What supervisors look for in a student:
“Students with relevant research experience, strong interest in the research area of the group, good communication skills, and the ability to work in a team.”
- Dr. Michael Murphy
"I look for enthusiasm and the drive to succeed."
- Dr. Robert Hancock
"Scientific curiosity, highly motivated, and eager to learn."
- Dr. Pauline Johnson
"Students who have strong motivation, are mature, have good hands, and are smart."
- Dr. Ninan Abraham
"Enthusiastic, ambitious, hard-working, independent thinking, adventurous..."
- Dr. Marc Horwitz
"Outstanding all around, with a love of science."
- Dr. Brett Finlay
"Graduate students should be self-motivated and fearless."
- Dr. James Kronstad
What students should consider when choosing a lab:
Faculty web pages aren’t always up to date. Review their recent publications to discover some current research projects.
- Clarify a supervisor’s expectations to see if a lab is the right fit for you. Students often develop close mentoring relationships with their supervisors and it is important to have good communication from the start.
- Speak with Graduate students in their lab! Communicating with current graduate students is invaluable. M&I graduate students are very welcoming and friendly and can help you obtain a better sense of the lab, UBC, and Vancouver.
- MSc vs PhD? Explore your degree program interests. Many students that plan on doing a PhD begin in the MSc program