Over the course of their dissertation, students will work with me to develop an independent research project. I work as closely as needed with students to ensure that their Ph.D. is creative, novel, and meets their professional goals. I support students generously with both my time and grant support, but the latter is not intended as a substitute for one’s own proposals. For example, several of my current students and I have submitted proposals to support their own projects.
Interested students should read the material on our research group’s web page, read several of the papers that have come out of our lab, and determine if our interests are a good match. I am comfortable accepting students interested in any area of benthic community ecology, involving either empirical or theoretical approaches. Applicants interested in working at the interface of experiments and models are particularly encouraged to apply. At the time of application, I do not expect students to know their dissertation topic, but I do expect students to have an idea of the types of questions that interest them. All eligible students should also apply for an NSF graduate research fellowship. These fellowships and those administered by the university are awarded in large part on GRE and GPA considerations. Thus, while I am not too concerned with GRE scores (my greatest consideration is research background), the fellowship selection committees are, so it is in your best interests to study for the GRE and take the exam seriously. If after reading this and the other lab information, you are interested in applying to my lab, contact me via email at bradley.peterson@stonybrook.edu
