Curriculum and Degree Completion for M.S. in Environmental Sciences

The academic curriculum for the Professional Science M.S. Program in Environmental Sciences includes core courses in environmental sciences, courses in specific areas of concentration, numerical skills, professional training, and an internship. Most students are expected to take two years to complete their program (based on full time study for a minimum of 54 credit hours).

• Core Environmental Sciences Courses form the foundation of this program by providing students with basic skills in environmental research methods and analysis. (10-credits)

• Coursework in Areas of Concentration give focus and identity to each student's curriculum and allows for flexibility in response to changing employment demands. Eight areas of concentration currently available include: Biogeochemistry, Ecology, Environmental Education, Quantitative Analysis, Social Science, Natural Resources, Water Resources and Sustainable Natural Resources. Students choose courses to develop their program with relevance to one of these Areas of Concentration but are free to take additional courses based on career objectives.

  Sustainable Natural Resources is a new online Area of Concentration offered through the College of Forestry at OSU. Electives can be taken as an 18-unit block during summer term, and students will earn a Graduate Certificate in this field in addition to the Master's degree in Environmental Sciences.

• Numerical Skills Courses expose students to research design, statistical analysis, modeling, survey design, or other quantitative and qualitative techniques. Students will have an opportunity to select a course based on their own needs and program objectives. Example courses include Methods of Data Analysis (ST 511), Design and Analysis of Planned Experiments (ST 515), Quantitative Ecology (ST 535) and Geographic Information Systems (GEO 565).

• Professional Training: All PSM students at OSU are required to complete 18 credits of professional coursework in communications, ethics, and business management, which become integrated with scientific skills through a case studies course during the final term of the first academic year. These courses were developed in collaboration with industry partners to provide breadth as well as depth to these unique graduate programs. They are designed to be taken in sequence during the first academic year. Graduates are specially qualified to serve as liaisons between the scientific and business communities in industry.

Program Curriculum

Determining Your Program of Study for a PSM in Environmental Sciences
If you haven’t already selected a major professor, this is one of the first things you should do after getting to OSU. This individual will serve as your primary academic advisor and OSU internship liaison. He/she must be a Graduate Faculty member in your major department and can help you select other members for your Graduate Committee (a minimum of three people).

You can learn what ENSC faculty are doing online (http://envsci.science.oregonstate.edu/people/faculty) and then contact them directly to explore mutual interests.

Work with the Environmental Sciences PSM Excel file to prepare your Program of Study form, which is required by the Graduate School prior to completion of your first 18 credits. Please give a copy of your signed Program of Study form to Dr. Bechert, the PSM Program Coordinator.

Completing your Degree
We’ve summarized some key timelines for your degree program in a table you can download. Please keep these dates in mind in order to complete your degree in a timely manner. You can find required forms on the Graduate School website.

You must achieve a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 for all courses taken, and you have to complete all work for your degree within seven (7) years.

There are restrictions on the number of blanket-numbered course credits you can apply towards your degree (e.g., Research 501; Reading and Conference 505), as well as Internship 510 credits.

You are allowed to transfer up to 15 credits from another institution for a 49-credit Master’s degree. Courses must have B grades or better, must not have been used on another non-OSU Master’s degree, and must be approved by the Graduate School. Graduate courses you took at OSU as a non-degree or post-baccalaureate student and reserved for graduate credit are considered transfer courses. You can also request the transfer of up to 15 credits from one OSU Master’s degree to a second OSU Master’s degree provided:

• credits used to satisfy the residency requirement of one Master’s degree are not used to satisfy the residency of the second Master’s degree,
• you complete all requirements for each degree, including separate Programs of Study, diploma applications, theses or internship projects, and separate oral exams,
• you received a grade of B or higher on the courses you are transferring.

A full-time course load for a graduate student ranges from 9 to 16 credits per term. Graduate Assistants must enroll for a minimum of 12 credits each term of the academic year and a minimum of 9 credits during the summer term. A minimum of 9 credits per term is required of most international students to satisfy visa requirements.

Please note that you have to be currently enrolled for a minimum of 3 credits to take your final examination. You will be expected to present results from your internship experience as a seminar open to all graduate students and department faculty (alternative arrangements will be made for students who were required to sign confidentiality agreements with companies where they conducted their internships). Make sure that you share your final internship report with your major professor and graduate committee members several weeks in advance of your final examination to allow time for feedback and revisions if needed. Immediately following the seminar, graduate committee members will meet with you for the final oral examination. If you have questions about event scheduling, please contact the Graduate School (541-737-4881).

Schedule your exit interview with Dr. Bechert at the same time that you schedule your final oral exam. The interview should not take longer than 20-30 minutes and provides us with opportunities to continually improve our program. We would also like to register you as an OSU Professional Science Master’s alumnus!