Canada Research Chair in
Biomechanics of Plant Development
Joining the Lab
Graduate students (PhD, MSc)
At this time, there are no positions for graduate students available. The earliest intake is fall 2025.
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Candidates with biology background must have excellent knowledge of plant cell biology and plant molecular biology (ideally including work with Arabidopsis mutants). Experience with fluorescent protein markers and microscopy is an asset.
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Candidates with engineering or math background must be willing to acquire the a certain level of biology background knowledge through autodidactic reading.
Please note that all applications officially go through the Department of Plant Science. McGill application procedures for graduate studies can be found here. Application deadlines for the Plant Science program can be found here.
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In parallel to the official application, please send Dr. Geitmann the following documents:
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Detailed letter of motivation (please see bottom of this page for details and consult this document). This letter is absolutely essential for your dossier to be considered.
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Detailed CV including a list of all lab technical skills
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Contact information (institutional email address and web site) for two references
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University transcripts (informal)
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Scroll down to find suggestions on how to prepare for an interview.
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You may wish to look at the following resources for graduate student funding: McGill GPS, NSERC, FRQNT, Vanier.
Postdoctoral Fellows
The Geitmann Lab welcomes expression of interest from biologists, engineers, physicists, and applied mathematicians.
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Please contact Dr. Geitmann to inquire about the possibilities.
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When applying, please send the following documents:
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Detailed letter of motivation (see below for details). This letter is crucial to be considered
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Detailed CV with 1-paragraph summaries of previous research activities
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In the CV, please specify for each listed paper what your contribution was (e.g. study design, experiments, data analysis, writing)
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Contact information (institutional email address and web site) for at least two academic references including your PhD advisor
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PDF(s) of one or two of your papers/manuscripts for which you were the first author, did most of the experimentation, and wrote most of the manuscript.
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For spontaneous applications, include a 1-page rough outline of a research project you are proposing. In case you respond to a specific position ad, you may wish to explain why you are interested in the project mentioned in the ad and what you could contribute to it.
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You may wish to look into the following opportunities for postdoc funding: NSERC, Banting, FRQNT, HFSP, Fulbright, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellowships, EMBO Long-term Fellowships (for European citizens). Carefully check this database for a list of opportunities.
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For great tips about applying for postdoc positions, check out this Twitter thread by Duygu Özpolat.
Internships
Internships are possible at many levels: CÉGEP, undergraduate, graduate and postdoc level. Please contact Dr. Geitmann to inquire about the possibilities.
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Please send a detailed email with your motivation, information about desired duration of stay and mention your funding situation.
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Please note that for visitors from outside Canada for any internships longer than 3 weeks, immigration procedures have to be completed.
Motivation Letter
The motivation letter is the single most important item in your dossier. The lab receives tens of applications by potential graduate students and postdoctoral fellows per month. If you are truly interested in working in the Geitmann Lab, you need make your letter stand out from the crowd. Don't use a generic text, don't elaborate on your entire life's story, and don't ruin your chances by using an AI bot to write your text. Tailor your letter to the research program in the Geitmann Lab. Make sure the following questions are addressed:
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Why are you interested in the research program conducted in the Geitmann Lab in particular? Show that you understand what the program is about.
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What are your academic qualifications that prepare you for conducting a research project aligned with the Geitmann Lab research program?
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What kind of project would you like to work on? Simply citing keywords from this web site is not sufficient. Elaborate your ideas to demonstrate that you understand the overall context and objectives of the research program.
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Which relevant technical skills do you already possess that prepare you for the desired project; which skills would you like/need to learn?
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Do you have your own funding? If not, which scholarships do you intend to apply for?
More detailed advice can be found here.
Interview
If and once an interview is arranged, you may wish to prepare by considering the following:
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Be ready to summarize at least one previous research project by outlining the objective, experimental strategy, major findings and significance.
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Demonstrate that you have read at least a couple of the Lab's original research papers. Ask questions about anything in these papers that you wish to better understand. Depending on your interests, please choose among the papers linked here: plant reproduction, plant development, biomechanics, cell morphogenesis.
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Unless you respond to the advertisement for a concrete position with defined project, please propose a rough concept of a potential research project. This project must be aligned with the general research program in the Geitmann Lab. Explain which experimental techniques you would like to learn through this project.
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Demonstrate that you looked into funding opportunities (see links above).
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Be prepared to talk about your long-term professional goals.
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Prepare questions. Good questions show that you have truly given this potential career step some thought.