The following labs are potentially accepting new graduate students this year (2024-25): Aoki, Barber, Cresko,  Diez, Hallett, Kern , Louca  Phillips, Ponisio, Rohlfs, Silva,  Streisfeld, Sutherland. If you are primarily interested in one of the other labs in IE2, not listed here, we recommend you contact the PI directly before applying. (Non-recruiting faculty: Bohannan, Bradshaw, Bridgham, Gavin, Ralph, Roy, Singh, Ting, Wood)

IE² graduate students receive world-class research training in ecology and evolutionary biology. Together, IE² faculty and students are studying the organization and function of communities and ecosystems and the evolutionary processes that have produced Earth’s biological diversity.

IE² faculty have particular strengths in microbial, community, theoretical, and ecosystem ecology, host-pathogen interactions, evolutionary genetics, molecular evolution, evolution of development, and phylogenetic theory. We work in the laboratory and at field sites around the world — from the Arctic circle to South Africa, from the Willamette Valley to the Sargasso Sea.

Students receive rigorous training in the fundamentals of ecology and evolution and in cutting-edge research strategies and techniques. We pay particular attention to the development of the whole scientist. We are proud to produce ecologists and evolutionary biologists who know the history of their field and have mastered its foundations, can identify and frame original research questions and investigate them using state-of-the-art methods, and communicate their findings in compelling and accessible fashion.

Students apply to and matriculate in the Biology Department, which facilitates interactions with faculty and students in the Institutes of Molecular Biology, Marine Biology, and Neuroscience. Students thus have access to extensive resources and expertise in genomics, molecular genetics, development, and cell and marine biology. Our NSF-funded program in Evolution, Development, and Genomics provides an interdisciplinary training experience for students interested in these areas. IE² students also work closely with faculty in many other departments and programs, such as Computer Science, Anthropology, Geology, Geography, Landscape Architecture, and Environmental Studies. As the study of ecology and evolution becomes increasingly multidisciplinary, IE²’s relationships with diverse academic departments becomes a great advantage for students and faculty alike.

More information on application, admission, and graduate study is available at the UO Biology Department website.