I am always pleased to hear from prospective students considering graduate study in my lab. I am particularly interested to hear from those wanting to ask fundamental questions at the interface of community and ecosystem ecology. Lots of enthusiasm for empirical ecology and a strong work ethic are more important to me than years of experience and stratospheric GRE scores. Contact me by email (jbenstead[at]bama.ua.edu) if you think your research interests might be a good fit to mine (and tell me why!). Please also include a CV, a writing sample, and some information related to your background, transcripts, and test scores, which will allow me to judge how competitive you might be for the various opportunities for financial support available in our department. If I am trying to fill a gap in the lab (and this is not always the case), I will probably follow up your email with a phone call.