Graduate student Bowers in Tanzania.

Graduate Student Handbook

Graduate Program Guidelines & Resources

Checklist
FNR Program Requirements and Timing

FNR Forms
Graduate Research Credit Expectations Agreement
Graduate Student Semester Evaluation
Graduate Teaching Assistant Evaluation
Research Proposal Evaluation
Candidacy Extension/Outreach Evaluation
Graduate Student Check-out

Acronyms
CV - Curriculum Vitae
FNR - Department of Forestry and Natural Resources
FY - Fiscal Year
MS - Master of Science
PhD - Doctor of Philosophy
S - Satisfactory
U - Unsatisfactory

Introduction
The objective of this handbook is to provide the policies for the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources (FNR) Graduate Program at Purdue University. FNR graduate students and faculty that advise graduate students should adhere to the policies set forth in this document for successful student progress through the FNR Graduate Program.

In addition to the FNR Graduate Program policies, all graduate programs are under the jurisdiction of the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Scholars (OGSPS). The Purdue University OGSPS maintains specific standards and requirements, which include but are not limited to filing a Plan of Study, composition of Advisory Committees, academic standards, and graduate students’ responsibilities. The following document provides FNR-specific requirements, which are in addition to the OGSPS requirements.

Graduate students are admitted into the FNR Master of Science (MS) or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) program. General requirements for these degrees are provided below. A timing summary for degree forms and checklists are provided in Appendix A. All OGSPS forms referenced can be found on MyPurdue. All FNR forms are located in Appendix B and online in the Current Student link under FNR Graduate.

The FNR Graduate Program is administered by the FNR Graduate Program Head (i.e., Department Head) as well as the FNR Graduate Committee, which is comprised of FNR faculty members and the FNR Graduate Program Specialist. The FNR Graduate Committee is led by the committee Chair. The FNR Department Head and FNR Graduate Committee reviewed the program and established the guidelines and policies which are presented in this handbook. The current FNR Graduate Committee is comprised of faculty members, and two non-voting members: The FNR Graduate Program Specialist and A Graduate Student Council Representative.

FNR Graduate Program Committee
Zhao Ma, Chair, Professor of Forestry & Natural Resources, zhaoma@purdue.edu
Elizabeth Flaherty, Professor of Wildlife Ecology & Habitat Management, eflaher@purdue.edu
Jacob Hosen, Assistant Professor of the Internet-of-Things & Ecological Analytics, jhosen@purdue.edu
Tyler Hoskins, Research Assistant Professor of FNR, tdhoskin@purdue.edu
Patti Foster, Graduate Program Administration Specialist, foster43@purdue.edu
Rachel Brent, Graduate Student Organization President, MS Student, brentr@purdue.edu

Master of Science Thesis Degree Requirements

Requirements for a thesis MS degree are summarized in Figure 1. The Purdue University MS Program goal is that graduate students will be able to demonstrate five competencies (i.e., learning outcomes). How each requirement fulfills the competencies is provided in Table 2.

Credit Hours and Timeline
To obtain a thesis MS degree, a minimum of 30 credit hours must be completed. This minimum includes 24 graded course hours and six research credit hours. The 24 graded course hours must be listed on the students’ Plan of Study. These courses should primarily be conducted at Purdue University, (i.e., at least 50 percent of the credits must be earned where the degree is conferred) but can include courses taken as a non-degree, generated because of an uncompleted MS or PhD program, and/or as an undergraduate student at the graduate level and were in excess of degree requirements. Transfers of course credit hours, level of course credit hours which can count towards the Plan of Study and/or degree program, registration requirements, etc. shall adhere to the guidelines set forth in the OGSPS policies. All courses on the Plan of Study must be approved by the students’ Advisory Committee.

The thesis MS degree must be completed within five calendar years from admission to the MS program to the completion of the Final Examination. Extensions of this limit may be granted by the FNR Graduate Committee and Department Head upon recommendation and justification by the students’ Advisory Committee.

Required Courses
Thesis MS degree students are required to complete the following three courses:

  • GRAD 61200 Responsible Conduct of Research
  • FNR 50600 Theory and Application of Natural Resource Extension Programming
  • FNR 590000 Introduction to Teaching Natural Resources.

Required courses must be listed on the students’ Plan of Study.

