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Information for Prospective Graduate Students

Because my interests lie in phylogenetic systematics, population genetics, phylogeography, and small mammal disease ecology emphasizing arenaviruses and hantaviruses, I anticipate that most students who will work with me will conduct research in one or more of these area (please check out current and recent students and their research interests). However, I am willing to assist students working in other areas if they pose interesting questions and we can put together a strong mentoring committee. Because I consider myself a mammalogist first, the majority of student that will work with me also will use mammals as their organism of choice. If you are certain of your chosen career path, I think it is best to consider entering the Ph.D. program directly. However, if you are not sure as to which aspect of research really interests you, a Master's Degree likely is the way to go. The Biology Department at BYU has outstanding facilities for both molecular- and museum-based research. Our DNA sequencing facility is equipped for fragment analyses, standard Sanger method sequencing and the next generation pyrosequencing (Roche 454 Genomic Analyzer). For data analysis, we use the College of Life Sciences computational Debian Linux Cluster and the Fulton Supercomputing Laboratory. The Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum holdings include more than 32,000 cataloged mammal specimens, with a large representation from Mexico (BYU’s collection of Mexican mammals is the 10th largest in the United States) and with a relatively large frozen collection (6,000 mammals and more than 30,000 vertebrate tissue samples).

If you have any additional questions, contact Duke S. Rogers:

Department of Biology
4102 LSB
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT 84602
801-422-5898
e-mail: duke_rogers@byu.edu