Interdisciplinary Ecology Graduate Program
--Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees

The University of Florida School of Natural Resources and Environment offers interdisciplinary coursework in the basic and applied science of ecology, the related social sciences, and sustainability, leading to M.S. and Ph.D. degrees. Choose from 347 courses, 283 faculty advisors, and 43 participating departments. Research areas of ecology graduate students range across natural resource ecology, environmental policy and management, and sustainable development.

Environmental problems are fundamentally human problems and should be understood in terms of human motivations and actions in a biophysical context. Their solution requires holistic thinking about dynamic ecological systems and the social, economic, and political forces driving human action. To this end, the goal of the Interdisciplinary Ecology graduate program is to provide advanced training in ecosystems thinking and the main theories and methodologies of the biophysical and social sciences to foster integrative approaches to complex real-world problems. Interdisciplinary Ecology students are intensely interested in the sustainability problem, and they welcome the challenge of addressing it through more than one traditional disciplline.

Program of Study

The master's and doctoral degrees in Interdisciplinary Ecology promote interdisciplinary thinking in natural resources and the environment by combining (1) coursework in the basic and applied science of ecology, related social sciences, and sustainability with (2) competence in an approved program in a traditional field of study. The former is achieved with a core-course and distribution requirement. The latter is achieved by extra coursework for the master's degree and a concentration for the doctoral degree. Requirements are:
» Two courses in advanced ecology (one in principles of ecology and one in ecology of a particular life zone, region, or group of organisms).
» Electives from a list of courses identified by the faculty, in the subject areas of resource-related natural science, environment-oriented social science, and human sustainability studies. This distribution requirement applies separately to the master's and doctorate.
» To provide a focus in a related discipline: For the master's degree, 6 credit hours of courses beyond the conventional minimum of 30 credit hours. For the doctoral degree, a concentration (comparable to a minor).
» A graduate course in statistics plus one (master's) or two (doctoral) in other methodology.
» An original research thesis (master's) or dissertation (doctoral). Alternatively, a non-thesis master's option enables students to complete coursework and enter the job market rapidly, with less research experience.
» A graduate seminar taken in two semesters.
» The degree requirements are 36 credit hours for the master's degree with thesis, 38 credit hours for the non-thesis master's degree, and 90 credit hours for the doctoral degree.

About the Degree Program

This degree program is designed for students desiring an interdisciplinary academic program related to the environment. It does not replace the University's existing graduate programs in agriculture, architecture, engineering, life sciences, and social sciences. Students seeking a more specialized or traditional environment-oriented discipline should major in the appropriate department.

A graduate student in Interdisciplinary Ecology is hosted in one of 43 participating departments. The student's academic advisor is one of the 300 faculty members affiliated with the School of Natural Resources and Environment. The cross-departmental composition of the student's Supervisory Committee and of the curriculum empowers the student to take an unusually broad, challenging program of study. The curriculum includes more than 360 graduate courses.

If you need financial help to support your program of study, financial support in the form of fellowships, teaching or research assistantships, and tuition payments is available from the university, the school, and faculty grants on a competitive basis.

When You Apply

To be successfully admitted into the Interdisciplinary Ecology degree program, several things must happen. You must send application materials, a professor affiliated with the college must agree to be your major advisor, the professor's department chair must agree to host your activity, and you must be admitted by the school director. Financial arrangements must be made or understood. After you apply, the school director and professional advisor will help you make these arrangements.

Your Statement of Purpose will enable the school staff to help you identify potential advisors. We will contact potential advisors directly, circulate your application, and facilitate your communication. It is your responsibility to communicate with potential advisors to determine common interests, identify research opportunities, and explore the possibility of close collaboration during your degree work in Interdisciplinary Ecology.

You may begin your own search for potential advisors, even before you apply. We suggest that you look up the web pages of appropriate faculty (on their home department website, see the links of the SNRE faculty page). In the process of narrowing your search, you should correspond directly with individual faculty members. If you want to visit campus, the best time is after you have identified one or a small number of potential advisors whom you want to meet in person.

Students who need financial support and seek to begin class in Fall semester should apply during November, December, or January, so that the application file is complete no later than February 1. Applications are reviewed as they are completed, starting January 2, and offers of admission are made as soon as advising and funding arrangements are settled. Except for unusual circumstances, all admission offers for Fall semester are made by April 15. Because most offers are made well before that date, it is to your advantage to apply early. Students also may be admitted to begin in Spring semester (January) or Summer semester (May). Financial support from faculty grants or other sources may become available at any time.

Role of the Advisor and Supervisory Committee

At the University of Florida, the student has the responsibility of designing the program of study and proposing it to the Supervisory Committee for approval and modification. This program must meet the requirements of the school, but the student and Supervisory Committee are empowered to make decisions in the best interest of the student.

The school requires that, as part of the application process, the student identify a faculty advisor to provide guidance on coursework and research during the program of study. Prospective students should discuss common interests and make collaborative arrangements with an advisor by email (preferred for inital contact by most faculty members), correspondence, telephone, or in person. The advisor and student are responsible for ensuring that adequate financial resources are available to support the student's graduate program.

To implement the interdisciplinary nature of the program, the school requires the student, by the end of the first semester of graduate study, to select an academic advisory committee representing more than one traditional discipline, preferably with no majority of faculty from a single department. (Students for whom an advisory committee with such a single-department majority would be appropriate should apply instead to the appropriate department.) Only members of the graduate faculty who are affiliate faculty of the school may be appointed to a supervisory committee; this list is updated frequently. The school recommends a slightly larger supervisory committee than does the Graduate School. The committee should consist of three faculty members for a master's degree with a thesis, two faculty members for a master's degree with no thesis, and five faculty members for a doctoral degree. Supervisory committees are nominated by the student's advisor, approved by the college dean, and appointed by the Dean of the Graduate School. The Supervisory Committee administers the qualifying examination and defense of thesis, technical paper, or dissertation. Students seeking joint degrees have two independent supervisory committees, operating according to the rules of each program.