What UVM Is Actually Offering
This is a funded research assistantship, not a scholarship competition. The Bernos F.I.S.H. Lab at the University of Vermont is recruiting one motivated graduate student for a fully funded MSc or PhD position focused on the human dimensions of fisheries in Lake Champlain, with a preferred start date of January or May 2027.
The assistantship pays a starting salary of $37,000 per year. This covers your living costs as a full-time graduate researcher in Burlington, Vermont, a mid-sized city on the shores of Lake Champlain consistently rated among the most liveable small cities in the United States.
The research is genuinely multidisciplinary. The F.I.S.H. Lab studies the interactions between fish, peoples, and place, and this position specifically focuses on the human dimensions of fisheries. That means your thesis could draw from surveys and interviews with fishers, web scraping and network analysis, fishery sampling techniques, telemetry, or genetics, depending on the research questions you develop collaboratively with your supervisor, Dr. Thais Bernos.
Three broad research themes are available: the movement ecology of fishers and fishes, heterogeneity in fishing behaviours including techniques, harvest rates, motivations, and decision-making, and social and knowledge networks within fisheries systems. Your thesis will contribute meaningfully to one or more of these areas.
Is This Right for You?
Apply if you are:
Holding a bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline, including but not limited to fisheries science, ecology, natural resources, environmental studies, geography, sociology, anthropology, data science, network analysis, or related fields
Genuinely interested in interdisciplinary research that bridges ecological and social science approaches
Comfortable with or excited about combining quantitative and qualitative methods, including surveys, interviews, modelling, and stakeholder engagement
An international applicant, the lab explicitly states all backgrounds, identities, and nationalities are welcome and international applicants are encouraged
Applying for an MSc, where a strong undergraduate background and research interest is sufficient, or a PhD, where a demonstrated foundation for independent research through a master's degree, prior research experience, or professional work is typically expected
Available to start between January 2027 and January 2028, with January or May 2027 preferred
Do not waste your time applying if:
Your background and interests have no connection to fisheries, natural resources, environmental studies, or social-ecological systems in any form
You are seeking a passive or observational research role rather than an active, collaborative thesis-driven position requiring genuine intellectual investment
You cannot commit to working at least 40 hours per week in a research environment based in Burlington, Vermont
You miss the 1 September 2026 priority deadline, applications submitted after this date are reviewed on a rolling basis and the position may be filled before the 30 September final deadline
Required Documents
The initial application requires completing a brief Google Form linked through the lab's website. The form is designed to assess your research interests and long-term career aspirations, and to determine whether the position is a match for your background and goals.
Following successful initial screening, selected candidates will be invited for an interview. Additional materials typically required for formal graduate school admission at UVM would include:
Academic transcripts from all previously attended institutions
Curriculum vitae (CV) summarising your academic background, research experience, and any relevant professional experience
Statement of purpose or research interest statement
Letters of recommendation (typically two to three, with at least one from an academic referee)
Proof of English proficiency for international applicants whose undergraduate instruction was not in English
Any additional materials required by UVM's Graduate College for your specific programme
For access issues with the Google Form, contact Dr. Thais Bernos directly at thais.bernos@uvm.edu.
Tips Nobody Tells You
1. Complete the Google Form as early as possible, and treat it as your actual first interview, not a screening checkbox.
The Google Form is described as being "designed to help us understand your research interests and long-term career aspirations, and to determine whether this position is a match for your goals and experience." This means your responses carry real weight in whether you are invited for an interview. Do not rush through the form with generic answers. Before completing it, spend time reading the lab's website at bernoslab.wordpress.com, understand the specific research themes on offer, and write your responses with the same care you would bring to a job application or personal statement. A thoughtful, specific response that demonstrates genuine engagement with the lab's work will distinguish you immediately from applicants who complete the form in five minutes.
2. The position is open to MSc or PhD applicants, and the level you apply for should reflect your actual research experience, not your ambition.
The posting notes that PhD applicants are typically expected to demonstrate a strong foundation for independent research, often developed through a master's degree, prior research experience, or professional work. If you are a bachelor's graduate with limited research experience but genuine enthusiasm for this area, applying for the MSc and treating it as a pathway to a PhD is a more honest and more competitive positioning than overstating your readiness for doctoral-level independent research. Dr. Bernos is looking for someone who is a genuine match for the position, and misaligned expectations about level and readiness can undermine what would otherwise be a promising application.
3. Lake Champlain's context is the specific system you are being asked to research, demonstrate some baseline familiarity with it before your interview.
Lake Champlain spans Vermont, New York, and Quebec, supports a diverse fishery with more than 100 bass tournaments annually, and sits on the shores of two growing and increasingly diverse urban centres. This specific ecological and social context is not incidental background. It is the research environment you will be immersed in for the duration of your degree. Before your interview, spend time understanding Lake Champlain's ecological diversity, its fishing culture, the communities involved, and the management challenges the lake faces. An applicant who can speak specifically about why this system is a rich and important case for human dimensions of fisheries research will make a significantly stronger impression than one who treats it as an interchangeable field site.
Why This Position Is Worth Pursuing
Human dimensions of natural resources and fisheries is a growing and genuinely important field at the intersection of social science and ecology. Understanding how fishers make decisions, how knowledge flows through fishing communities, and how recreational fisheries interact with diverse urban populations are questions that matter directly for conservation policy, fisheries management, and equitable access to natural resources. A graduate degree focused on these questions, with a stipend, a strong supervisor, and a rich empirical system like Lake Champlain, provides an unusually clear and well-resourced research opportunity.
For international applicants, the explicit welcome in this posting is significant. Many US graduate positions carry an implicit preference for domestic students due to funding complications. This lab has stated clearly that international applicants are encouraged, and the $37,000 annual stipend covers living costs in Burlington at a level that makes the position genuinely viable.
Burlington, Vermont itself is worth noting. It is a small, progressive, outdoor-oriented city with strong community infrastructure, easy access to natural environments including Lake Champlain itself, and a research culture at UVM that values interdisciplinary and applied work. For a graduate student whose research is place-based and community-engaged, living in the same community you are studying creates the kind of immersive research environment that accelerates both the quality and the impact of the work.
The priority deadline is 1 September 2026. Complete the Google Form early and review the lab's research before you do.
How to Apply
Visit the Bernos F.I.S.H. Lab website at bernoslab.wordpress.com and review the lab's current research themes and published work
Complete the Google Form linked through the lab posting (or accessed via the lab website) as early as possible, and before 1 September 2026 for full consideration
If shortlisted, participate in a virtual or in-person interview with Dr. Thais Bernos
If selected, proceed with formal graduate school admission to the University of Vermont's relevant graduate programme
For any access issues with the Google Form, contact Dr. Bernos directly at thais.bernos@uvm.edu