Research Supervisors

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 Rolesort descending Faculty Academic Unit
Bustin, Robert Marc Professor Faculty of Science Department of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences
Echard, Sian Professor Faculty of Arts Department of English Language and Literatures
Mayo, John Robert Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology, Department of Medicine
Laher, Ismail Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology, Pharmacology & Therapeutics
Lauer, Sean Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Sociology
Chen, Jinhua Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Asian Studies
Zandstra, Peter Professor Faculty of Medicine School of Biomedical Engineering, Michael Smith Laboratories
Choptuik, Matthew Professor Faculty of Science Department of Physics & Astronomy
Giaschi, Deborah Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences
Gu, Xiong Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory
Seamans, Jeremy Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Psychiatry
Eva, Kevin Professor Faculty of Medicine Division of General Internal Medicine
Wong, Vincent Professor Faculty of Applied Science Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Schajer, Gary Professor Faculty of Applied Science Department of Mechanical Engineering
Devlin, Angela Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
Schneider, Thomas Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies
Gustafson, Paul Professor Faculty of Science Department of Statistics
MacLure, Malcolm Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology, Pharmacology & Therapeutics
Dunbar, W Scott Professor Faculty of Applied Science Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering
Mole, Christopher Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Philosophy
Allard, Michael Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Stuart, Gavin Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology
Russell, Kelly Professor Faculty of Science Department of Earth, Ocean & Atmospheric Sciences
Madden, John Professor Faculty of Applied Science Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Wylie, Alison Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Philosophy
Razack, Saleem Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
Myers-Smith, Isla Professor Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences
Marti, Jose Professor Faculty of Applied Science Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Lovato, Chris Professor Faculty of Medicine School of Population and Public Health
Anis, Aslam Professor Faculty of Medicine School of Population and Public Health
Conibear, Elizabeth Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medical Genetics
Pottinger, Rachel Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Monteyne, Joseph Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory
Craig, Ann Marie Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Psychiatry
Khan, Nadia Ahmed Professor Faculty of Medicine Division of General Internal Medicine
Plotkin, Steven Professor Faculty of Science Department of Physics & Astronomy
Fernandez, Rachel Professor Faculty of Science Department of Microbiology & Immunology
Benedet, Janine Professor Peter A. Allard School of Law
Byers, Michael Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Political Science
Castellarin, Simone Professor Faculty of Land and Food Systems Applied Biology
Daniels, Lori Professor Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest & Conservation Sciences
Krystal, Gerald Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Bhagavatula, Sastry Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology, Pharmacology & Therapeutics
Aviles, Leticia Professor Faculty of Science Department of Zoology
Harvey, Nicholas Professor Faculty of Science Department of Computer Science
Kelly, Deirdre Professor Faculty of Education Department of Educational Studies
Bally, Marcel Bertran Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Alila, Younes Professor Faculty of Forestry Department of Forest Resources Management
Metcalfe, Amy Professor Faculty of Education Department of Educational Studies
Campbell, Suzanne Professor Faculty of Applied Science School of Nursing

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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.