American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists

Award Announcement

Established in 2022, The John G. Lundberg and Lucinda McDade Dissertation Award in Comparative and Phylogenetic Ichthyology is presented annually to support the PhD research of graduate students conducting original research in comparative and phylogenetic ichthyology. Projects should advance knowledge of fish diversity and diversification, with a focus on one or more levels of organization from molecules to clades. Purely molecular or purely descriptive taxonomic work will not be given high priority. The budget requested may be up to US$15,000 for an annual award.

To Apply

Applications will be evaluated by an Award Committee comprising three ASIH members with PhDs and advanced knowledge of fish diversity and evolution. Proposals should have a strong focus on questions that address the diversity and diversification of fishes. This annual award may be used to support research costs for equipment, supplies, services, publication costs, travel for research and to attend meetings, and for summer support.

Evaluation criteria include the relevance to advancing research in the comparative biology of fishes, and evidence that the award will allow the graduate student to undertake and complete an independent research project. They also include the motivation for the research, the clarity of the research hypothesis, the explanation of the methods to be used, and the connection between the objectives and design of the research.

Applicants and their advisors must be members of the ASIH and are advised to join the Society before applying. International students are welcome to apply. Graduate student applicants must have advanced to candidacy or be at a comparable stage in their doctoral program.

Proposal format

Applications should be written in the form of a proposal that describes the motivation for the research, and how the proposed research is related to the student’s overall dissertation project. Components of the application are cover page; abstract; body of the proposal, including figures and a budget; literature cited; applicant CV; and two letters of reference, prepared according to the following guidelines:

All application materials should be on 8.5 by 11 inch (210 mm x 297 mm) paper, with 1" margins, and use a minimum of 11 point font. Applicant CVs should list previous and current fellowships, grants, or awards and be no more than three pages. Proposals should be single-spaced, and three to five pages in length including figures and a budget. The proposal should include an abstract (in fewer than 500 words), a description of the methods (no longer than one page), and a clear statement of the significance of the possible outcomes. Applicants should also address (in fewer than 200 words) how they or their work contribute to the diversity and inclusivity in the ASIH. The literature cited or abstract are not included in the five-page limit.

Two letters of reference are required, including a letter from the student’s research supervisor. Letters should be submitted by the referee. Applicants, as well as their advisors, must indicate clearly how the proposed research differs in a substantial manner from the research program of the advisor.

Awards will be made to the awardee’s home institution. A maximum of 10% of the award may be recovered by the home institution as indirect costs. It is expected that some portion of the work will be published as a peer-reviewed paper in Ichthyology and Herpetology, the scientific journal of the ASIH.

Applications and recommendation letters for the 2023 award should be submitted by 1 March 2024 to Luiz Rocha, Chair (lrocha@calacademy.org).

The annual award recipient will be announced at the annual Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists.