Graduate Programs in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
in the Division of Biology at Kansas State University

The Division of Biology at Kansas State University offers Master's and Doctoral degree programs, and the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology section provides an outstanding environment for graduate research.  We have award-winning faculty with expertise in grassland ecology, a broad selection of graduate courses and research seminars, and specialized research facilities for a variety of sample and data analyses.  The cost of living in Manhattan, Kansas is inexpensive and graduate students in Biology are supported by fellowships from extramural grants to faculty advisors, teaching assistantships from K-State, and external scholarships from the National Science Foundation, the Fulbright Foundation, and other sponsors.  Faculty members welcome letters of interest from prospective graduate students at any time, but formal applications are accepted twice a year.  If you are seeking a graduate program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, here are a list of the top ten reasons why you should consider Kansas State University as the best possible location for your graduate studies, followed by instructions on how to apply!

Top Ten Reasons to Consider the Division of Biology at Kansas State University

1. Outstanding faculty.  The Division of Biology includes a diverse group of faculty and research scientists with a wide range of research interests.  Our faculty are award-winning scientists who include four University Distinguished Professors (Blair, Dodds, Hartnett, and Joern) and faculty who have received awards for teaching and mentoring of undergraduate and graduate students (Blair, Nippert, Sandercock).  Within the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology section, we have research groups with expertise in four major areas: evolutionary biology, aquatic ecology, terrestrial ecology, and vertebrate ecology.  All of these folks are potential faculty mentors, available to serve on supervisory committees, and are great resources to discuss new research ideas and experiments.   
   • Evolutionary ecology.  Faculty using molecular methods or model organisms to investigate questions in evolutionary include: Carolyn Ferguson (plant molecular systematics), Mike Herman (nematode genomics), Loretta Johnson (plant ecological genomics), Ari Jumpponen (fungal ecology), Ted Morgan (evolutionary and ecological genomics), Brad Olson (evolution of multicellularity in plants), and Mark Ungerer (plant evolutionary genetics). 
   • Aquatic ecology.  Our integrated group of aquatic ecologists working with freshwater ecosystems include: Walter Dodds (freshwater ecology), Keith Gido (fish ecology), and Martha Mather (applied aquatic ecology). 
   • Terrestrial ecology.  Faculty working on the ecophysiology, population biology, and ecosystem dynamics of terrestrial systems include: John Blair (ecosystem science), John Briggs (plant ecology), David Harnett (plant population biology), and Jesse Nippert (plant ecophysiology).  Lydia Zeglin (microbial ecology, starting Fall 2014) studies aquatic-terrestrial interactions in streams and soils. 
   • Vertebrate ecology.  Faculty working on the ecology and evolutionary biology of terrestrial vertebrates include: Alice Boyle (avian ecology), David Haukos (habitat quality and migratory birds), Tony Joern (grazing ecology), Don Kaufman (mammalogy), Brett Sandercock (wildlife biology and demography), and Kimberly With (landscape ecology). 
   • Research Assistant Professors and Instructors in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology include: Joe Craine (resource strategies of plants), Andrew Hope (conservation genetics, starting Fall 2014),  Eva Horne (herpetology), Mark Mayfield (plant systematics), and Bruce Snyder (invertebrate zoology).
    
2. Grassland ecology and Konza Prairie.  One of the major strengths of the Division of Biology at Kansas State University is our integrated research program in grassland ecology.  Research scientists within the Division have considerable expertise in working with grassland ecosystems, with ongoing projects in North America, South America and Africa.  Studies of grassland ecosystems are timely because loss and degradation of native prairies are an ongoing conservation issue.  Grassland Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie provides an overview of early ecological research in the Division of Biology.  A searchable database of publications resulting from grassland research in Biology is archived at the Konza Prairie LTER Program. The Division of Biology is home to the Institute for Grassland Studies which recently hosted the Grasslands in a Global Context Symposium in September 2011.  A great resource available to graduate students working at Kansas State University is the Konza Prairie Biological Station (Briggs, Director).  Konza Prairie is a 3,600 ha tallgrass prairie reserve that is only a 20 minute drive south of Manhattan.  Konza Prairie is part of a network of about 30 Long-term Ecological Research (LTER) sites funded by the National Science Foundation.  The biological resources of the station are remarkable, it supports a diverse plant community and good numbers of grassland animals, including several species of conservation concern.  The infrastructure is comprehensive, and includes lab facilities, workshops, project vehicles, and access to long-term experimental plots.  A considerable amount of background data on weather, habitat sampling and bird surveys are archived on the website for the Konza Prairie LTER Program (Blair, PI).  Programs for K-12 students and high school teachers include the Konza Environmental Education Program (KEEP) and Earthworms Across Kansas (Snyder, PI). Other nearby sites that have also been used for graduate research include the Fort Riley Military Reservation (40,500 ha), and the Tallgrass Prairie National Reserve (4,500 ha).
    
