Summary
Saoirse Kelleher is a PhD candidate and experienced ecological data analyst with interests in quantitative methods for understanding patterns of species occurrence across space and time. She is also interested in developing more accessible tools for ecological modelling and is committed to the open science movement in ecology.
Education
University of Melbourne | Phd Candidate | 2021-Present
- Thesis on ‘Improving practical applications of dynamic occupancy models’
Colorado State University | Bachelor of Science | 2015-2019
- Dual degrees in Fish, Wildlife, & Conservation Biology and Biological Science
Professional history
Stanford University Hadly Lab | Research assistant | 2020
- Analysed pattens of bat activity using bioacoustic monitoring data from Stanford’s Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve.
Western EcoSystems Technology | Data analyst & R developer | 2019-2020
- Worked in a collaborative production development environment to build R packages for analysis of bat & bird activity at wind energy facilities.
Colorado State University Sound and Ecology Team | Acoustic data analyst | 2018-2019
- Manually processed acoustic monitoring data for the U.S. National Park Service to support sound management plans.
Publications
Teaching
Applied Ecology | Demonstrator | Semester II 2022, 2023, and 2024
- Demonstrator for field ecology surveys and lab-based practicals using R for data analysis. Rewrote materials for and led modelling practicals. Undergraduate level.
Environmental Risk Assessment | Demonstrator | Semester 2 2022 and 2023, Mid-Semester 2022 and 2025
- Demonstrator for a range of techniques for structured decision making and risk assessment strategies. Undergraduate and masters level.
Analysing ecosystems and their Values | Demonstrator | Semester 1 2025
- Demonstrator for field ecology surveys and lab-based practicals using R for data analysis. Masters level.
Spatial Tools | Demonstrator | Semester 1 2023, 2024, and 2025
- Demonstrator for lab-based practicals using QGIS and R for spatial analysis. Lead demonstrator in 2025. Masters level.
Awards
School of Agriculture, Food, and Ecosystem Science Community Award 2023
- Awarded for service to the Graduate Researcher community.
Service
Society for Open, Reliable, and Transparent Ecology and Evolution (SORTEE) | Education and outreach committee chair | 2025-Present
- Lead a team to coordinate a monthly workshop and webinar series on open science topics.
Graduate Researchers in Agriculture, Food, and Ecosystem Science | Founder and Chair | 2023-2024
- Founded graduate research organisation for the University of Melbourne’s new School of Agriculture, Food, and Ecosystem Sciences.
School of Agriculture, Food, and Ecosystem Science Graduate Research Conference | Chair | 2023
- Coordinated planning for inaugural conference.
School of Agriculture, Food, and Ecosystem Science Graduate Research Conference | Co-chair | 2023
- Coordinated planning for 2-day conference with 100+ staff and student attendees.
Coding Club | Committee Member | 2021-Present
- Coordinated talks in quantitative ecology; personally developed 20+ sessions on a range of topics relating to data science.
Grants
University of Melbourne School of Agriculture, Food, and Ecosystem Science Travel Grant | $2500 | 2024
University of Melbourne Faculty of Science Travel Grant | $2000 | 2023
Australian Research Training Program Fellowship | Full funding for 3.5 years | 2021
University of Melbourne Rowden White Scholarship | $6000 | 2021
Training
Leadership training | Leadership Victoria | 2024
First Aid Training | University of Melbourne | 2024
Melbourne Centre for Data Science Doctoral Academy | 2022