Whitney Hall, a 2025 graduate of Columbus State University, attributes her decision to pursue doctoral studies in environmental and life sciences to research experiences and faculty mentorship she received during her master’s program. Hall, originally from LaGrange, Georgia, returned to academia after ten years working internationally in the wine industry. Her experience in microbiology and plant pathology laboratories motivated her to enroll at Columbus State in 2023.
“I enjoyed the mix of field work and lab work that I did in the wine industry, and that every day was something different,” Hall said. “I also enjoyed performing tests and analyses to concretely answer questions about [vineyard, fruit and juice] samples and then manipulating them to our desired result.”
Hall noted she was initially nervous about returning to school but found support from university staff. “The staff was extremely helpful in guiding my decision-making. What I liked was that [the program] gave me the opportunity to take a lot of different courses, and I feel like those experiences helped me get a feel for doing experiments, being out in the field, and writing for scientific audiences.”
During her time at Columbus State’s Department of Biology, Hall focused on how environmental factors affect fish development. She described her coursework as structured around experimental design, sample collection, statistical analysis—skills she had not previously developed—and presenting research findings.
“I found my courses to be very structured in the sense that they focused on experimental design and planning, collecting samples, doing statistical analyses—which I had no experience in before that—and writing and presenting,” she recalled. “Presenting about my research, in particular, helped me with how I communicated about the science we were doing.”
Hall credits Dr. Mike Newbrey for supporting her curiosity through research opportunities involving temperature effects on fish species such as largemouth bass and Atlantic cod. This work led to publication efforts, contributions to reference materials for fisheries agencies analyzing thermal indices, and presentations at conferences including the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB) meeting in 2025.
Hall’s poster on largemouth bass studies earned third place at the American Fisheries Society’s Georgia Chapter annual meeting in January 2025.
“Presenting scientific work helped me to effectively communicate science to general audiences in a way that was easy to understand and interesting,” she said. “It also led to questions that I had not thought of regarding my study and how to address them in the future. Practice makes perfect, so doing talks is always beneficial in increasing confidence in public speaking, which is a necessity when pursuing a career in science and research.”
Dr. Newbrey emphasized the importance of these experiences: “The skills Whitney gained via experience in research, formatting a presentation and presenting that research to colleagues at a scientific conference are critical to successfully compete in the field,” he explained. “Many of these skills are not easy to learn or read about and reproduce; they require experience to determine how to express your own professional personification and preferences in professional communication.”
After completing her master’s degree at Columbus State University—a university known for its focus on servant leadership values such as ethical empowerment (source)—Hall began doctoral studies at Trent University in Ontario. Her current focus is on mammal habitats affected by human interaction, environment changes, and climate impacts over time.
“[Newbrey’s] course [in climate change ecology] was really influential in helping me with my master’s work, but it also helped point me to my doctoral research interests,” Hall said. “Dr. Newbrey was great because he didn’t just help facilitate ideas; he put up with my questions. It’s important to have someone who will listen to you, your ideas and your concerns—and walk you through finding solutions in a way that challenges you to figure it out on your own.”
Newbrey highlighted collaboration as essential for students advancing toward graduate degrees: “Students are more successful when they gain experience via collaboration in research outside of the classroom because they learn and employ those skills in an applied setting,” he said. “Whitney gained skills important for competing for a Ph.D. student position: constructing studies, testing hypotheses, conducting research, analyzing data, creating presentations, writing manuscripts and communicating her findings at meetings.”
Looking ahead beyond doctoral studies at Trent University—which follows her graduation from an institution operating within the University System of Georgia—Hall hopes for a future role with conservation organizations or agencies focused on wildlife ecology.
She encourages other students interested in research careers: “Align yourself with advisors and peers who can help you figure out what research areas you want to focus on and how you can get the access and tools you need to make that happen.”
Reflecting on returning later than most students: “Don’t be worried if you’re a little late to the game or if you’ve changed your plans… Life experiences bring a lot to the table as well, and that really helped me.”
