Finding a Supervisor

Applicants are encouraged to explore potential supervisors as your first step in the application process. This process may take up to several months as applicants and faculty members determine whether there is a sufficient fit between the applicant's research interests and the potential supervisor’s nursing and research expertise. The graduate supervisor is a key mentor and guide throughout the student’s graduate program, and this important relationship needs to be nurtured and developed carefully.
Please carefully review each faculty member's profile under the Academic Listing of the Faculty of Nursing before identifying a potential supervisor. Before contacting a supervisor, ensure that you have read the information under How to Find a Supervisor and that their research areas of interest match your desired field of research.
When considering an application to doctoral or masters studies which involve a thesis, it is the responsibility of the applicant to connect with a faculty member who could appropriately supervise the thesis project that you intend to develop. The role of the graduate supervisor is to provide guidance and direction in selecting the thesis topic and research method and, thus, must have the expertise required to support your intended research project. Doctoral and MN thesis applicants are required to confirm the faculty member who has agreed to serve as your graduate supervisor before your application will be assessed.
Potential supervisors will be assessing your potential alignment with their expertise and their program of research. Some faculty members may be unable to accept new students at this time depending on the number of graduate students that they are currently supervising.
Consider the following steps toward securing a potential graduate supervisor:
- Consult the Academic Listing of the Faculty of Nursing (tenure-track faculty only) to identify potential supervisors. The profiles for each faculty member include information about their research program and areas of expertise, courses that they have taught, and publications that may provide more detail about their research and academic interests.
- Identify a list of those specific faculty members whose expertise is aligned with your area of research interest.
- Develop a well-crafted email that outlines what your thesis interests are and specific details of why you think a faculty member may be a good supervisor for you. Send this email to select faculty members and attach your CV. Invite the faculty member to connect with you by email, phone, or Zoom to have a conversation about your application.
- Be prepared to explore with a potential supervisor how your possible research question could align with their research program and expertise. You will be required to write about this alignment in your formal application document.
- Faculty members who are considering supervision of your doctoral or masters studies may request additional information (e.g. a sample of your writing, a publication, etc.).
- If the faculty member agrees to serve as your graduate supervisor, please let them know that they are required to write a reference letter for your application. You can ask them about how you can support them in writing this reference letter.
If you are unsuccessful in your search, it may be that our faculty members are not a good match with your area of research interest, or they do not have the capacity. In that case, you may have to change your topic to one that more closely aligns with a potential supervisor, resulting in a good fit.
Your other option would be to consider broadening your search to another great Canadian university. Although we would like for you to study at the ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥, we recognize that is not always possible, as a student's success in a graduate program depends on finding a supervisor with similar research interests.
Name |
Supervisor Program Availability |
Research Area(s) |
Research Method(s) |
Contact |
---|---|---|---|---|
Hons | Women’s Health, Global Health, Conflict and Health, Immigrant and Refugee Health, Racialized People’s Health | Qualitative and Quantitative Methods | ||
N/A | Ageing/Gerontological Health, Health Equity | Qualitative Methods, Philosophical analysis | ||
MN, PhD | Aging/Gerontology, Health Services Research, Loneliness, Social Isolation, Long-Term Care Workforce | Quantitative Methods, Mixed Methods, Literature Reviews | ||
MN | Health Professions Regulation, Health Workforce, Health Policy, Advocacy, Global Health | Qualitative methods, literature reviews, policy analysis | ||
N/A | Nursing/Healthcare Leadership, Ageing/Gerontological Health | Quantitative Methods | greta.cummings@ualberta.ca | |
Hons, MN | Ethics, Nursing, Moral distress, Critical Care, Indigenous Peoples' health in the ICU | Qualitative methods, literature reviews | sdeschen@ualberta.ca | |
Hons, MN | Health services research, long-term care research | Quantitative methods, mixed methods | yinfei1@ualberta.ca | |
N/A Co-supervision only |