Students who have previously earned a graduate degree from Purdue University where GRAD 61200 (Responsible Conduct of Research) was already completed as part of the Plan of Study are not required to repeat GRAD 61200. Graduate students who have previously earned a graduate degree from FNR are not required to take FNR 50600 (Theory and Application of Natural Resource Extension Programming) or FNR 598000 (Introduction to Teaching Natural Resources) again given they meet both requirements below:

  1. The student has previously taken and received a passing grade in the course(s) and
  2. The student’s Advisory Committee deems the student has demonstrated sufficient proficiency and skills related to extension and/or teaching.

Exceptions or substitutions involving the above required courses can only be granted by the FNR Graduate Committee upon receipt of a written request from the faculty advisor for the student requesting the exception/substitution.

Additional Requirements

Advisory Committee
Every student in a degree program is required to select a graduate advisor (a.k.a. major professor) who serves as chair of their Advisory Committee and who agrees to supervise the student’s graduate study, research, and writing. The graduate advisor/student relationship must be a mutually agreed upon.

Research Expectations and Semester Evaluation
Every semester a student is enrolled in research credit hours (FNR 69800), the Graduate Research Credit Expectations Agreement Form must be completed and submitted to the FNR Graduate Program Specialist within the first two weeks of the semester. Additionally, every semester a student is enrolled, a Graduate Student Semester Evaluation Form must be completed and submitted to the Graduate Program Specialist when the semester grades are due.

Proposal
Every student in a degree program is required to write a thesis research proposal. The proposal should be presented to, discussed with, and approved by the students’ Advisory Committee. The format and content of the proposal will vary depending upon each student’s educational objectives and the direction given by each student’s Advisory Committee. The Research Proposal Evaluation Form must be completed and submitted to the FNR Graduate Program Specialist.

Extension/Outreach
Students must 1) complete coursework (FNR 50600 Theory and Application of Natural Resource Extension Programming), 2) develop an extension/outreach plan, and 3) produce a minimum of one deliverable. The outreach plan must include a defined target audience, clear learning objectives, and a suggestion of where and when their outreach and/or extension activity will occur. The specific deliverable(s) associated with each student’s outreach and/or extension activities will vary depending upon each student’s educational objectives and the direction given by each individual student’s Advisory Committee. Examples of deliverables include, but are not limited to, numbered extension publications, non-technical publications, articles in popular magazines, newsletter, trade magazines, etc., posters, pamphlets, web content, social media, workshops for professional or public audiences, presentations for non-scientific audiences, and youth programming. The student will complete and submit the Candidacy Extension/Outreach Evaluation Form to the FNR Graduate Program Specialist.

If a waiver for FNR 50600 (Theory and Application of Natural Resource Extension Programming) course was obtained, the student is still required to meet the other policy standards including an Advisory Committee review and approval of an extension/outreach plan, an extension/outreach deliverable, and completion of the Candidacy Extension/Outreach Evaluation Form.

Presentation
As a graduate student in FNR, professional development is an important part of overall education. Participation in scientific and professional conferences is essential to both understanding the state of the field and building professional networks. As such, MS students must complete a presentation related to their field-of-study at a regional, national, or international conference. When the presentation was conducted this must be indicated on the Graduate Student Semester Evaluation Form by providing a citation.

Travel Support
To foster graduate student participation in scientific and professional conferences, FNR will provide (contingent on the annual availability of departmental funding) up to $350 per year to cover approved travel expenses to attend one in-person conference or the fees to participate in up to two virtual conferences (not to exceed $350 in total). Graduate advisor approval is required. Required travel expenses and fees more than $350 should be covered by the faculty advisor’s grant funding where available. Presentation of a scientific paper in oral or poster form by the student is strongly recommended as part of receiving this support.

Thesis
Each student will write and submit a thesis following the requirements set forth by the student’s Advisory Committee and the OGSPS including the OGSPS Form 9: Thesis/Dissertation Acceptance.

