Prospective Students

Potential graduate students: 

(18 December 2025):

I, along with Dr. Gunilla Öberg (University of British Columbia) and Dr. Sue Chiblow (University of Guelph), are seeking to recruit several research assistants for our NFRF-T-funded project. Interested and eligible candidates have the opportunity to earn their Master’s (MA/MSc) degree in the Resources, Environment and Sustainability program at IRES at UBC, co-supervised by Dr. Öberg, Dr. Chiblow, and me.

Priority will be given to applicants from North American Indigenous communities.

Please get in touch with me at deondre.smiles@ubc.ca if you are interested in knowing more about this opportunity!

You can learn more about the job posting and graduate study opportunity here.

General Graduate Admission Information:

I am open to co-supervision requests for students at the University of British Columbia and to serving on supervisory committees at other universities.

If you are interested in working with me, please e-mail me:
-Your CV
-A brief introduction of yourself
-A brief description of the type of work that you want to do.
-Provide a description of the alignment between your interests and my work.

I receive far more inquiries from potential graduate students than I can take on. In a typical year, I get about 50-60 expressions of interest for perhaps 1-2 positions. I prioritize recruiting students who can clearly articulate why I am a suitable advisor for their proposed graduate program.

A decision not to recruit or not admit is in no way an indicator of the rigour of your project or your worth or intellect as a student. Remember that you are the most critical component of your graduate committee, and you should work with scholars who can support you and support your work.

I will not respond to inquiries that clearly do not engage with my work.

Before reaching out to me, I recommend reading this guide I have written for prospective graduate students/mentees, to give you an idea of my advising style, what you can expect from me as an advisor, and what I expect from my graduate students.