What I Did Find
Here are some relevant things from official USU sources:
- USU has an Ecology Center and graduate programs in ecology, wildlife biology, and related fields. Graduate students in those programs have access to Graduate Research Awards, “Finishing‑Up” funds, departmental and center‑based funding for travel, thesis/dissertation research, etc. agnr.usu.edu+3Utah State University+3Utah State University+3
- The Plants, Soils and Climate PhD program (within the Ecology Center) is one of the established doctoral degree options. USU Catalog
- USU offers assistantships, fellowships, and financial support in various departments, particularly via research or teaching assistant roles. Utah State University+3agnr.usu.edu+3agnr.usu.edu+3
What Seems Doubtful / Unverified
- The specific project “Cougar Movement Ecology under Dr. Jessica Sanchez and Dr. Julie Young” does not show up in any official USU department or lab webpages (as of what I found). The aggregator listings claim that, but I found no announcement on USU’s Wildland Resources, Veterinary & Clinical Life Sciences, or Ecology Center pages confirming such a project.
- The stipend amounts quoted (such as Masters: $22,000/year; PhD: $26,000/year) are not matched in any USU published assistantship or graduate funding pages I located. › These numbers might be plausible, but without confirmation from the university, they should be treated as speculative.
- The claim “no fieldwork required, uses existing datasets” is plausible in some ecology research, but again, no official source confirms that specific condition for a “cougar movement” project at USU.
What to Do If You’re Interested / Want to Verify
If you’re serious about this or something very similar, here’s what you can do to find out if it’s real, or alternatively find equivalent USU opportunities.
- Contact USU Faculty Directly
- Look for Dr. Jessica Sanchez and Dr. Julie Young (if they exist in relevant departments) at USU; email them asking whether there is an open graduate or PhD position in cougar movement ecology. Provide your background and ask for details (funding, start date, stipend).
- If those names don’t appear in departmental directories, treat the advertised position with caution.
- Check USU Official Graduate Programs
- Department of Wildland Resources, Ecology Center, Biology, or Veterinary & Clinical Life Sciences.
- Search their “Graduate Assistantships / Research Positions” pages.
- Look Up USU Graduate Funding Pages
- Ecology Center’s “Graduate Research Awards”, “Finishing‑Up Funds” etc. Utah State University
- Department‑ and college‑level assistantships/fellowships.
- Evaluate Application Requirements / Eligibility
- Make sure the required qualifications match your profile (Bachelor’s, prior research, quantitative/spatial modelling skills, etc.).
- Check visa or work eligibility if international.
- Watch for Deadlines
- Graduate program admissions have fixed deadlines; assistantships or funding tend to be tied to those. Missing the deadline could mean delaying entry by a semester.
- Be Cautious of Aggregator Sites
- Use them as leads, but always cross‑check the opportunity on the university’s own website. Aggregator sites sometimes get details wrong, or publish unconfirmed positions.
My Conclusion
- It is possible that a project like this could exist at USU (they have the ecology expertise, faculty, and funding structure to support such work).
- But as of now, I did not verify this exact scholarship on any official USU source. So you should treat it as unconfirmed.
- If you reach out and find it’s real, it could be a good opportunity. If not, you should look through USU’s Ecology Center and Wildland Resources department for similar positions.
