Student Opportunities

UNDERGRADUATE, GRADUATE, POST-DOCTORAL, OR TECHNICAN/TEMPORARY PROSPECTIVE GROUP MEMBERS OR COLLABORATORS ARE PARTICULARLY SOUGHT — WHO WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE GROUP THEIR UNIQUE INDIVIDUAL STRENGTHS AND DIVERSE, ENGAGING, INNOVATIVE PERSPECTIVES, SUCH AS FROM UNDERREPRESENTED IDENTITIES, BACKGROUNDS, WAYS-OF-KNOWING, AND LIVED-EXPERIENCES — AND ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY TO OUR OPEN POSITIONS OR TO INQUIRE WITH DR. MOFFETT. 

If in doubt — apply or inquire!  When you do — tell us about your strengths, even if you may think they are not ‘relevant’ to ‘hard science’ — that the fault of ‘science’, not of you.  Science especially needs you if you have previously been made to feel like you did not belong or your strengths are not valued.  The challenging, creative business of scientific research and discovery requires — requires, needs!, must seek and include or ‘go home’ — diverse perspectives and skills, developed and shared from widely varying experiences and backgrounds.  This is not optional.  Will we rapidly invent or discover something totally new by doing things the same way, and from the same perspectives, that we “traditionally” have?  No!  The planet and societies need our best, most ground-breaking, most innovative ideas, now.  This means you and your unique strengths and ideas.

Your strengths — all of them — are relevant and valued here.  Let us make the space for you to bring your unique individual experience to our shared work, let us learn from your strengths — you are important, you belong, you can succeed here, and science needs you and your unique ideas — let us do the work to help you shine. We highly encourage scholars identifying with underrepresented groups or minoritized identities, individuals of diverse physical and mental abilities, genders, orientations, neurodiverse ways of thinking, non-Western ways-of-knowing, or other unique perspectives to apply to our open positions or inquire about creating other opportunities with Dr. Moffett’s research group.

Recognized by Insight Into Diversity Magazine as a top college for diversity, WSUV commits to inclusive excellence by advancing equity and diversity in all that we do. Situated on 351 scenic acres, WSU Vancouver is in the homeland of the Chinookan and Taidnapam peoples and the Cowlitz Indian Tribe. WSUV’s strategic plan includes a commitment to equity and a goal to increase the success of historically minoritized students. We also offer fellowship opportunities for students who identify as Black/African American, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American, Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, Native American, Asian, Pacific Islander and women in STEM. WSUV is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity employer, and particularly encourages applications from members of historically underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, women, individuals with diverse physical and mental abilities, veterans, LGBTQ community members, and individuals who demonstrate the ability to help us achieve our strategic goal of creating an equitable and inclusive community.

Open Positions NOW:

• Seeking: new MS (or possibly PhD) student to start between now (Sept 2023) and January (2024).

  • The thesis research will relate to:

    • ecohydrology, heat, and water exchange processes in the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum,

    • hydrology and microclimate contrasts of developed and undeveloped land covers, and

    • patterns and effects of urban (non-)greenspace and environmental heat (in-)equity.

  • This is a QUANTITATIVE NATURAL SCIENCE OR ENGINEERING-LIKE graduate research position. The successful applicant should wish to pursue and be qualified to pursue graduate research and science degree that is 75-95% natural science or engineering and 5-25% interest in environmental health and (in)equity through a natural science, engineering, urban planning, or social science lens.

  • Paid work as a pre-graduate technician could begin ASAP (September/October 2023), to help ramp-up the research before the student begins full MS enrollment and classes in spring term (January 2024).

  • The thesis research is grant-supported, on ecohydrology, land-atmosphere biophysical interactions, soils, microclimate, and environmental greening equity in urban areas and across the developed/undeveloped land use spectrum.
    • We already have instrumentation working and datasets available for the project, which can help this student get a quick-start on an MS (which is essential to complete an MS research thesis in two years!). The grant will fund additional reasonable equipment and research expenses required by the thesis project.
    • I also strongly support customizing the specific research questions to the student’s interests, as that is key to the fun of science and of mentoring (IMHO). The student and I will use the foundation of resources and data already available to design together an MS thesis study based on the grant’s aims that the student finds interesting, feasible, and scientifically important.
  • Important skills for the student to have already may include (not necessarily written in stone):
    • experience and confidence with data-processing and some statistics (e.g., coding analysis of large tables of data using R, Matlab, Python, or similar) and/or other coding experience (e.g., HTML, Java, or other),
    • fluent Algebra and good Calculus,
    • college-level Physics or engineering coursework (preferably with B or higher),
    • college-level Ecology and/or general biology including plant function and/or soil science (preferably with B or higher),
    • college-level chemistry of some kind (preferably with B or higher),
    • some familiarity with GIS and/or satellite data spatial analysis,
    • possible prior in-class or extracurricular research experience,
    • a strong start on developing solid technical writing skills.
  • The position will guarantee MS graduate student pay, health insurance benefits, and tuition for a full 24 months, to fully support completing MS coursework and thesis research. (Or longer for a PhD student.)
  • The position will be in Vancouver, Washington on the Washington State University Vancouver campus and would require a move to reside in the state of Washington.
• If interested, please send an email as soon as possible to kevan.moffett@wsu.edu.
  • In the email, please:
    • describe your scientific and research interests – why you want to do an MS thesis (or PhD);
    • describe your qualifications for advanced natural science graduate research and coursework; 
    • please attach a CV/resume; and
    • please attach an unofficial transcript.

General Positions

• See also WSUV Science Graduate Programs.
• Postdoctoral researchers with outside funding or interested in writing an application for outside funding with Dr. Moffett as supervisor are encouraged to contact Dr. Moffett at any time with a specific statement about the proposed research topic and the potential source of funding.