Mo Correll, Ph.D. 2015

Mo Correll completed her undergraduate studies at the College of William and Mary, where she majored in biology. Upon graduation, she spent seven years building experience as a seasonal technician and project manager on projects related to water birds. She decided that she wanted to ask her own questions and have a say in the projects she was leading, so she pursued her doctorate in ecology and environmental sciences at the University of Maine.

Advised by Dr. Tom Hodgman at the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and Dr. Brian Olsen at the University of Maine, Mo investigated tidal marsh bird biogeography through the Saltmarsh Habitat Avian Research Program. She defended her thesis in November 2015 and stayed on as a research scientist. She is now a landscape ecologist for the Bird Conservancy of the Rockies’ international program. She leads a regional demographic monitoring effort for grassland birds in the Northern Great Plains.

Her advice to undergraduate students is not to make graduate school the default; rather, make graduate school an active choice. It is hard and involves a lot of work and stress, but it is very rewarding. If you like to travel and spend time outdoors, the seasonal job circuit is a great option.