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Reasons to consider K-State's Biology
Department for Graduate Studies
Why should you consider pursuing your
graduate studies at Kansas State University, beyond the opportunities
afforded by the EEL? The following reasons (modified from a list
compiled by Dr. Brett Sandercock)
may provide some additional incentives:
- New Ecological Genomics Research
Initiative. Be a part of developing this new and exciting
field of biology. The initiative works at the crux of ecology and
genetics, correlating the impacts of population genetics on the entire
ecosystem.
- Great faculty.
The Division of Biology at Kansas
State University is a diverse group of scientists with a wide range
of research interests.
- Guaranteed salary. The Division
of Biology guarantees full financial support (including a summer salary)
for all students that are accepted into the graduate program. Support is
offered through teaching and research assistantships, and the level of
support is the same for both foreign and domestic students. If you are
accepted for admission into the program, you will receive financial
support as long as you are making reasonable progress towards a degree.
The graduate student stipend is currently about $18,000/year.
- Tuition fees waived.
Because full financial support is provided for graduate students
admitted to the program in the Division of Biology, the stipend package
for GTAs and GRAs also includes a waiver of tuition
fees.
- Low cost of living.
Not only is salary guaranteed by the Division of Biology but your dollar
goes a long way in Manhattan. Shared accommodation at $250-300 per month
is easy to find, and groceries are inexpensive. Manhattan is a college
town of ca. 45,000 people with good services and recreational
opportunities. See the official websites of the City
of Manhattan and the Manhattan
Chamber of Commerce.
- Konza Prairie and other field sites.
One incredible resource available to students working at Kansas State
University is the Konza Prairie
Biological Station. Konza Prairie is a 3,400-ha tallgrass prairie
reserve that is a short 20-min drive south of Manhattan. It is part of a
network of Long-term Ecological Research (LTER)
sites funded by the National Science Foundation. The biological
resources of the site are remarkable. The infrastructure is also superb
with lab facilities, project vehicles, and funding for undergraduate
field assistants. A considerable amount of background data on weather,
habitat sampling and biotic surveys is archived on the Konza website.
Two other nearby sites that could be used for research include the Fort
Riley Military Reservation (40,500 ha), and the newly created Tallgrass
Prairie National Preserve (4,500 ha). At the southern end of
the Flint Hills is located the Nature Conservancy's Tallgrass
Prairie Preserve (~15,600 ha) in Oklahoma (about 4 hours away).
Together, these grassland sites create a conservation network throughout
the Flint Hills region, which contains the largest tracts of tallgrass
prairie remaining in North America.
- Grassland ecology.
One of the major strengths of the Division of Biology at Kansas State
University is our research program in grassland ecology. Research
scientists within the Division have considerable expertise in working
with grassland ecosystems, both in North America and abroad. Studies of
grassland ecosystems are particularly timely because declines in
population numbers of grassland birds, the invasion of grasslands by
exotic species, and the sheer loss and fragmentation of grassland
habitat are all becoming serious conservation issues. The recent book Grassland
Dynamics: Long-Term Ecological Research in Tallgrass Prairie gives a
nice overview of research conducted out at the Konza.
- Regional conservation interest.
In Kansas, there are a number of conservation groups with an interest in
the natural history of the state, as well as in the conservation and
restoration of the native habitat and biota. These groups include the Kansas
Ornithological Society, Northern
Flint Hills Audubon Society, and the KSU
Chapter of the Wildlife Society. All offer regular seminar series,
field trips and social activities. For keen birders, the avifauna of
Kansas is an interesting mix of western and eastern species (Kansas
Bird Checklist).
- Kansas is at the geographical center
of the United States
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