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 Role Facultysort descending Academic Unit
Te Punga Somerville, Alice Professor Faculty of Arts Department of English Language and Literatures, Institute for Critical Indigenous Studies
Alaica, Aleksa Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Anthropology
Pierre, Jemima Professor Faculty of Arts Institute for Gender, Race, Sex and Social Justice
Kuhn, McKenzie Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Geography
Philbrick, Rachel Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies
Givens, Terri Elizabeth Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Political Science
Brain, Robert Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of History
Snyder, Jason Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Psychology
Young, Mary-Lynn Professor Faculty of Arts School of Journalism, Writing, and Media
Rowley, Susan Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Anthropology, Department of Anthropology
Todd, Rebecca Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Psychology
Matthewson, Lisa Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Linguistics
Callison, Candis Associate Professor Faculty of Arts School of Journalism, Writing, and Media, Institute for Critical Indigenous Studies
Veenstra, Gerry Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Sociology
Ichikawa, Jonathan Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Philosophy
Hur, Nam-Lin Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Asian Studies
Hall, David Geoffrey Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Psychology
Williams, Jennifer Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Geography
Mawani, Renisa Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Sociology
Baker, Donald Leslie Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Asian Studies
Frank, Adam Professor Faculty of Arts Department of English Language and Literatures
Roy, Marina Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory
Baylis, Patrick Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Vancouver School of Economics
Bullard, Julia Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts School of Information
Moran, Patrick Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of French, Hispanic & Italian Studies
Lowe, Matthew Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Vancouver School of Economics
Kim, Christine Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of English Language and Literatures
Arefin, Mohammed Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Geography
Leavitt, Sarah Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts School of Creative Writing
Afsahi, Afsoun Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Political Science
Bostanci, Gorkem Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Vancouver School of Economics
Sarsons, Heather Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Vancouver School of Economics
Valadares, Desiree Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Geography
Maler, Anabel Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts School of Music
Marzano-Lesnevich, Alex Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts School of Creative Writing
Gao, Ying Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts Vancouver School of Economics
Davis, Ryan Assistant Professor Faculty of Arts School of Music
Paltin, Judith Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of English Language and Literatures
Kam, Christopher Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Political Science
Birch, Susan Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Psychology
Taylor, Timothy Professor Faculty of Arts School of Creative Writing
Adriasola Munoz, Ignacio Alberto Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory
Yi, Christina Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Asian Studies
Monteyne, Joseph Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory
Anger, Suzy Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of English Language and Literatures
James, Gareth Associate Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory
Scholte, Tom Professor Faculty of Arts Department of Theatre & Film
Marmer, Vadim Professor Faculty of Arts Vancouver School of Economics
Hamel, Keith Professor Faculty of Arts School of Music
Peters, Michael Professor Faculty of Arts Vancouver School of Economics

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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.