Long-Term Care (LTC), Aging, Staff mental health, Older adults in LTC homes and Care quality | Survey, Qualitative (as used in mixed methods or process evaluation), Intervention studies, Mixed methods | (780) 492-3451 carole.estabrooks@ualberta.ca |
|
N/A | Ageing/Gerontological Health, Oncology, Cardiovascular Disease | Quantitative Methods | mhaykows@ualberta.ca | |
Hons, MN | Digital Health Interventions, Implementation Science, Patient Experience, Patient Education | Qualitative Methods, Mixed-Methods, Scoping Reviews | ashley.hyde@ualberta.ca | |
|
margotj@ualberta.ca | |||
MN |
Mental health, Climate change, Incarceration, Online radicalization, critical theory | Qualitative Methods, Mixed-Methods | johanss1@ualberta.ca | |
N/A |
Planetary health, Climate change and health, Healthcare decarbonization | Qualitative Methods | reshef@ualberta.ca | |
MN | Digital Health, Artificial Intelligence, Nursing and Health informatics, Nursing Education; Health System Transformation, Change Management, Leadership | Literature Reviews, Quantitative Methods, Mixed Methods | 780-248-1422 manal.kleib@ualberta.ca |
|
MN | Relational ethics, embodied ethics, AI ethics in health, NICU caring practices |
Qualitative Methods, Phenomenology, |
gillianl@ualberta.ca | |
Hons, MN | Anti-racism, Asian well-being, child health, critical theories | Qualitative methods, literature reviews | slouiepo@ualberta.ca | |
Hons, MN, PhD, Post Doc | Child Health, Immunization, Infectious Disease, Health Equity | Quantitative Methods, Mixed Methods, Literature Reviews | 780-248-1563 shannon.macdonald@ualberta.ca |
|
Hons, MN, PhD | Global Health/Migrant Health, Child Health, Knowledge Translation, Health Equity, Mental Health/Addictions | Qualitative Methods, Quantitative Methods, Mixed Methods, Literature Reviews | 780-248-1401 meherali@ualberta.ca |
|
N/A | Frailty, Critical illness outcomes | Quantitative methods | carmel.montgomery@ualberta.ca | |
N/A | Substance Use, Harm Reduction, Public Health Advocacy, Community Engagement, Health Services for Structurally Vulnerable Populations | Qualitative methods, Quantitative methods, Mixed methods | hmmorris@ualberta.ca | |
N/A | Cardiovascular Disease, Sex and Gender Science, Women's Heart Health | Qualitative Methods, Quantitative Methods, Mixed Methods, Literature Reviews | 780-492-0644 colleen.norris@ualberta.ca |
|
N/A | Nursing Education/Pedagogy, Ageing/Gerontological Health, Mental Health & Addictions, Spirituality in Nursing & Health Care | Qualitative Methods, Literature Reviews | 780-492-6252 joanne.olson@ualberta.ca |
|
Hons, PhD, PDF |
Social connection/ loneliness, Design and evaluation of complex interventions for people living with dementia, Older adults, Care givers | Mixed methods, Scoping reviews, Systematic reviews |
Students should review and provide the requested information listed to be considered for supervision |
|
PDFs | Global Health/Migrant Health, Critical Illness, Infectious Disease, Stress research, pathophysiology, integrative medicine | Qualitative Methods, Quantitative Methods, Mixed Methods, Literature Reviews |
780-492-5674 |
|
MN | Nursing education, orthopaedic/arthritis rehab, history of nursing | Qualitative Methods, Historial Method | 780-492-7479 pauline.paul@ualberta.ca |
|
PhD, PDF | Cardio-oncology, Oncology, Survivorship, Quality of life, Patient-reported outcomes, Advanced cancer, Chronic cancer, Nutrition, Exercise, Supportive care | All research methods | 780-492-6795 edith.pituskin@ualberta.ca |
|
Hons, MN, PhD | Children's Health & Well-being, Lifelong Women's Health, Sexuality, Sexual and Reproductive Health | Qualitative Research, Art based approach, Knowledge Translation, Literature Reviews | npunjani@ualberta.ca | |
N/A | Ageing/Gerontological Health, Health Equity, Intersectionality | Qualitative Methods, Mixed Methods, Literature Reviews | 780-492-7555 sjordana@ualberta.ca |
|
PhD | Health Equity, Oncology, Palliative Care | Qualitative Methods, community-based research | 780-492-3618 anna.santos.salas@ualberta.ca |
|
Hons, MN, PhD, PDF | Kidney Failure, Quality of Life, Patient-Reported Outcomes, Chronic Disease, Mental Health/Addictions |
Qualitative Methods, Mixed Methods, Literature Reviews |
780-492-4338 kara.schickmakaroff@ualberta.ca |
|
PhD, PDF | Implementation Science/Knowledge Mobilization/Knowledge Translation; Children's Health | Qualitative Methods, Mixed Methods, Knowledge Synthesis | 780-492-1037 shannon.scott@ualberta.ca |
|
MN, PhD, Post Doc | Chronic illness, nurse-patient interaction, communication and relationships, LTC resident transitions to acute care, nursing education | Qualitative methods, literature reviews | jude.spiers@ualberta.ca | |
MN | Nursing/Healthcare Leadership, Nursing Education/Pedagogy, Simulated Learning and Exam Development | Quantitative Methods | tracey.stephen@ualberta.ca | |
Hons, MN | Ageing/Gerontological Health, Health Equity, Mental Health/Addictions, | Qualitative Methods | hsymonds@ualberta.ca | |
N/A | Older persons' care, transitions in care, health system performance, quality indicators, leadership and management | Knowledge synthesis, Quantitative methods, Mixed methods | ktate@ualberta.ca |