3. Research institutes and resources.  Kansas State University is a superb location for interdisciplinary research.  Three research institutes that include faculty and students from multiple colleges and departments include the Ecological Genomics Institute, and the Center for Understanding of Origins.  Kansas State University also has natural history collections and specialized labs for sample analyses, including the Herbarium, the Entomology Museum, the Stable Isotope Mass Spectrometry Lab, an Integrated Genomics Facility for DNA sequencing and genotyping, a Microscopy Facility with equipment for electron, fluorescence and confocal microscopy, and research centers in Functional Genomics for analyses of lipids and proteins.  The Division of Biology houses the Kansas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, a research partnership jointly supported by the university, Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism, and the Biological Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey. 
    
4. Graduate courses.  A Master's degree requires 30 credit hours of study, including 22 hours of course work at the 700-level and 8 hours of graduate research for the thesis.  A Doctor of Philosophy requires 60 hours of study, including a minimum of 24-30 hrs course work (with 15 hours of courses at the 800-level) and 30 hours of graduate research for the dissertation.  A one-semester graduate course at K-State is typically 3 credit hours.  Graduate students develop a Program of Study with their supervisory committee that is individually tailored to their research interests, and for more details see Graduate Studies in the Division of Biology.  Graduate students in the PhD program are expected to have one external member on their supervisory committee, and faculty from Entomology, Geography, Plant Pathology, and Statistics often make important contributions to our graduate training.  Graduate courses at Kansas State offer specialized training in a variety of disciplines.  One core course is required for all graduate students in Biology (Biol 863) and graduate courses in ecological topics in Biology are usually offered once every two years (where FO = fall of odd years, SE = spring of even years, etc.).
   • Biol 863 Professional Skills (various faculty instructors, S), An introduction for new graduate students in the mechanics of becoming a scientist and professional biologist.
   • Biol 810 Analysis of Ecological Gradients (Gido, SO), An introduction to analytical methods and conceptual approaches to evaluate patterns of communities across environmental gradients. Multivariate statistical techniques will be used to analyze data and quantify species abundance patterns in a variety of environments.
   • Biol 818 Advanced Aquatic Ecology (Dodds, FO), A study of advanced issues and methodology in limnological sciences, including a workshop on algal taxonomy, and an applied group project.
   • Biol 822 Landscape Ecology (With, FO), Effect of spatial pattern on ecological processes.
   • Biol 823 Demographic Methods (Sandercock, FE), Theory and methods of quantitative approaches for the study of population dynamics. Advances in matrix methods and mark-recapture statistics for plant and animal populations.
   • Biol 826 Nutrient Dynamics (Blair, SO), The cycling of elements in ecosystems with emphasis on macronutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorous, and major cations, and the influence of variables such as acid rain on nutrient dynamics.
   • Biol 865 Advanced Plant Ecology (Hartnett, FE), Advanced study of theory in population and community ecology as applied to higher plants.
   • Biol 870 Advanced Plant Systematics (Ferguson, SE), Taxonomy, phylogenetic inference and major themes in the evolution of vascular plants.
   • Biol 890 Community Ecology (Joern, FE)
   • Biol 890 Advanced Spatial Modeling (Haukos, FE)
   • Biol 890 Mycorrhizal Symbiosis (Jumpponen, SO)
   • Biol 890 Ecological Genomics (Johnson and Herman, FO)
   • Other departments: The Department of Statistics at Kansas State is strong in applied statistics and offers a Graduate Certificate in Applied Statistics.  Similarly, the Department of Geography offers a Graduate Certificate in GIScience for students making extensive use of Geographic Information Systems.  Colleagues in the Departments of Entomology and Plant Pathology also regularly teach courses in ecology, evolution, and molecular biology. 
    
