University General Course Catalog 2024-2025
Natural Resources and Environmental Science, M.S.
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 Return to: Programs in the College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources
The Natural Resources and Environmental Science (NRES) M.S. degree offers graduate study of the ecology, management, and restoration of ecosystems. Areas of specialization include (but are not limited to):
- Biogeochemistry and Soil Processes
- Climate Change Ecology
- Conservation Biology
- Ecosystem Ecology
- Environmental Chemistry and Toxicology
- Environmental Science
- Fire Ecology
- Forest Ecology
- Freshwater Science
- Landscape Ecology
- Natural Resource Ecology
- Quantitative Ecology
- Remote Sensing of Natural Resources
- Restoration Ecology
- Wildlife Ecology
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Program Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to:
- demonstrate effective written and oral communication by preparing a written thesis and delivering an oral presentation of their work.
- design research experiments and apply field/laboratory instrumentation and procedures used in natural resource and environmental science research.
- organize and curate data, conduct rigorous statistical analyses, and apply computer models and other quantitative techniques used in natural resource and environmental science research.
- apply scientific theories and data to assess, inform, and improve conservation and management of natural resources.
Contact Information
Dr. Jonathan Greenberg
Associate Professor and NRES Graduate Program Director
NresGraduateProgram@unr.edu
(415) 763-5476
Mailing Address:
Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, Mail Stop 186
1664 N. Virginia Street
Reno, NV 89557-0014
Admission Requirements
Prospective students should correspond with potential faculty whose research interests mirror their own interests early in the application process because admittance to the program requires a graduate faculty advisor and because most graduate assistantships are through the research grants of individual faculty. I. Program Requirements
NRES MS students must pass the following milestones to earn an MS, each of which are described in detail below: - Complete required courses as well as earn a UNR-mandated number of credits.
- Declare one or more advisors, establish a graduate advisory committee of at least three (3) members of the UNR graduate faculty, and submit a program of study.
- Perform thesis research.
- Write and defend thesis (Plan A) or professional paper (Plan B)
In addition to these milestones, all NRES MS students are required to work with their advisor to draft an annual statement of goals and expectations and provide annual evaluation reports showing satisfactory progress through the program. Plan A vs. Plan B
The vast majority of incoming NRES Master’s students are admitted to the Plan A degree program. In this option, the student is expected to write a thesis making an original contribution to the research field of a quality acceptable to a major, peer-reviewed scientific journal. A small number of students, primarily those without research funding and/or who have a full-time job commitment, are admitted to the Plan B degree program. This program requires the writing of a professional paper of a quality demonstrating a high level of scholarship. Occasionally, Plan B students transfer to Plan A if research funding becomes available. Only under very special circumstances is a Plan A student allowed to transfer to Plan B.
A. Thesis Plan (30 units)
- Minimum of 20 units of acceptable graduate courses in addition to 6-10 thesis units for total of approximately 30 units. Minor exceptions to 30-unit requirement will be considered on a case-by-case basis and will require best practices justification.
- At least 18 units earned in courses offered by the University of Nevada, Reno.
- At least 9 units, exclusive of thesis, at 700 level.
- With program director approval, internship/externship experiences can count for thesis units.
1. Coursework (24 units)
All NRES MS students must take : - Six (6) credits of approved quantitative coursework at the 600 or higher level
- Two (2) credits of a committee approved seminar series
Beyond these courses, the NRES MS degree is intended to be “committee-driven” where the student has flexibility to select most courses and develop a program of study under the guidance of an advisory committee, making sure the minimum credit requirements of the grad school are achieved. B. Non-Thesis Plan (30 units)
All NRES MS students must take : - Six (6) credits of approved quantitative coursework at the 600 or higher level
- Two (2) credits of a committee approved seminar series
Beyond these courses, the NRES MS degree is intended to be “committee-driven” where the student has flexibility to select most courses and develop a program of study under the guidance of an advisory committee, making sure the minimum credit requirements of the grad school are achieved. 1. Coursework (28 units)
See course list above.
2. Professional Paper (2 units)
1. Thesis Requirements (Plan A)
The objective of writing a thesis is to demonstrate the ability of a student to communicate their science, hypotheses, methods, and findings in written form. In general, the chapter(s) of the thesis must be of a quality that is publishable in a peer-reviewed journal of a scientific field relevant to the student’s area of expertise, as judged by the advisory committee or demonstrated by acceptance for publication in such a journal.
The recommended format for most MS students in STEM disciplines is organized such that the core chapter(s) are effectively draft manuscripts that can be submitted to appropriate peer-reviewed journals in the field of study. These chapters can include literature synthesis, meta-analysis, and review. The specific requirements of this format are: - An introduction preceding the manuscript chapter(s). This section should establish the general scientific foundation for the body of work that will be presented in the manuscript chapter(s).
- At least one (1) manuscript-style chapter.
- A preface that describes what journals each chapter is submitted to or will be submitted to. This will aid the committee and future readers in understanding formatting differences among journals. The preface should also include the status of each manuscript chapter (i.e., published, in press, in review, in preparation for submission).
- A conclusion or summary. This section can also be used to describe implications for management. This section should summarize the body of research in the preceding chapters and can be used to describe implications for management.
- The sections of the thesis that are not manuscript chapters should be formatted in a consistent style. References to literature cited should follow each section.
2. Professional Paper Requirements (Plan B)
There are no formal requirements for the format of the professional paper produced by the Plan B (non-thesis) student, beyond that the format must be discussed and approved by the student’s graduate advisory committee well before the student’s defense date.
3. Thesis/Professional Paper Defense
The defense consists of a public presentation (announced at least one week prior to the defense date) followed by a minimum 1-hour long private discussion among the committee members. The defense is not an oral comprehensive exam; the discussion should focus on the research, its implications, and the student’s capacity to converse about their science. Ultimately, the committee must unanimously agree to sign the “Notice of Completion - Master’s Degree” for the student to graduate. At the conclusion of the defense, the committee should consider three potential outcomes to the defense:
- Unconditional pass: the committee has no further formal requirements of the student. The committee should sign the Notice of Completion at this point: https://powerforms.docusign.net/0061da16-4657-42fb-92fc-9b9be9e7cfa4?env=na3-eu1&acct=00b1dddc-e55a-4962-9660-d691e16a2f23
- Conditional pass: the committee imposes some additional requirements on the student (usually additional thesis edits, but possibly additional analysis) before they are willing to sign off on the Notice of Completion. Once the student has completed these additional requirements to the satisfaction of the committee, the Notice of Completion should be sent to the graduate advisory committee for signatures.
- Unconditional fail: the committee deems the work and defense to be unsatisfactory. At this point, the student must petition the advisor(s) for a second attempt to revise the thesis and perform a second defense. The student has one (1) year from the previous defense to accomplish this task. If either 1) the advisor(s) do not agree to a second attempt to defend the thesis, or 2) the student does not defend satisfactorily the second time, the student will be deemed as having made “unsatisfactory progress” through the M.S. program and will be prevented from re-enrolling in the program. While the student may reapply to the M.S. program at a future date, they will be required to meet all of the original program requirements.
Once all requirements have been met, students must submit a Final Review Approval and Notice of Completion form in order to graduate.
- Notice of completion – this completed form should be submitted after all requirements have been met. If the student has an unconditional pass during their defense, the student should have this form signed by the committee at the conclusion of the defense.
- Final Review Approval – Obtain sign-off from advisory committee chair
II. Total Units
- Plan A: 30 units
- Plan B: 30 units
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Return to: Programs in the College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources
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