for advancing graduate education in ecology in a time of scarcity 
The science of Ecology, like most scientific disciplines, is in the midst of a 
crisis of sorts stemming from at least two underlying factors.  First, funding 
for science at a national level is stable or in decline, while the number of 
labs that need funding to persist is rising sharply.  Second, the number of 
PhDs being granted is vastly outpacing the job market.  According to some 
analyses the percentage of newly granted PhDs that got a job as a tenure track 
academic in the 1970s was nearly 50%, while that number today is less than 10% 

.
 In the face of this gloomy picture, action is required and I believe there are 
some clear steps we can take.  In my view, lobbying for more federal money, 
tweaking how funds are distributed, working toward some supplements to federal 
funds (e.g., crowdsourceing..like this  and that 
) are good things to fight for.  Those are "supply 
side" issues...I would like to also propose some practices in graduate training 
that may be helpful:
(a) revive and respect the Master's degree.

In my experience, some faculty view a Master's degree as a kind of failure.  
They tell their very best undergrads to avoid doing a Master's and head 
straight to the PhD.  It is a "waste of time" they advise, “the Master's degree 
is functionless”, "you can't do anything with that degree,"
etc.

In fact, many, talented, intelligent, undergraduates have no business doing a 
PhD because they are not suited to the particulars of the academic enterprise.  
We should do our best to only bring people into PhD programs who are clearly 
dedicated to every facet of the pursuit (see below).

A MS is a good option for many (most, all?) students interesting in career in 
ecology.  A MS serves as a vital testing ground, even for students who feel 
confident they want to do a Doctorate. A MS gives the student a chance to 
discover if research is really an endeavor they want to dedicate their life 
to--  statistical analysis, writing, digging through the literature-- in 
addition to field work, lab work, or setting up and maintaining an experiment.  
In my experience ~50% of the undergraduates who think they want to do a PhD, 
who faculty might say "you really should do a PhD," will change their mind 
during a MS degree.  In which case, that student can finish up the MS and head 
off to a job, instead of leaving a PhD partway through, which is a bad 
situation for both the student and the mentor.

Screening students in this way will help the PhD glut we currently face, 
resulting in fewer "ABDs" in the world, fewer PhDs who leave the field, and 
will allow those involved with training PhD students to focus energy on 
students who are more likley to stay the course and succeed.


(b) filter hard for students coming into our PhD programs.
I would recommend a MS and at least one peer-reviewed article submitted, as a 
general qualification for admittance into a PhD program.

GREs

[ECOLOG-L] Wash. State DNR Forest Mgmt. Activity Monitor Opening in Olympia

[WOLF, MELODY (DNR)]

DNR Service, Science, Sustainability
Natural Resource Specialist 4
Forest Management Activity Monitoring Manager
Recruitment # 2014-08-6890
Location: Olympia, Washington

SALARY RANGE:  $3,918 - $5,136  per month plus comprehensive benefit package 
and retirement.

OPEN UNTIL FILLED.  First review date is September 23.
Note: It is to your advantage to submit your materials sooner rather than 
later. Recruitment may close at any time without prior notification.

POSITION PROFILE:
This position is responsible for planning and over-seeing the forest management 
activity monitoring program on DNR-managed lands across the state, including 
silviculture, implementation of the Habitat Conservation Plan, and timber sales 
activities.  The job includes identifying methodologies, piloting of new 
projects, and development of monitoring protocols.  The position supervises 
monitoring professionals and is responsible for field data collection, 
reporting, and presentation of results.  Assists with the adaption of agency 
processes to incorporate monitoring results.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
*Bachelor's or Master's degree in forestry, silviculture, or closely related 
natural resource field;
*Demonstrated competency in the theory and field application of forestry, 
including three years of professional field experience in natural resource 
management or forest research; A Master's degree will substitute for one year 
of the required field experience, provided the field of study was forestry, 
forest management, or related;
*Demonstrated ability to develop, implement, organize, and manage a project or 
set of field studies;
*Demonstrated ability to clearly and effectively communicate, both orally and 
in writing, including providing instruction;
*Demonstrated ability to supervise, motivate, coach, and mentor diverse 
individuals, and the ability to provide training;
*Demonstrated proficiency and experience working with forest mensuration, 
sampling, and statistics, including experimental design, research methods, 
sampling procedures, error assessment methods, and data analysis;
*Technical skills common to field research, including: orienteering and 
surveying, driving forest roads, standard forest measurements, plant 
identification, and maintenance of equipment;
*Knowledge of natural resources monitoring methodology and demonstrated ability 
to stay current in methodologies; and
*Demonstrated level of proficiency in use of word processing, spreadsheet, 
office software, including GIS and databases.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS:
*Master's degree in forestry or closely related field;
*Knowledge of principles and applications of QA/QC within an organization; and
*Knowledge of Department programs, practices and related laws, regulations and 
policies.

