Natural Resources and Environmental Science, M.S.

I. Contact Information

Bob Nowak, Ph.D., Graduate Program Director
nowak@cabnr.unr.edu
(775) 784-1656

Mailing Address:
Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, Mail Stop 0186
1664 N. Virginia Street
Reno, NV  89557-0186

Departmental Website: 
http:www.cabnr.unr.edu/nres

II. Brief Introduction

The master of science degree in Natural Resources and Environmental Science is offered by the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science. To ensure consideration for admission to the program, students must have a minimum overall grade-point average of 3.0, a combined verbal plus quantitative GRE score of 1000 or greater for tests taken prior to August 1, 2011 or combined score of 300 or greater for tests taken on or after August 1, 2011, strong letters of recommendation, and the agreement of a graduate faculty member to serve as a student’s advisor. Specific programs of study are developed through the collegial interaction of the student with his/her Graduate Advisory Committee. The program emphasizes the functioning and management of range, forest and aquatic ecosystems. Students typically study in the areas of: (1) wildlife and conservation biology, (2) forest and rangeland ecology and management, (3) soil and environmental science, and (4) aquatic and wetland ecosystems (including ecohydrology and watershed science).

III. Program Objectives/Student Learning Outcomes

The mission of the program is to provide graduates with the scientific and communication skills and knowledge necessary to understand the inter-relationships among people, living organisms, and the environments of the Intermountain West, and to prepare them for entry into doctoral programs or the professional workforce.

IV. 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.

V. Program Requirements

Plan A

• Coursework: Determined by advisory committee
• Credits: 30
• Comprehensive/Oral Examination: None
• Thesis: Required

 
Plan B

• Thesis: Not required
• Professional Paper: Required (see below)

Plan A versus Plan B
The vast majority of incoming students are admitted to the Plan A degree program. This is the option in which 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 suitable for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. 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.

VI. Total Units

• Plan A: 30 units
• Plan B: 32 units

VII. Notes

NRES faculty also participate in and support graduate students in several graduate interdisciplinary programs, including:
Graduate degrees may be earned in Environmental Sciences, M.S.  and Environmental Sciences, Ph.D.  in an interdisciplinary program. For further information, refer to the Interdisciplinary and Special Programs section of this catalog.
Graduate degrees may be earned in Hydrologic Sciences, M.S.  and Hydrologic Sciences, Ph.D.  in an interdisciplinary program. For further information, refer to the Interdisciplinary and Special Programs section of this catalog.
A doctor of philosophy degree in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology  is available in an interdisciplinary program. For further information, refer to the Interdisciplinary and Special Programs section of this catalog.