项目介绍

2022年10月10日

The Ph.D. Program in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology in the E3B department at Columbia University is inclusive. We encourage applications from candidates of all races, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, (dis)abilities, nationalities, religions, and every other demographic group.

Overview of applying to the program

Applying to our Ph.D. program is very different than applying to an undergraduate program. The key difference is that admission to the program is decided by the E3B faculty, rather than by a centralized admissions office. Admission is contingent upon one or more faculty members committing to advise a student. Therefore, applicants must contact one or more faculty members who could be potential advisers prior to submitting an application.

Faculty who can advise Ph.D. students in E3B are listed here. Some of the faculty on that page are core E3B faculty, whereas others are faculty at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) who are affiliated with E3B. Students interested in working with AMNH faculty through Columbia’s E3B program should apply to both E3B and to AMNH’s Graduate Student Fellowship Program.

To determine which faculty members to contact, we recommend visiting the lab websites of potential Ph.D. sponsors and reading papers from their lab. If a lab looks like a good fit with your research interests, email the professor in summer or early fall prior to applying. This initial email should be clear and concise. It should state that you are interested in a Ph.D. in the professor’s lab and why you are interested in a Ph.D. in the professor’s lab. Including your CV is recommended. An email template is here.

If the professor’s lab has room for an additional Ph.D. student and the applicant’s research interests seem like an appropriate fit for the lab, the professor and applicant may meet virtually over phone/video conference or in person. Applicants are highly encouraged to email graduate students in the professor’s lab to introduce themselves and ask questions about the lab, department, and potential advisor.

E3B is committed to increasing diversity in EEB, and as such, encourages applications from all demographic groups, particularly those that are historically underrepresented in EEB and STEM fields broadly. As part of this commitment, applicants to E3B are encouraged to apply for the Provost’s Diversity Fellowship, which increases the stipend.