SPECIAL POSITION REQUIREMENTS AND WORKING CONDITIONS
*Ability to work on uneven terrain in all weather conditions. Up to half time 
will be spent doing field work.
*The incumbent in this position is required to travel.
*Must have a valid driver's license and have two years of driving experience
*Must be at least 18 years of age at the time of hire.

WHO MAY APPLY
This recruitment is open to anyone who meets the required qualifications for 
this position.


FOR MORE INFORMATION AND HOW TO APPLY, please go to:
http://agency.governmentjobs.com/dnr/default.cfm?action=viewJob&jobID=950717 
-OR- go to 
www.dnr.wa.gov/aboutdnr/employment


Questions?  Please contact Candace Johnson at (360) 902-1348 or 
candace.john...@dnr.wa.gov or e-mail us at dnrrecruit...@dnr.wa.gov.

[ECOLOG-L] MSc. POSITION IN AGROFORESTRY AT THOMPSON RIVERS UNIVERSITY

[Thomas Pypker]

MSc. POSITION IN AGROFORESTRY AT THOMPSON RIVERS UNIVERSITY, KAMLOOPS,
BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA



A Graduate Research Assistantship is available for a MSc candidate to work
on an agroforestry project in the semi-arid southern interior of British
Columbia. The candidate would work closely with hydrologists, soil
scientists, silviculturalists and plant ecologists on a multi-faceted
project determining best practices for establishing hybrid poplar and an
understory crop. The applicant will be responsible for undertaking
hybrid/cultivar selection and irrigation regime studies to determine best
practices that minimize water use and protecting local stream health, while
providing optimal revenue.

The project is a partnership between a local First Nation band, a regional
timber company, researchers at BC's Ministry of Lands, Forests and Natural
Resources and Thompson Rivers University. There will be opportunities to
establish strong relationships with all parties involved.

Applicants must have a BSc. in in ecology, silviculture, hydrology or an
allied field. Experience with hydrological or field techniques is
desirable.  To qualify for this position, the applicant must be a Canadian
citizen/permanent resident and must have received at least an A- GPA in
their undergraduate studies. Students would be admitted to Thompson Rivers
University (Kamloops, BC) through the Environmental Sciences MSc. program,
with Dr. Thomas Pypker as advisor and mentor.

To apply send a letter of interest stating your qualifications and a
current CV via email,

to Dr. Tom Pypker at tpyp...@tru.ca.

[ECOLOG-L] How important is coursework on climate change?

[Minda Berbeco]

Hi Folks,

My colleague, Robert Luhn, wrote a piece for NCSE's blog on recently
attending ESA a few weeks ago in Sacramento. He was rather taken by the
number of researchers (undergraduates on up to professors) whose work
intersected climate change, but had not taken a formal class on the topic
nor did they plan on necessarily teaching it if/when they went on to teach.
 You can see his piece here:
http://ncse.com/blog/2014/08/climate-schlimate-0015839, but I thought it
might start an interesting discussion here as well as to whether students
actually need a formal course on climate change, whether people feel like
this topic is covered elsewhere in great enough detail or if by researching
it there isn't necessarily a need for a formal course.


Minda

-- 
Minda Berbeco, PhD
Programs and Policy Director
National Center for Science Education
420 40th Street, Suite 2
Oakland, CA 94609-2509
Phone: 510.601.7203 or 800-290-6006
Fax: 510-601-7204
http://ncse.com/climate
http://ncse.com/blog
Tweeting as @MindaBerbeco

Visiting Scholar
University of California Museum of Paleontology
1101 Valley Life Sciences Building
Berkeley, CA 94720-4780
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/ 

Re: [ECOLOG-L] Opinions, thoughts on snakebites

[Sean Clawson]

I'm currently working in Swaziland where snakebites are a concern (black mamba, 
spitting cobra, 
boomslang et al.).  There is a lady here who is doing great work on public 
education, outreach, and 
creating anti-venom banks.  Here is a webpage from her efforts: 
http://www.antivenomswazi.org/home/4533665172
You can tell she has respect for this much maligned taxon.  As for the "alcohol 
and stupidity" 
comment, it is worth considering how many snake-bite victims are children.

[ECOLOG-L] Two Fire Ecology Grad Assistantships- Virginia Tech

[Morgan Varner]

Folks,

Please distribute-

Ph.D. and M.S. Graduate Research Assistantships in Fire Ecology at Virginia Tech

I am recruiting two graduate students (one M.S. and one Ph.D.) to work with me 
in the Department of Forest Resources & Environmental Conservation at Virginia 
Tech beginning either spring 2015 or summer 2015. The students will have some 
flexibility in specific topics, but the general research areas will fall into 
one of these three general areas of fire and forest ecology:
Mechanisms of altered flammability in eastern US woodlands and forests- my lab 
has been focused on laboratory-scale flammability of a diversity of species 
from North America. Our current work focuses on understanding differential 
moisture and litterfall relationships and evaluating our lab-based findings in 
the wild. Our interests are focused on oak-hickory ecosystems in north 
Mississippi and SW Virginia and longleaf pine-oak ecosystems across the 
southeastern US.
Patterns of oak recovery across wildfire severity gradients- we have been 
working on understanding the pathways of California black oak following 
wildfires in 2002 and a re-burn in 2012 in the southern Cascades of northern 
California. Our current work is evaluating survival of remnant oaks and 
tracking the effects of multiple fires on oak community composition and 
structure.
We have on-going work on the fire ecology of American chestnut, ecology of 
upland oaks in fire-prone ecosystems, post-fire tree mortality, 
fire-disease-insect interactions, the ecological consequences of fuels 
treatments (mostly mastication and prescribed fire) and others that could be 
pursued.

