Animal and Rangeland Sciences, Ph.D.

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The Animal and Rangeland Sciences PhD Program will prepare students for successful research, academic, and other demanding careers in fundamental and applied sciences, agriculture, rangeland management. Graduates will be prepared to address critical regional and worldwide needs to sustainably feed people, care for animals and agricultural enterprises, and manage 40% of both the U.S. and Earth’s terrestrial surface for multiple uses and values. Students may focus on various sub-disciplines related to animal science including: animal nutrition, physiology, genetics, health, reproduction, welfare, livestock production, meat industry and food safety. Specific areas of study within the rangeland ecology and management specialty include: riparian ecosystems, ecology, hydrology, restoration, landscape ecology, soil-plant relations, rangeland animal and wildlife interactions, grazing and habitat management, planning, management, monitoring, invasive species, and remote sensing. Graduates are needed to meet the needs of the agriculture profession including industry and agency research, administration, consulting, and land-grant and other colleges and universities.

Program Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

apply scientific concepts to research and management questions related to the sustainable management of animal agriculture and natural resources.
develop, plan, and execute experiments and monitoring and assessment management protocols for large landscapes that use appropriate science and statistical approaches.
effectively compose and articulate scientific concepts through multiple media outlets, including online digital as well as written and oral communications.
evaluate and apply professional ethics in the design and application of their research and management plans.
demonstrate the ability to conceptualize, plan, conduct, and interpret original research as exemplified in the oral defense of their written dissertation.

Contact Information

Dr. Robert A. Washington-Allen, Associate Professor of Agriculture
Graduate Program Director
(979) 571-4330
rwashingtonallen@unr.edu

Department of Agriculture, Veterinary, and Rangeland Sciences
College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources
Mail Stop 202
(775) 784-6648

Graduate Handbook *

Admission Requirements

Students who seek admission to the program should have a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0, a TOEFL score of 600 (paper version), 250 (computer version), or 100 (internet version) for international students). The Graduate Records Examination (GRE) is not required for entry into this graduate program. However, should a student have GRE scores, they will be complementary to the other items in their entry portfolio. Each student must have an advisor among the ARS faculty before they are accepted into the Program.
Students must meet a set of coursework requirements consistent with career objectives in either animal science or rangeland ecology and management. Required undergraduate classes must be taken prior to admittance or while in their graduate program.
Students emphasizing animal science must complete course work in physical sciences (6 credits), university mathematics including calculus (6 credits), organic chemistry or biochemistry (6 credits), and biology, agriculture, or natural resources (24 credits, including genetics, anatomy, physiology, soils, hydrology, ecology or plant or animal science).
Students emphasizing rangeland ecology and management, must have completed an undergraduate degree or complete coursework that qualifies them under the US Office of Personnel Management GS-454 series (Rangeland Management Specialist).

I. Program Requirements

Students for the PhD in Animal and Rangeland Sciences (ARS) must satisfy the general requirements of the Graduate School. Students must select a PhD graduate advising committee consisting of at least five members of the graduate faculty, including the advisor, at least one other member from the advisor’s department, a member representing a closely allied discipline to the area of specialization, and one member serving as the Graduate School Representative.

Students must present a dissertation proposal within their first year. It will clarify how their research will create new knowledge in a variety of related sub-disciplines.

Courses should be selected to complement the student’s fields of interest and enhance his/her conceptual and research skills.

A minimum of 60 graduate units (with grades of “B” or better) beyond the baccalaureateare are required, including at least 40 units in course work.
A maximum of 24 units may be used from a completed master’s degree. However, there is no limit on the number of units transferred when a student earns a MS degree en route to a Ph.D. in a UNR doctoral program.
Some 12 - 30 units of dissertation are required with at least 18 units of 700-level courses, exclusive of dissertation units, are required for the doctoral degree.
With program director approval, internship/externship experiences can count for dissertation units.

A. Required Core Curriculum

The animal science or rangeland science requirements below can be waived if students enter the program with strength(s) in that field.

AGSC 790 - Seminar (1 unit) (1 unit x 2 semesters)
Graduate level statistics course (3 units)
AGSC 606 - Advanced Nutrition Management (4 units) OR
AGSC 610 - Sheep Management (3 units)
AGSC 618 - Cattle Production & Management (3 units) OR
AGSC 613 - Range-Livestock Interactions (3 units) OR
REM 698 - Rangeland Restoration Ecology (3 units) OR
REM 608 - Rangeland Ecosystems (5 units)

Note(s)

Students will take and pass a comprehensive examination (for 1 credit) in order to be admitted into Candidacy for the Doctoral Degree. The comprehensive examination will be administered by the student’s advising committee.
Each candidate will defend in public their written dissertation. The student’s advising committee will pass judgement about the quality and sufficience of the dissertation and its defense. The dissertation must also be accepted by the graduate school.

II. Total Units (60 units)

Note(s):

* Curriculum requirements in the catalog supersede the Graduate handbook.