   
5. Seminars in Biologygy.  Seminars and journal clubs are an important part of the intellectual environment for any graduate program. 
   • The Division of Biology hosts the Biology Departmental Seminar Series which is held on Friday afternoons at 4 pm.  Invited speakers are usually established faculty or research scientists who travel to K-State to give presentations on a variety of topics in modern biology.  Departmental speakers are often hosted by faculty in Biology but each semester 1-2 speakers are hosted by graduate students. 
   • The Ecology and Evolutionary Biology section offers the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Seminar Series which meets on Thursdays at noon.  EEB speakers often include graduate students or postdoctoral fellows from nearby universities.  An annual highlight of the EEB seminar series is 'Graduate Students on Parade' where all EEB graduate students present short 4-minute/4-slide talks on their current research projects. 
   • There are several journal clubs that meet weekly, including the Ecological Genomics Journal Club which meets on Tuesdays afternoons and the Aquatic Ecology Journal Club which meets on Friday afternoons. 
   • Elsewhere on campus, there are also weekly seminar series in Biochemistry, Entomology, Plant Pathology and other departments that are often of interest.
      
6. Opportunities for mentorship.  The Division of Biology offers resources for mentorship and training of graduate students.  The Biology Graduate Students Association represents the graduate student body with several standing committees, and coordinates financial support for travel to scientific meetings and a variety of social events.  First-year graduate students usually participate in the instruction of Biol 198 Principles of Biology or Biol 201 Organismic Biology, two team-taught course where graduate students can receive on the job training in undergraduate instruction.  The Division of Biology has hosted a 10-week summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program since 1995, and senior graduate students often play an important role in mentoring our undergraduate student participants.
    
7. Graduate stipends, GAANN, and GK-12 fellowships.  The Division of Biology has two policies regarding graduate student training.  First, all graduate students contribute to instruction of undergraduate courses, regardless of their source of financial support.  Classroom instruction contributes to the departmental mission of undergraduate training and gives graduate students a foundation in teaching experience.  Second, the Division of Biology guarantees financial support for all graduate students for the duration of their graduate studies.  If you are accepted into our graduate program, you will continue to receive financial supportt as long as your supervisory committee agrees that you are making reasonable progress towards a degree.  Few other graduate programs in the United States offer this degree of financial security for Masters and Doctoral students. 
   • Support is offered through Graduate Teaching Assistantships (from K-State) and Graduate Research Assistantships (from extramural grants to faculty advisors).  Graduate stipends are the same for GTA/GRA assistantships, MSc/PhD programs, and foreign and domestic students at ~$24,000 per year. 
   • Incoming graduate students with outstanding academic records are eligible to be nominated for T.R. Donoghue Scholarships which provide an additional financial supplement of ~$5,000 for the first two years of study. 
   • New graduate students are eligible to apply for fellowships from our program in Ecology, Evolution and Genomics in Changing Environments, which has been funded by a new grant from the Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN) program of the Department of Education (Johnson, PI) for 2009 to 2013.  GAANN fellows will be selected based on financial need and will receive specialized training in instruction of college students. 
   • Students enrolled in graduate studies at K-State are also eligible to apply for fellowships from our new program, EIDRoP: Evidence-based inquiry into the distant, remote, or past (Ferguson, PI).  EIDRoP is a GK-12 program funded by the National Science Foundation that matches graduate students with teachers at high schools in nearby Junction City for science instruction and curriculum development.  The graduate stipends from fellowships in the GAANN and GK-12 programs are $30,000 per year.
    
8. Low cost of living  Manhattan, Kansas is a college town of ~52,000 people with good services and recreational opportunities, and graduate stipends support a good standard of living.  Tuition fees for graduate studies at Kansas State University are reasonable and currently about $269 per credit hour.  Graduate students are considered to be in-state residents for assessment of tuition fees.  Shared accommodation at <$500 per month is easy to find, and groceries are inexpensive.  Farmer's markets in the summer and fall offer great produce that is grown locally.  Tickets are usually inexpensive for concerts and theatre at the Manhattan Arts Center, performances at the McCain Auditorium at K-State, or to attend local concerts of the Red State Blues Band, a local band with members who are faculty in the Division of Biology!  Spouses or partners are usually successful at finding suitable employment and it is not uncommon for graduate students to be able to purchase their own houses in Manhattan or a nearby community.  Visit the websites of the City of Manhattan and the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce for more information. 
    
