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Research Opportunities in
the Doucet Lab
There are several means by which students
can gain research experience in my lab. Please follow the links below
to learn about different kinds of research opportunities that may be
available.
•
Graduate
Students
•
Honours
Thesis Students
•
Undergraduate
Research Volunteers,
Work-Study, NSERC USRA
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| Graduate
Students |
Graduate Positions
My
research focuses on behavioural
and evolutionary ecology, with a particular emphasis on
visual communication in birds. One of my main areas of
interest is the
form and function of elaborate plumage coloration. If, after
reading the information below,
you are interested in joining my lab, please send me an email: sdoucet AT
uwindsor DOT ca.
Include a description of your research interests, a recent CV, and a
copy of your transcripts (unofficial print-screen version is fine).
Preference will be
given to students with prior research experience, students with major
external scholarships (e.g., NSERC, OGS), and/or students with a
demonstrated
potential to earn these scholarships. NSERC
deadlines are in October and OGS deadlines are in late October or early
November. If you are not familiar with these programs
and are interested in joining my lab,
I would be happy to provide guidance with the application process.
Project
development
Most projects in my lab involve
both field
work and laboratory work. I am currently seeking to fill graduate
positions for ongoing research projects in Costa Rica and Canada. I
encourage students to develop projects based on their own interests
within the framework of larger project goals and of the general
research focus in my lab. I have all of the necessary spectrometry
equipment for detailed studies of animal coloration patterns. I also
have equipment
available for
radiotelemetry and GPS data collection of animal
movement patterns. In the department, I have
access to equipment for molecular analyses including
microsatellite
paternity analyses, analyses of genetic relatedness, molecular sex
assignment, and sequencing.
Funding
 Graduate students admitted to the
Department
of Biological Sciences at the University of Windsor are guaranteed a
minimum salary stipend. Students stipends are funded either through
external
scholarships or through a combination of wages earned by serving as a
teaching assistant and salary paid by the student's advisor. Students
with NSERC
scholarships are eligible for full tuition waivers, as are
students with an average of A- or higher. These perks, in combination
with the modest cost of living in Windsor, enable graduate students
here to live quite comfortably.
I
will provide research funding for students working in
association with one of my major projects. However, I expect all
graduate students in my lab to apply for all scholarships and grants
for which they are eligible. This not only reduces the demand on my
research grants, but also provides students with valuable experience in
grant writing. Grants and scholarships are also excellent additions to
student CV's.
What to expect
I
take an active role
advising my graduate students. I meet with each
student on a regular basis. I also hold lab meetings on a weekly basis.
During these meetings, we brainstorm project ideas and project
design, read and discuss each others' manuscripts and grant
proposals, or comment on papers in the current literature. Students in
my lab can expect to gain experience in all aspects of research
including project development, field data collection, laboratory data
collection, data analysis and interpretation, and scientific writing. I
strongly encourage
my students to submit their findings for publication in scientific
journals and I provide assistance with manuscript preparation and all
other components of research projects. I also encourage students to
attend regional, national, and international conferences such as the
Ontario Ecology and Ethology Colloquium, the Animal Behaviour Society
Meetings, the American Ornithologists' Union Meetings, and meetings of
the International Society for Behavioral Ecology. We frequently
socialize as a lab group over pints at the Grad Club, during
bird-watching outings, or at
parties we host in honour of lab visitors or visiting seminar
speakers. I expect my students to be enthusiastic about research, to be
dedicated to their research
projects, to
work hard, and to actively participate in lab activities.
The
University of
Windsor
The University of Windsor is
located in
southern Ontario, Canada. It is a major comprehensive university and an
important research institution. The Department of Biological Sciences
comprises an active group of scientists with diverse research
interests. It is a rapidly growing departement - several new faculty
members have been hired in the past few years. Many of the faculty have
expertise in Ecology,
Evolution, Behaviour, and Sensory Ecology. As
such, graduate students in my lab have a great group of researchers
among which to choose committee members. Students also benefit
from interacting with these and other faculty members, as well as with
their graduate students, in various capacities during the completion of
their degrees. There is a weekly departmental seminar series that
brings in speakers from throughout Canada and the US. There is also a
biweekly seminar series hosted by the Behaviour, Cognition, and
Neuroscience group. The department also hosts biweekly biobeers on
Friday afternoons, when we get together to chat, snack, and, of course,
drink
beer (or your beverage of choice). Please see the Department of Biological Sciences homepage and the Facutly
page to learn
more about the department and its members.
The City
of Windsor
The
city of
Windsor is a great place to live. It
is a culturally diverse city with many excellent restaurants serving
almost any type of cuisine you can think of. It also has good pubs, a
great riverside walkway/bike path that runs along the length of the
entire city, access to nearby hiking
trails, lakes and rivers, and reasonably-priced housing. The
bird-watching
around Windsor is excellent year round. Point Pelee, which is
world-renowned as a migratory stopover site, is only forty minutes away
and the Ojibway nature preserve is only a few minutes
away.
Windsor's proximity to Detroit provides access to all the
amenities of a large city, including an international airport, while
still maitaining the benefits of a small city (there isn't much traffic
and it is very safe). Learn more about the city of Windsor here.
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| Honours Thesis
Students |
| Each
year, I will have a limited number
of positions available for students to conduct honours thesis
projects in my laboratory (55-420). An honours thesis is a challenging
but
rewarding learning experience. I highly recommend this course of study
to students who want in-depth research experience. An honours thesis is
also an ideal way to determine whether you might be well-suited for
graduate
studies. The research experience that you will gain from an honours
project will almost certainly improve you chances of being admitted
into a graduate
program. Of course, an honours project is a requirement for all
students in the Behaviour Cognition and Neuroscience (BCN) program.
Because of the limited number of positions available for honours
students, you will improve your chances of securing a 55-420 position
if you
begin volunteering in a lab early on during your undergraduate degree. If you are keen to develop an honours
project and are interested in the research conducted in my
lab, please contact me and we can discuss this possibility
(sdoucet AT uwindsor DOT ca). |
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Undergraduate
Research Volunteers, Work-Study, NSERC USRA
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Undergraduate students can gain
research experience as early as their first year by volunteering in
research labs. Volunteering in a lab is a requirement of the BCN
program, but Biology majors can also take advantage of this
opportunity. Some students can receive payment for conducting research
through the
work-study program (based on financial need) or through the NSERC
Undergraduate Student Research Award Program (a prestigious and very
competitive award that will pay your most of your salary while you work
in a research lab - your supervisor pays the rest). If you are keen to
gain research experience and are interested in the research conducted
in my lab, please contact me and we can discuss this possibility
(sdoucet AT uwindsor DOT ca).
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