Undergraduate Student Research Opportunities

Faculty do not normally undertake undergraduate research course supervision unless the project being proposed is of interest to them in the context of their own research program. Reading courses should not normally be pursued for the sole purpose of earning a credit. You should have an active and focused intellectual commitment to the project.

Directed “Reading” Courses

It is encouraged that “reading courses” be seen as half or single credit research courses, and should normally be based upon a clear conception of a minor research project which the student wishes to conduct. The details of such a course must be negotiated with a supervisor.

Special Topics Courses

These are student-designed courses, typically consisting of small groups of 3 to 5 students. Examples of such courses are Environmental Technology, Critical Environmental Pedagogy, and Management of Old-growth Forests. In the past students have organized an informal practicum, such as a teaching opportunity in a local high school. Critical readings are developed in consultation with the course supervisor and are complementary to the core group project. Other models can be considered, but all models would involve negotiation to establish a faculty supervisor and active participation in the course design by students.

Trent Centre for Community Based Education (TCCBE) Courses

Students who have a 75% cumulative average may take community-based research courses in their third and/or fourth years (ERSC and ERST 383, 384H, 483, 484H). These are research placements with organizations in and around Peterborough and Haliburton. The placements are arranged through the Trent Centre for Community-Based Education. Descriptions of potential projects are listed on the TCCBE website. Students who are interested in this option are referred to page 204 of the University Academic Calendar, the above-mentioned webpage, and the TCCBE office itself (780 Argyle St.). Arrangements within ERS should be made with the ERS Chair.

Thesis Course

The Honours Thesis option must be done as a double credit research course, either a double credit in ERS or single ERS credit, plus a single credit in some cognate discipline. Both science and studies students are encouraged to consider this option. There is no application process as such; students with at least a 75% average in their ERS courses, and the agreement of a supervisor, are entitled to take the course. This course is more formally organized than the previous options, and includes a Workshop in which a variety of research oriented pedagogical topics can be addressed, including research design in the natural and social sciences, and humanities, and writing and communication. These workshops occur on an ad hoc basis, depending on student interests, but formal presentations of a proposal in the Fall and results in the Spring are mandatory.

Examples of Past ERS Program Theses

Adkinson, Angela. 2005. The Role of Sphagnum Fuscum in the Bog Water Balance: A Study of the Relationships Between Air Temperature, Water Table Depth, Evaporation, and Moss Water Storage (Lafleur).

Anderson, Noba. 1999. Community Forest Licences as a Recent Change in the B.C. Forest Tenure System and Cortes Island as a Case Example (Bocking).

Archer, Camille. 2003. Hydrodynamics of Artificial Riffles (Lasenby).

Bier, Anthony. 2003. Impact of Clear-cut Harvest on the Water Balance in Black-spruce Boreal Forest (Buttle).

Buckley, Michelle. 1998. Some Ecological and Economic Factors of Alternative Urban Design (Fox).

Clarke, Melanie. 2004. Assessment of the Current Status of the Carbon Budget of Agricultural Soils, in the Township of Smith-Ennismore-Lakefield, As Affected by Present Land-use and Management (Ponce).

Cooper, Wendy. 1999. Conservation Strategies and Protected Areas Available for Migratory Species between Canada and Latin America (Marsh).

Cowley, Matthew. 1999. The Construction and Applications of Traditional Ecological Knowledge in the Canadian Arctic: Working Towards an Understanding of Where 'TEK' Came From and What it Stands For (Whillans).

Currie-Alder, Bruce. 1998. Development of a Food Security Index (Ponce).

Dalgliesh, Chantal. 2003. Environmental Practices in Downtown Peterborough Retail and Restaurant Businesses (Clapp).

Gatzke, Lynne. 1998. Effects of Density and Competition on Growth Rates of Juvenile Pumpkinseed and Bluegill (Fox).

Gauthier, Sean. 1999. Towards a Green Theatre Without Boundaries: The Role of the Joker in Environmental Politics (Holdsworth).

Gouin, Todd. 1999. Selection of Chemicals for International Regulation (MacKay).

Hanna, Deborah. 1999. EMF Levels in Elementary Schools: Calculation of Exposure Rates (Havas).

Harrison, Grace. 2004. Factors Influencing Uptake of Inorganic Selenium into Algae (Wallschlaeger).

Illes, June. 1998. Effects of the Nets of Coddisfly Larvae Uptake (Evans, Doug).

Kamphuis, Camille. 2004. The Political Ecology of Capital (Holdsworth).

Kenney, John. 2003. The Future of Canadian Energy Supply: Rethinking the Renewable Energy Policy Mix (Hill).

Klenavic, Nancy. 1998. Influence of Agriculture on Soil Nutrient Levels on Century Farms of South-Central Ontario (Hutchinson).

Lapierre, Jenie. 2004. Fish Communities and Habitat in the Ganaraska River (Fox).

MacKay, James. 2003. Street-level Magnetic Fields within the City of Kingston (Havas).

MacLoghlin, Caryn. 1999. The Impact of Mining on Community and Ecosystem Health in the Deloro, Ontario (Clapp).

Mason, Adrienne. 2005. A Study of Riparian Buffer Zone Vegetation and its Immediate effect on Macro Invertebrate Ecology in the Mill Creek Water Shed (Whillans).

McCarron, Jim. 1998. Physiology of Rhamnus Cathartica and its Invasiveness (Jones).

McDonald, Marjorie. 2003. Temporal and Spatial Examination of DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon) Quality in Harp Lake (Dillion).

Graduate Research Opportunities

Students who complete an ERS Program degree have the opportunity to continue their environmental studies at the graduate level at Trent.

The thesis typically involves working in depth on a research project for 2 years or more, producing a thesis, and being tested via a thesis defense. Students work more independently than at the undergraduate level, with guidance from one or more thesis supervisors.

Trent offers several graduate programs, many of which are environmentally-oriented, such as the Environmental and Life Sciences M.Sc. and Ph.D., and Sustainability Studies M.A. Programs. See the Trent Graduate Studies web page to find out more.