Fully funded M.S. positions (2), Aquatic Ecology, Aug. 2025 — Washington State University Vancouver
Two separate M.S. assistantship positions in Aquatic Ecology available to begin August 16, 2025: 1) Microplankton Dynamics in Reservoirs of the Columbia River Basin and 2) the Feeding Ecology of Native Freshwater Mussels in the Columbia River.
Dr. Gretchen Rollwagen-Bollens and Dr. Stephen Bollens, Co-Directors of the Aquatic Ecology Lab at Washington State University, Vancouver, WA, USA have paid positions available for new master’s degree students in Environmental and Natural Resources Sciences (ENRS) to start on August 16, 2025.
Position 1
The Microplankton Dynamics in Reservoirs of the Columbia River Basin project will focus on the analysis and interpretation of a 2-year dataset of microplankton (including ciliates, diatoms, green algae, cyanobacteria) abundance and community composition, and associated environmental variables (both abiotic and biotic) from four different reservoirs. Note that both the field collections and the microscopic taxonomic identifications have been completed; what remains is the statistical analysis (using a range of multi-variate techniques) and interpretation and write-up of results. Thus, this project will be particularly well-suited for those interested in ecological data analysis and interpretation.
Position 2
The Feeding Ecology of Native Freshwater Mussels in the Columbia River project is focused on measuring the feeding dynamics of native freshwater mussels (i.e., grazing on phytoplankton and microzooplankton) in the lower Columbia River. This project will include conducting laboratory feeding experiments, microscopic analysis of plankton samples, and statistical analysis and interpretation of results.
The academic positions will officially begin on August 16, 2025; however, there is an opportunity to begin the position in mid-summer 2025, prior to the start of the Fall 2025 semester.
The successful graduate students will be supported on a combination of Research Assistantships and Teaching Assistantships, and possibly fellowships, plus full tuition waivers and health benefits. Graduate students at WSU are unionized as Academic Student Employees (https://wsucase.org/before-and-after-union/), and students on the Vancouver campus receive a competitive stipend ($2,974/month, equivalent to ~$35,700 annually).
Please visit our website for more information about the Aquatic Ecology Lab and our research (https://labs.wsu.edu/aquatic-ecology/). Our group is committed to supporting the professional development of students of all backgrounds in aquatic science.
Degree program and deadline
M.S. in Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences.
These positions will remain open until filled, but we are eager to fill them as soon as possible (summer 2025).
Contact
Please contact Dr. Gretchen Rollwagen-Bollens (rollboll@wsu.edu) and Dr. Stephen Bollens (sbollens@wsu.edu) for further information. In your initial message, please provide the following:
1. Current CV/Resume, including cumulative undergraduate GPA;
2. 1-2 paragraph statement of research interests – including which M.S. position you are interested in; and
3. 1-2 paragraph statement of career goals.
Campus and Facilities
Washington State University Vancouver is one of six campuses in the WSU system, and is located within the greater Portland, OR-Vancouver, WA metropolitan area, near the Columbia River, Cascade Mountains and coastal ocean. The 351-acre campus offers new, state-of-the-art classroom and research facilities, where teaching and research are conducted in an interdisciplinary and collaborative atmosphere. WSU Vancouver is a welcoming campus to faculty, students and staff of all backgrounds.