Awards and Bursaries

Deadline

Applications for the Excellence in Doctoral Research Award open annually on November 30th and are due on February 1st (or the next business day).

Award Description

The CSEE Excellence in Doctoral Research Award showcases excellent Ph.D. student research in ecology and evolution from society members. These awards seek to recognize the high quality of work being conducted by student members of CSEE, while also seeking to celebrate the diversity of applicants themselves, research topics, regions, and institution type/size. The selection committee will consider applications through the lens of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Five awardees will receive a $600 award and an invitation to present their doctoral research during the Graduate Student Award Symposium at the annual CSEE meeting. In addition, awardees are eligible to receive up to $1,200 allowance to assist with travel and participation in the annual CSEE meeting. For example, childcare services are considered an eligible expense for the allowance.

Eligibility

Applicants must be:

1) registered in a PhD program within the year of application

2) in an advanced stage of their dissertation (i.e., final two years), and

3) a member of CSEE at the time of application.

Applicants should have advanced to candidacy but should not have completed their degree requirements as of December 31st of the year prior to holding the award (individuals who completed their degree requirements later than this date should consider applying for the CSEE Early Career Award instead). There are no citizenship or residency requirements for this award. Candidates must adhere to the CSEE Code of Ethics. Applicants from previous years who were not selected for the award, but still meet the eligibility criteria, are encouraged to re-apply.

Application materials

Established researchers may encourage doctoral students to apply but, in the interest of consent, nominees/applicants must submit their own application materials.

Applications must contain the following supporting materials in the stated order:

1. A completed Applicant Awards Declaration Form (Doctoral Award version), including a section on special circumstances*

*Special circumstances (300 words maximum): Students can describe any special circumstances that may have affected their research or overall productivity. This is an opportunity to explain how life events or challenges impacted their academic journey. Examples include, but are not limited to, health issues, family responsibilities or caregiving, parental leave, disabilities, trauma or loss, COVID-19-related challenges, or other significant life disruptions.

Please include information on the duration of disruption, and the impact on workload and specific effects on research.

Additional notes:

• Confidentiality: Please do not include the names or personal details of other individuals.
• Judges will assess the quality of your work during periods unaffected by special circumstances. Time lost or impacted by these events will not penalize your application.

2. Thesis Summary (300 words maximum): A summary of the applicant’s thesis, including how their research advances the state of knowledge in their field.

3. Selected Contributions (1 page maximum): Using separate headings, highlight (i) peer-reviewed paper(s), (ii) oral communications in an academic setting (e.g. conference presentation, poster, speed talks etc), (iii) recognitions/awards given for your research and/or work in ecology and evolution (e.g. travel grants, presentation awards etc), (iv) other accomplishments. The applicant must remove their name from all contributions and replace it with “Applicant”, in bold.

Note:

• Peer-reviewed papers include those that are published, in review or revision (include the submission number) and pre-prints (include a DOI).
• Talks and/or posters can include conference talks, invited talks, seminars, and panels.
• Other accomplishments can include any additional accomplishments you would like to highlight (e.g. contributions to broader research projects, collaborations with communities, government, NGOs, or industry, reviewing manuscripts for publication, etc). The selected contributions section should not repeat what is reported in the “Relevant Activities” section, although there may be some overlap.

4. Relevant Activities (300 words maximum): Describe any professional and extracurricular activities that demonstrate your communication and leadership skills, including activities outside of research but related to advancing work in ecology and evolution (e.g. outreach activities, mentorship, volunteering, committee membership, non-peer-reviewed publications, etc) and leadership within your home institution or other research communities (e.g. leading field trips, launching initiatives, contributing to working groups etc)

5. Letter of Reference: One letter of support (1 page maximum) from your PhD advisor or a committee member is required for each applicant. Letters should clearly state that the applicant is close to completion of their thesis, and discuss the novelty and impact of the student’s dissertation research, the applicant’s involvement in activities (e.g. outreach, volunteering, mentorship etc), and the quality and impact of the applicant’s contributions, which extend from simply the number of articles/talks, e.g. interpersonal characteristics, unique challenges faced (e.g. COVID-19) etc. Letters must not contain the name/gender identity of the applicant, but rather non-identifying terms such as “The Applicant”, or similar. For example, “The applicant has been a member of my lab…”.

Submitting your application

Sections 2 through 4 should be submitted as a single pdf file with the filename “lastname_firstinitial_CSEE_PhDaward.pdf”, along with Section 1 (Declaration Form) to [email protected] (e.g., Smith_J_CSEE_PhDaward.pdf). The letter of support should be submitted directly from the referee to the same email address ([email protected]) and should have the same format as the application with “_Letter” added to the end (e.g., Smith_J_CSEE_PhDAward_Letter.pdf). All materials are due by the deadline indicated above. We will respond to each email to confirm receipt within one week.

Applicants will be notified of outcomes in April.

Important: The name (first or last) of the applicant must not appear anywhere within the application other than the file names. This anonymization is meant to reduce bias during the evaluation process. Failure to properly anonymize applications could result in disqualification.

Other Important Information

Successful applicants will give a 30-minute talk (23-minute talk and 7-minute question period and transition) at the Graduate Student Award Symposium, and they will not be eligible to present a separate talk during the conference. Awardees can present a separate poster if space is available. Successful applicants must respond to accept the award and confirm their registration within one week of notification. Successful applicants will be ineligible for Student/Post-doc travel awards as they are already eligible for an allowance to assist with travel costs.