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 descending Academic Unit
Bowie, William Professor Faculty of Medicine Division of Infectious Diseases
Barbic, Skye Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy
Schaffer, Paul Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology
Flannigan, Ryan Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Urologic Sciences
Penninger, Josef Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medical Genetics
Ciernia, Annie Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Socias, Maria Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Division of Social Medicine
Elliott, Alison Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medical Genetics
Steif, Adi Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medical Genetics
Hach, Faraz Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Urologic Sciences
Singh, Anurag Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medicine
Hilton, Brett Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Cellular & Physiological Sciences
Hawkes, Michael Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
Sladen, Douglas Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine School of Audiology and Speech Sciences
Av-Gay, Yossef Professor Faculty of Medicine Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology & Immunology
Hanley, Gillian Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology
Krausz, Reinhard Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Psychiatry
Lee, Tim Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Dermatology & Skin Science
Kershaw, Paul Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine
Chew, Ben Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Urologic Sciences
Doan, Quynh Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
Hackett, Tillie-Louise Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology, Pharmacology & Therapeutics
Lam, Raymond Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Psychiatry
Phillips, Anthony Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Psychiatry
Webb, John Professor Faculty of Medicine Divisions of Cardiology & Cardiovascular Surgery
Paterson, Ryan Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Urologic Sciences
Black, Peter Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Urologic Sciences
Afshar, Kourosh Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Urologic Sciences
Weng, Andrew Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Kornelsen, Jude Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Family Practice
Hunt, Michael Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Physical Therapy
Nielsen, Torsten Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Strynadka, Natalie Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Kobor, Michael Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medical Genetics
Rothstein, Ralph Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
Stirling, Peter Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medical Genetics
Sadarangani, Manish Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
Lansdorp, Peter Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medical Genetics
Schaeffer, David Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Lin, Kuo-Shyan Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology
Vigo, Daniel Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Psychiatry
Haji, Faizal Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Surgery
Perrone, Lucy Associate Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Eddy, Rachel Assistant Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Radiology, Department of Pediatrics
Carleton, Bruce Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
Sadovnick, Adele Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Medical Genetics
Wood, Evan Professor Faculty of Medicine Division of Social Medicine
Bedaiwy, Mohamed Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology
Phang, P Terence Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Surgery
Shaw, Christopher Professor Faculty of Medicine Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences

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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.