9. Natural history.  In Kansas, there are a diverse number of groups with interests and expertise in the natural history of the Flint Hills and surrounding ecoregions.  Natural history groups include the Kaw Valley Mycological Society, Kansas Herpetological Society, Kansas Ornithological Society, Northern Flint Hills Audubon Society, and the Central Plains Society of Mammalogists  National organizations with state chapters include the Kansas Chapter of the American Fisheries Society and the Kansas Chapter of The Wildlife Society.  The Kansas Natural Resources Conference is an annual joint meeting among fisheries, wildlife, forestry, and range managers.  The Wildlife Society also has an undergraduate student chapter in the Division of Biology, the KSU Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society.  The Konza Environmental Education Program (KEEP) has a busy Schoolyard LTER program for K-12 students that is operated with assistance by many volunteer docents.  Many of these groups have interests in conservation of natural resources, and offer scheduled seminars, field trips and social activities.  For bird-watchers, the avifauna of Kansas is an interesting mix of western and eastern species, and you can look at the Bird Checklist for Kansas () and the Kansas Breeding Bird Atlas.  Kansas is a great place to live if you enjoy hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation, and the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks, and Tourism is responsible for management of natural resources.
    
10. Career development.  Graduate students who have completed theses and dissertations under the guidance of faculty mentors in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology section have used their graduate training to pursue successful careers in academia, teaching, government agencies, and industry. 
    • Academic institutions.  Graduate students who have gone on to faculty or instructor positions at research or teaching institutions include Bryon Clark (PhD 1989) at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Mary Ann Vinton (MSc 1990) at Creighton University, Elly L. Rustiati (MSc 1993) at University of Lampung (Indonesia), Eric Strauss (MSc 1995) at the University of Wisconsin at Lacrosse, Karen Hickman (PhD 1996) at Oklahoma State University,  Brock McMillan (PhD 1999) at Brigham Young University (Utah), Michelle Evans-White (MSc 2000) at the University of Arkansas, Sarah Baer (PhD, 2001) at the Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, Ray Matlack (PhD 2001) at West Texas A&M University, Melody Bernot (PhD 2001) and Randall Bernot (PhD 2003) at Ball State University (IA), Melinda Smith (PhD 2002) at Colorado State University, Bill Jensen (PhD 2003) at Emporia State University (KS), Gail Wilson (PhD 2003) at Oklahoma State University, Nicole Gerlanc (PhD 2004) at Frederick Community College (Maryland), Aaron Reed (PhD 2004) at the University of Missouri at Kansas City, Ryan Rehmeier (PhD 2005) at Simpson College (Iowa), Bala Thiagarajan (PhD 2006) at the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point, Jackie Augustine (PhD 2007) at The Ohio State University at Lima, Katie Bertrand (PhD 2007) at South Dakota State University, Harmony Dalgleish (PhD 2007) at College of William and Mary (Virginia), Justin Murdock (PhD 2008) at Tennessee Technical University, Madhav Nepal (PhD 2008) at South Dakota State University, Jonathan Conard (PhD 2009) at Sterling College (Kansas), Andy Gregory (PhD 2011) at Bowling Green State University (Ohio), and Dustin Wilgers (PhD 2011) at McPherson College (Kansas).
    • Federal government.  Former students working for the federal government include Ken Fritz (MSc 1997) who is an ecologist with the US Environmental Protection Agency, Robb Kaler (MSc 2007) who is a seabird biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Lance McNew (PhD 2011) who is working for the Alaska Science Center with the U.S. Geological Survey. 
    • State government.  State employees include Jim Pitman (MSc 2003), Christian Hagen (PhD 2003) and Tony Mong (MSc 2005) who are wildlife biologists working for state government agencies, and Kyle Winders (MSc 2010) who is a research scientist with the Missouri Department of Conservation. 
    • Industry and nongovernmental organizations.  Former students working for conservation with industry or conservation organizations include: Karl Kosciuch (PhD 2006) is a wildlife biologist with Tetra Tech Inc., Duncan McKinley (PhD 2007) is a postdoc with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, and Khara Strum (MSc 2008) is a habitat ecologist studying wildlife use of rice fields in California with the Pt. Reyes Bird Observatory.
    • Konza students. Additional information on students completing graduate projects at Konza Prairie are archived on the website for the Konza Prairie Biological Station.

How to Apply

Kansas State University | Division of Biology