Strong applicants will be creative, have a competitive GPA, GRE scores, and 
have substantial research experience, in the field and/or laboratory. 
Applicants for the Ph.D. position will have a strong research background with 
publications and substantial statistical and/or modeling experience. Education 
and training in fire ecology, a lack of fear of statistics, and great passion 
for your work will all help. In your email to me 
(mvar...@vt.edu ), please include your research 
interests, a resume/CV with relevant scores, a writing example, and contact 
information for two references who can speak to your potential as a productive 
scholar.

Both positions have competitive stipends, tuition waivers, computing, and 
travel funding. Virginia Tech is located in Blacksburg, an awesome college town 
in the Appalachian Mountains with a pleasant climate and vibrant community. The 
Department of Forest Resources & Environmental Conservation is consistently 
ranked among the world’s most outstanding forestry programs. Related 
departments across Virginia Tech have related expertise in ecology, 
meteorology, materials flammability, and modeling.

Send material or direct questions:
J. Morgan Varner
Department of Forest Resources & Environmental Conservation
Virginia Tech
Email: mvar...@vt.edu
Tel. 540-231-4855

[ECOLOG-L] Association of Women in Soil Science travel grant to 2014 ASA-CSSA-SSSA meeting

[Anderson, Ray]

Dear Ecolog,

For those female students who are interested in going to the ASA-CSSA-SSSA 
meeting in Long Beach, CA, the AWSS travel grant maybe of interest.  
Information on eligibility and how to apply is below.

Best,

Ray




AWSS Announces its Travel Scholarship Program

The Association for Women Soil Scientists is happy to announce its travel 
awards for attendance at the 2014 ASA-CSSA-SSSA Annual Meetings (November 2-5, 
2014) in Long Beach, California. The traveling awards are: 1st-$300 and 
2nd-$200. The awards are offer to undergraduate and graduate female students 
traveling and presenting their research results at the 2014 Soil Science 
Society of America Meeting. Afford grants will only cover expenses associated 
with the meeting in essence cost of registration, travel and lodging. The 
application deadline is September 15 for the 2014 meeting.

The application guidelines are:

A. Eligibility and Selection:



All applicants must be members of the Association for Women in Soil Science 
(may apply after award notice) and the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA).

B. Deadlines (materials must be received by deadline):

 September 15, 2014

 Main Point of Contact:



Dr. Rebecca Tirado-Corbalá, Award Committee Chair

Email: rebeccatiradocorb...@gmail.com

 Applying electronically is highly encouraged but in case of difficulty please 
notifies the main point of contact.



C. Application package (required documents):



The following documents must be submitted to constitute a complete application 
package.

1. A completed application form (see below)

2. A letter describing your reasons for applying to this program (scientific, 
financial, and professional) and whether you have made a previous presentation 
at a national meeting (any society) (limit 2 pages)

3. A resume or Curriculum Vitae (CV) (limit 2 pages)

4. An abstract of the work to be presented. Includes all authors and the 
research presentation format (i.e. poster, oral, etc.).

5. A letter from your advisor confirming your participation in the meeting for 
which you are applying for funds. Your advisor should comment on your technical 
capability. Include a list of additional travel support that may be available 
from the department or research grants.



Award recipients will receive notifications by e-mail (or other if indicated by 
applicant) no later than October 11, 2014.

Award selection criteria (in order of importance):

1. Higher preference to first time students presenting at national meeting 
(either poster or oral session).

2. Strength of abstract and recommendation





3. Accomplishments and career goals

4. Special circumstances (i.e. non-traditional students, single parents, 
illness)



5. Financial need

Association of Women Soil Scientists

Travel Award Application Form

1. Name_

2. Student status :

a. Undergraduate student: year___; major___; GPA _

b. MS graduate student: year___; major___; GPA _

c. PhD graduate student: year___; major___; GPA _

3. Contact information:



Mailing Address _

_

_

Phone_

E-mail_

4. School Information

a. Institution__

b. Department_

c. Advisor’s Name__

5. Estimated Travel Expenses Table:

Estimated cost


Travel (explain on separate page)


Lodging: ___ nights at ___ per night*1


Meeting Registration


Total



Dr. Ray G. Anderson
Research Soil Scientist
USDA-ARS, U.S. Salinity Laboratory
Contaminant Fate and Transport Unit
450 W. Big Springs Rd.
Riverside, CA 92507-4617 USA
Office:  1-951-369-4851
Fax:  1-951-342-4964





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