Alyssa Stulberg Discusses Her Thesis Research and Time in the Bioscience Program
Recently, the Faculty of Graduate Studies chatted with recent graduate Alyssa Stulberg, who completed her graduate thesis for the Bioscience, Technology, and Public Policy program.
Can you tell us about yourself, your educational background, and why you enrolled in the Master of Science in Bioscience, Technology, and Public Policy program at the University of Winnipeg?
I am a very recent graduate of the Bioscience, Technology, and Public Policy program and currently working at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg. Outside of science, I spend a lot of time hiking, cooking, and cuddling my dog. I received my BSc Honours in Biology from the University of Regina. I decided to enroll at the University of Winnipeg for my MSc for several reasons: I knew Dr. Craig Willis would be a good supervisor to work with, the project was interesting, and there would be scholarship opportunities available at the university.
Can you tell us about the program and your research focus?
The program offers a range of biology courses to graduate students, which was useful for a project like mine that intertwined ecology, microbiology, and wildlife disease management. The student-lead research is also quite diverse and there were many opportunities to teach each other about different biological topics. My research focused on the fungal pathogen responsible for causing white-nose syndrome in North American hibernating bats. Our major goal was to determine if we could reduce the growth of the fungus in the environment, which would ultimately reduce bat mortality.
Recently, you defended your thesis titled “Understanding and Managing Contamination of Bat Hibernacula with Pseudogymnoascus destructans”. What was the highlight of your thesis research for you?
The major highlight for me was probably being able to help run a project with people from Bat Conservation International, which was a dream of mine. I also really enjoyed spending our workdays underground in the abandoned mines where bats were hibernating.
What are you going to take away from your experience at University of Winnipeg?
Every graduate student probably says this, but grad school is no joke. There are a lot of ups and downs, but ultimately my experience at the University of Winnipeg made me grow as both an individual and an academic. I made connections with people across academic and nongovernmental organizations, travelled to conduct research, and gained lab-based skills that helped me secure a job after graduating.
Thank you so much for taking the time to share with us your graduate experience!