Research Supervisors

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The supervisor is the key person in a thesis-based graduate degree program. The principal role of the supervisor is to help students achieve their scholastic potential and to chair the student’s Supervisory Committee. The Supervisor will provide reasonable commitment, accessibility, professionalism, stimulation, guidance, respect and consistent encouragement to the student. Learn more

Graduate programs have different expectations regarding prospective students contacting faculty members. Some require commitment of a faculty member as thesis supervisor prior to applying while others assign supervisors in the first year. Please review the requirements for each program in the degree listing under the heading "Admission Information & Requirements" in step 3 "Prepare Application" under "Thesis Supervision".

Advice on how to reach out to supervisors

 
Name Role Facultysort ascending Academic Unit
Gay, Colin Professor Faculty of Science Department of Physics & Astronomy
Xiao, Robert Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Reid, Jolene Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Chemistry
Sutherland, Danica Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Orsi, Anais Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences
Wang, Daochen Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Gustafson, Stephen James Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Jones, David Professor Faculty of Science Department of Physics & Astronomy
McGrenere, Joanna Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Friedman, Joel Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Jellinek, Mark Professor Faculty of Science Department of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences
Hancock, Robert E Professor Faculty of Science Department of Microbiology & Immunology
Ghioca, Dragos Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Evans, William Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
MacLean, Karon Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Osborne, Lisa Associate Professor Faculty of Science Department of Microbiology & Immunology
Hallam, Steven Professor Faculty of Science Department of Microbiology & Immunology
Stamp, Philip C Professor Faculty of Science Department of Physics & Astronomy
Algar, Russ Professor Faculty of Science Department of Chemistry
Sigal, Leonid Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Michaletz, Sean Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Botany
Tropini, Carolina Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Microbiology & Immunology, School of Biomedical Engineering
Matthews, Benjamin Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Zoology
Picard, Sebastien Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Yi, Kwang Moo Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Hariri, Amani Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Chemistry
Kunimoto, Michelle Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Physics & Astronomy
Achermann, Reto Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Groat, Lee Professor Faculty of Science Department of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences
Li, Hongbin Professor Faculty of Science Department of Chemistry
Pottinger, Rachel Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Slade, Gordon Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Oser, Scott Professor Faculty of Science Department of Physics & Astronomy
Lakshmanan, Laks Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Mitchell, Ian Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Gates, Derek Professor Faculty of Science Department of Chemistry
Coombs, Daniel Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Bennett, Michael Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Friedlander, Michael Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science, Department of Mathematics
Marcus, Brian Harry Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Rieseberg, Loren Professor Faculty of Science Department of Botany
Hirst, Martin Professor Faculty of Science Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Michael Smith Laboratories
Hunt, Brian Associate Professor Faculty of Science Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries
Watson, Liam Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Mank, Judith Professor Faculty of Science Department of Zoology
Hermon, Jonathan Assistant Professor Faculty of Science Department of Mathematics
Wolf, Michael Professor Faculty of Science Department of Chemistry
Christensen, Villy Professor Faculty of Science Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries
Conati, Cristina Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Burke, Sarah Associate Professor Faculty of Science Department of Physics & Astronomy, Department of Chemistry

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Reaching Out Tips

Complete these steps before you reach out to a faculty member!

Check requirements
  • Familiarize yourself with program requirements. You want to learn as much as possible from the information available to you before you reach out to a faculty member. Be sure to visit the graduate degree program listing and program-specific websites.
  • Check whether the program requires you to seek commitment from a supervisor prior to submitting an application. For some programs this is an essential step while others match successful applicants with faculty members within the first year of study. This is either indicated in the program profile under "Admission Information & Requirements" - "Prepare Application" - "Supervision" or on the program website.
Focus your search
  • Identify specific faculty members who are conducting research in your specific area of interest.
  • Establish that your research interests align with the faculty member’s research interests.
    • Read up on the faculty members in the program and the research being conducted in the department.
    • Familiarize yourself with their work, read their recent publications and past theses/dissertations that they supervised. Be certain that their research is indeed what you are hoping to study.
Make a good impression
  • Compose an error-free and grammatically correct email addressed to your specifically targeted faculty member, and remember to use their correct titles.
    • Do not send non-specific, mass emails to everyone in the department hoping for a match.
    • Address the faculty members by name. Your contact should be genuine rather than generic.
  • Include a brief outline of your academic background, why you are interested in working with the faculty member, and what experience you could bring to the department. The supervision enquiry form guides you with targeted questions. Ensure to craft compelling answers to these questions.
  • Highlight your achievements and why you are a top student. Faculty members receive dozens of requests from prospective students and you may have less than 30 seconds to pique someone’s interest.
  • Demonstrate that you are familiar with their research:
    • Convey the specific ways you are a good fit for the program.
    • Convey the specific ways the program/lab/faculty member is a good fit for the research you are interested in/already conducting.
  • Be enthusiastic, but don’t overdo it.
Attend an information session

G+PS regularly provides virtual sessions that focus on admission requirements and procedures and tips how to improve your application.