Student and Alumni Profiles.

Ryan Ellingson
MS in Biology, 2006

Ph.D. student in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at UCLA

Studying speciation of bay gobies in Baja California and the Sea of Cortez

Cal State L.A. experience:

* "I learned invaluable lessons about doing research in an academic setting by: attending scientific conferences, presenting my own research via talks and posters at those conferences, traveling internationally for field collections, teaching lab sections at CSLA, and developing and teaching hands-on biology activities to high school students."

* "Thanks to the guidance of my advisor Pat Krug, my research resulted in two papers published in peer-reviewed journals, with at least two more currently being written - critical experience for a career in research."
* "Working with the professors at Cal State LA motivated me and gave me the confidence to pursue a Ph.D., something I had no intention of doing when I started the master's program."

Why Cal State L.A.?

* "The faculty are supportive and have none of the pretentious attitude often common in academia."
* "Classes are small and students receive lots of individual attention."
* "There are a variety of funding resources for grad students not found at larger institutions."

Future plans:

* "To teach and conduct research as a faculty member at a major university."
* "To use my knowledge and experiences to teach young students and the general public about the importance of environmental conservation."