The department offers two to four teaching assistantships every year and about ten research assistantships. These RA's and TA's are highly competitive. These assistantships carry a waiver for the cost of tuition. If you are from out of state, the department may cover the out of state portion your first year, during which time you may gain residency if you wish to avoid tuition costs in the future. You are responsible for student fees each semester.
The research assistantships are flexible. You will be assigned to a supervisor who will work with you to determine your program. In almost all cases, students can find a common interest with their advisor that satisfies the requirements of the work your advisor needs you to do and what you want to do for your thesis or dissertation. There are also several faculty members with grants. Research assistantships for these typically pay the same. Grant projects also provide many opportunities for summer work and extra income during the semesters. Students may help with surveys, literature reviews, conferences or analysis, writing and presentation of research.
The Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at Colorado State University will be funding five special Graduate Research Assistant Fellowships in the department?s identified areas of emphasis. These fellowships will be supported with departmental funding for three years (assuming satisfactory performance) with an additional year of grant support. The fellowships will be awarded to graduate students with an interest in and ability to pursue a career in academics. Specifics about each fellowship are as follows:
1.
Economics of Livestock and Meat Trade. With significant contributions from international trade to the U.S. livestock and meat industry, this Fellow will have the opportunity to conduct current and relevant research in these areas. There are numerous issues in the areas of domestic and export subsidies, market access, sanitary and phytosanitary regulations and technical barriers to trade that merit investigation. In consultation with the Fellow’s advisor(s), he/she will identify research questions on specific issues concerning livestock and meat trade including (but not limited to) food safety, traceability, consumer demand, animal health, emerging and developing country markets, multilateral trade agreements and other trade policy issues. Opportunities for interdisciplinary and collaborative work with individuals throughout the state including on-campus, state and federal agencies, and the industry will be strongly encouraged. Supervising faculty: Leister, Pendell
2. Environmental Compliance and Livestock Economics. The Fellow will work in the area of livestock economics with an emphasis on environmental compliance (e.g., surface run-off, water quality, air compliance). Focus will be on dairy and beef operations in Colorado. The Fellow will evaluate risk management factors and financial feasibility of adopting production technologies that manage environmental considerations within a portfolio of revenue and non-revenue investments. Potential collaborators include CSU academic units (Dept. Animal Science, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences), state and federal agencies (USDA-APHIS), and industry organizations in Colorado (e.g., Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, Colorado Livestock Association). Supervising Faculty: Hadrich, Frasier, Pendell
3. Food Economics and Consumer Behavior. The Fellow will conduct research in the general area of Food Economics, Food Marketing and Consumer Behavior/Psychology. He/she will focus on issues related to consumers’ food choices, food labeling policy and, more generally, the role of information in food markets. The Fellow will identify, in agreement with his/her advising committee, specific research topics, which may include (but are not limited to) investigating the role of: nutritional, environmental and/or animal welfare, warning labels (allergens, additives, new technologies), food safety events and recalls, consumer trust and quality assurance schemes. Supervising faculty: Costanigro, Thilmany, Kroll
4. Water Economics. Working with the project team, the Ph.D. Fellow will investigate the use of water markets as an instrument for re-allocating water across competing uses. The Fellow will utilize experimental and hydrologic modeling techniques to develop a better understanding of how water markets function under different institutional settings, both in terms of their impact on the efficiency of water use, as well as the indirect impacts on water quality, wildlife habitat, and regional development opportunities. It is anticipated that the researcher will collaborate with other academic units on campus, state and federal agencies, and water users throughout Colorado. Supervising faculty: Goemans, Kroll
5. Land Use and Rural Communities. Focus will be on using the tools of economic inquiry to inform land use planning and policy that bridges between natural resources and ecosystem services within the communities that depend on them. For the incumbent, important skills to be developed include facility with (biodiversity and ecosystem service) valuation methods, community economic and land use planning techniques, conservation finance and policy approaches, and, perhaps, GIS or other mapping tools. Two potential topics to be addressed by the Fellow include (1) the impact of conservation easements on maintaining low density rural development and enhanced ‘cultural’ ecosystem services and (2) the economic dimensions of conservation development projects, potentially including their cost-effectiveness, optimal size, distribution and location, likely private and public returns on investment, and innovative conservation finance policies. Supervising faculty: Seidl, Loomis
Responsibilities
Under the direction of their supervising faculty, each research fellow will
1. Complete a PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics;
2. Produce four refereed journal articles in their designated research area;
3. Produce other written research output consistent with their project needs;
4. Make at least eight presentations of their research to peer audiences. These presentations can be in the form of selected papers, invited papers, seminars at other universities and so forth.
5. Make at least two presentations of their research to extension (lay) audiences;
6. Teach an undergraduate course in their area of interest.
Requirements
1. A BS degree in Agricultural Economics or Economics, or completion of necessary coursework to enter the department’s graduate program.
2. A strong interest in pursuing a career in academics.
3. Strong interest in working in one of the fellowship areas.
4. Appropriate quantitative analysis skills.
5. Excellent communication skills, both written and oral.
6. Be able to take direction as appropriate from faculty but also work with minimal supervision.
Note: Preference will be given to students who have completed the MS degree, but bright, motivated students without any graduate degrees will also be given serious consideration. Preference will also be given to applicants who have experience pertinent to the fellowship area. For example, it would be beneficial (but not required) for a student interested in Environmental Compliance and Livestock Economics to have worked with livestock sometime in their past.
Compensation
Successful candidates will be paid $34,900 annually if they have completed a MS degree or $32,500 if they have only a BS degree. Health insurance is also provided, with the university picking up a portion of premium costs. Students are responsible for tuition; nonresident tuition waivers are available to students in their first year.
Application Process
Candidates should follow the normal process to apply for admission to the graduate program in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at Colorado State University. Details can be found at http://dare.colostate.edu/grad/apply.aspx. Applications are due February 1, 2013.
In completing the application, you will be asked to enter your area of study. Enter “GRA Fellowship”, followed by the title for one of the five fellowships being offered. If you are interested in being considered for more than one fellowship, please enter the titles for all fellowships in which you have interest.
Questions about these fellowships should be directed to the supervising faculty or to the department head (Greg Perry) at greg.perry@colostate.edu.