Admission and Prerequisites
In addition to the general admission requirements of the Graduate School, admission to the M.S. program in Environmental Resource Science requires:
- a Bachelor’s degree in a related scientific or engineering field
- completion of nine credit hours of general science requirements (or their equivalents)
Substitutions for the general science requirements may be considered on a case-by-case basis by the program; approval of substitutions must be conveyed by the Graduate Coordinator to the Dean of the Graduate School at the time of application review by the department.
Degree Requirements
To earn the M.S. degree in Environmental Resource Science, students must complete the 30-hour curriculum, with thesis and non-thesis tracks, as outlined below. Courses are organized into the categories of:
Note
With approval from the Graduate Coordinator, additional courses, offered at the 500-level or higher only, with appropriate content in any of the five course categories in the lists above may be used to satisfy elective course requirements.
Thesis Track
The thesis track requires completion of the following 30 hours of graduate coursework:
- Six (6) credit hours from the Water Resources Courses list
- Six (6) credit hours from the Soil Resources Courses list
- Three (3) credit hours from the Environmental Methods Courses list
- Two (2) credit hours in ENVS 559
- Seven (7) credit hours in Elective Courses
- To be selected from the course lists above with no more than 6 graduate credit hours from courses identified as Biophysical Relationship courses.
- Six (6) credit hours in ENVS 599
- Students enrolled in the Earth and Energy Science, PhD program have the opportunity to obtain a M.S. degree in Environmental Resource Science as they work toward completion of the doctoral degree. Students registered in EESC 699 may count six (6) credit hours of EESC 699 towards the ENVS 599 requirement.
For thesis-track students, at least 15 credit hours must be 500-level courses. ENVS 599 does not apply toward the 15 credit hours in 500-level courses.
Non-Thesis Track
The non-thesis track requires completion of the following 30 hours of graduate coursework:
- Six (6) credit hours from the Water Resources Courses list
- Six (6) credit hours from the Soil Resources Courses list
- Three (3) credit hours from the Environmental Methods Courses list
- Two (2) credit hours in ENVS 559
- Seven (7) credit hours in Electives Courses
- To be selected from the course lists above with no more than 6 graduate credit hours from courses identified as Biophysical Relationship courses.
- Non-thesis students must also complete one of the following to demonstrate a general, comprehensive knowledge of the field of study:
- The Capstone Project
- Additional Elective (3 graduate credit hours)
- The final Capstone Project (ENVS 589 - 3 credit hours) requirement shall be assigned by a faculty advisor and approved by a Capstone Committee comprised of graduate faculty members of the Environmental Science Program. The outcome of the project shall include a written report, which must be approved by the student’s faculty advisor and the Capstone Committee. The faculty advisor and Capstone Committee shall assess satisfactory completion of this comprehensive requirement.
- Students enrolled in the Earth and Energy Science, PhD program have the opportunity to obtain a M.S. degree in Environmental Resource Science as they work toward completion of the doctoral degree. Non-Thesis track may be pursued. Students registered in EESC 697 may substitute the course for ENVS 589 with confirmation that a committee of three graduate faculty members has directed and assessed the coursework.
- The Internship
- The Internship (ENVS 579 - 6 credit hours) course requirement includes the equivalent of one semester of part-time work (a minimum of 400 hours) with an industry partner. Prior to initiation of the internship, the student is required to develop a work plan with the company/agency and his/her graduate faculty advisor outlining the expected requirements or products of the internship. At a minimum, the student shall complete a final written report and deliver a presentation of his or her work. Details regarding the length and format of the report and presentation will be developed by the student’s faculty advisor and an Internship Committee comprised of graduate faculty members of the Environmental Science Program in consultation with the industry partner.
Non-thesis students must complete at least 18 credit hours of 500-level courses. Capstone and Internship courses do not apply toward the 18 credit hours in 500-level courses.
Comprehensive Examination
Each candidate for a Master’s degree is required to demonstrate a general, comprehensive knowledge of their field of study. Towards this, students in the Environmental Resource Science Master’s program are required to achieve a grade of A or B on a minimum of three, 500-level courses. Each of these classes must be taken for 3 or more credits (i.e., classes offered with variable credit less than 3 do not count towards this requirement).
Procedures
Following admission to the M.S. program in Environmental Resource Science, students will register for courses upon the advice of the Graduate Coordinator. Throughout the entirety of a student’s study, the Graduate Coordinator shall provide comprehensive, long-range planning and advising for each semester’s registration. After the completion of 12 hours of graduate coursework, the student must declare (via the Graduate School Application for Candidacy) their intention to pursue the thesis or non-thesis track. In consultation with the Graduate Coordinator, students select the chair of their committee and begin working toward this goal at any time; official identification of the committee chair and committee members shall be done at the time of application for candidacy.
For the thesis track, students must develop a written thesis proposal that will be orally defended to the Thesis Committee. The committee must approve (unanimously) the written document and oral defense at least one semester prior to the student’s thesis defense. The final written thesis must also be defended orally and approved by the Thesis Committee.
For the non-thesis track, students must receive approval by the Graduate Coordinator for plans for the capstone project/additional elective capstone project or the internship. Approval should occur as soon as possible after the student declares his or her intent to follow the non-thesis track (via the Graduate School Application for Candidacy).
The maximum course load for a graduate student in Environmental Resource Science shall be twelve (12) graduate credit hours during a regular semester and nine (9) graduate credit hours during a summer session. It is expected that full-time students will complete all requirements for the M.S. degree within two years.
Students enrolled in the Earth and Energy Sciences, Ph.D. degree program have the opportunity to obtain a M.S. degree in Environmental Resource Science as they work toward the completion of the doctoral degree. EESC 699 may be used to substitute ENVS 599 and EESC 692 may be used to substitute ENVS 559, respectively.
