Graduate Studies In Agronomy
Graduate programs in agronomy focus on efficient production of agronomic crops, effective management of turfgrass communities, improving the quality and quanity of feed for animals, understanding the soil-plant-animal-climate complex, and improving the quality of the environment in which we live.
The Department of Crop and Soil Sciences offers graduate study leading to the following degrees:
- Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Agronomy
- Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Genetics, in Ecology, and in Plant Physiology
- Master of Agriculture
- Master of Environmental Pollution Control
- Master of Science in Environmental Pollution Control
Students have the opportunity to study with a diverse faculty. Many faculty members have received recognition for outstanding contributions in research, teaching, or extension programs. Students also share their graduate experience with about fifty other graduate students from the United States and several foreign countries.
The department encourages students to participate in professional activities, including departmental governance, presentations at professional and extension meetings, and publication of research results in professional journals.
STUDY AREAS
- Crop science---breeding, genetics, physiology, edaphology (soil chemistry, fertility, properties, and physics), cropping systems, and weed science.
- Turfgrass science---breeding, physiology, edaphology (fertility and physical properties), cultural systems, and weed science.
- Environmental quality---water quality, nutrient and pesticide fate and transport in soil and watershed systems, animal waste and municipal sludge utilization, nutrient management and heavy metal contamination of soils.
FACILITIES
Located in a state-of-the-art building completed in 1991, the department has more than 78 offices, 20,000 square feet of laboratories, computer teaching facilities, and a land analysis laboratory. It also maintains a 340 acre experimental farm with irrigation facilities, a 22 acre irrigated turfgrass research center, a turfgrass landscape management center, a research farm in southeastern Pennsylvania, greenhouses, service areas, and serveral well-equipped field laboratories. In addition to sharing the extensive resources of the University---including libraries, computation centers, and research institutes---agronomy faculty collaborate with scientists in the U.S. Department of Agriculture Research Service Pasture Systems and Watershed Management Research Unit.
UNIVERSITY SETTING
Penn State is among the leading research institutions in the country. More than 38,000 students are located on the University Park Campus in State College, the cultural center of the region. Excellent recreational opportunities are available both on campus and in the surrounding open countryside and mountain forests.
ADMISSIONS
Applications should be completed by February for fall admission but will be accepted at any time. All applicants must submit Graduate Record Examination (GRE) test scores and a statement of goals for their graduate degree program.
International students whose native language is not English also must submit their scores on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) to the Graduate School. All international students should submit certified English translations of their academic records and should apply at least six months before the semester in which they intend to enroll.
Specific requirements include the following:
- Applicants for an M.S. degree should have a baccalaureate degree with at least 76 semester credits of basic and applied natural sciences (chemistry, mathematics, physics, biology, geology, soil science, and crop science).
- Applicants for an M.Agr. degree program must have a baccalaureate degree in agricultural or forest science.
- A minimum junior-senior grade-point average of 3.0 is required for admission to master's degree programs. Also, a grade-point average of 3.0 is required in all courses in the biological and physical sciences regardless of when they were taken.
- Admission to the Ph.D. program requires an M.S. degree or its equivalent and 100 semester credits of basic and applied natural sciences earned in baccalaureate and master's degree programs.
- Applicants for the Ph.D. program will be evaluated on the quality of work they have completed in all previous degree programs.
- Exceptions to these requirements may be made for students with special backgrounds, abilities, and interests.
Students should request that three letters of reference supporting their application be submitted to the department.
FINANCIAL AID
Graduate students are eligible to apply for assistantships in their area of specialization. Penn State assistantship stipends waive tuition charges and are competitive with those offered at other universities. Some students are supported through fellowships, faculty aide grants, and hourly wages.
INFORMATION
Prospective graduate students are encouraged to contact faculty members directly for detailed information concerning research programs and financial assistance.
For more information about graduate studies in agronomy at Penn State, write to:
Dr. Daniel KnievelDepartment of Crop and Soil Sciences
The Pennsylvania State University,
116 Ag Sciences and Industries Building
University Park, PA 16802
E-mail: dpk@psu.edu