Final Examination
A Final Examination consists of a public seminar in conjunction with the thesis defense. For successful completion of the Final Examination, a student must at minimum:

  • Submit OGSPS Form 8: Request for Appointment of Examining Committee prior to the examination. The examining committee must be comprised of at least three members of the graduate faculty and may or may not be identical to the Advisory Committee, and 51% of the examining committee must have “Regular” graduate faculty certification.
  • Register for candidacy (i.e., “CAND”) during the semester this examination is taken.
  • Adhere to all the deadlines provided by the OGSPS and the FNR Graduate Committee.
  • Present research in a forum open to the public. This seminar must be advertised to the Purdue University faculty and student body a minimum of two weeks in advance. (Consideration should be given for not having the oral presentation open to the public in cases where prior agreements with the research sponsor preclude the release of findings to the public for an agreed upon period of time or when prior review by the sponsor is specified in the funding agreement.)
  • Defend research in an oral examination to the examining committee. The oral examination must not last more than two hours.

The Examination Committee determines if a student passes or fails the Final Examination. This decision will be submitted to the OGSPS via the OGSPS Form 7: Report of Master’s Examining Committee. Committee certification for a master’s degree requires that all members of a three-person committee concur that the student has satisfactorily completed the examination. Although only three committee members are required, if the committee has four or more members, a single member may withhold their signature of approval. If the student does not pass the Final Examination, the Examination Committee determines if the student will have additional opportunities to pass the examination. If permitted to retake the exam, a candidate must wait until the following semester or later to repeat the Final Examination.

Candidacy
Students are required to register for candidacy during the semester they defend and/or complete their degree requirements. Details regarding candidacy registration can be found at the OGSPS website. Additionally, students are required to complete the following tasks:

  • submit their curriculum vitae (CV)/resume
  • FNR Placement Survey
  • OGSPS Exit Questionnaire
  • exit interview with department head
  • Graduate Student Check-out Form

Funding length and Departmental Assistantship Extension Requests
If funding is available, students that receive departmental assistantships to pursue MS degrees within FNR will be guaranteed two years of funding to complete their degree.

If needed, the graduate advisor of an MS student who is making satisfactory progress towards their degree may request a one-semester extension for a half-time, MS-level departmental assistantship. The request addressed to the FNR Graduate Committee must be in writing and must provide clear evidence (e.g., filed Plan of Study, manuscripts submitted, data collection completed) of satisfactory progress toward the completion of the degree. The FNR Graduate Committee Chair may grant this request, pending budgetary approval by the Department Head. If FNR funding is provided the MS student will be a TA for the supported semester.

If needed, the graduate advisor of an MS student who is making satisfactory progress towards their degree may request a second, one-semester extension for a half-time, MS-level departmental assistantship. The request, addressed to the FNR Graduate Committee, must be in writing and must provide clear evidence (e.g., filed Plan of Study, manuscripts submitted, data collection completed, pending thesis defense) of satisfactory progress toward the completion of the degree. Approval of the request will require evidence of satisfactory progress and availability of funds. The FNR Graduate Committee Chair may grant a well-justified request in part or in whole, pending budgetary approval by the Department Head. If funds are limited, preference for a second, one-semester extension for MS students on departmental funding will be given to students who have served as a teaching assistant in FNR courses for two or more semesters and/or have been funded for one or more semesters on funds external to the department (e.g., grants, contracts, fellowships) during their tenure in the program.

No additional extensions of departmental assistantships for MS students will be granted.

Master of Science Non-thesis Degree

Credit Hours and Timeline
To obtain a non-thesis MS degree, a minimum of 30 graded credit hours must be completed. The 30 graded course hours must be listed on the students’ Plan of Study. These courses should primarily be conducted at Purdue University, (i.e., at least 50 percent of the credits must be earned where the degree is conferred) but can include courses taken as a non-degree student, generated as a consequence of an uncompleted MS or PhD program, and/or as an undergraduate student at the graduate level and were in excess of degree requirements. Transfers of course credit hours, level of course credit hours which can count towards the Plan of Study and/or degree program, registration requirements, etc. shall adhere to the guidelines set forth in the OGSPS policies. All courses on the Plan of Study must be approved by the students’ Advisory Committee.

The non-thesis MS degree must be completed within five calendar years from admission to the MS program to the completion of the Final Examination. Extensions of this limit may be granted by the FNR Graduate Committee and/or Department Head upon recommendation and justification by the student’s Advisory Committee.

Required Courses
Non-thesis MS degree students are required to complete the following three courses:

  • GRAD 61200 (Responsible Conduct of Research)
  • FNR 50600 (Theory and Application of Natural Resource Extension Programming)
  • FNR 59000 (Introduction to Teaching Natural Resources.)

Required courses must be listed on the student’s Plan of Study.

Students who have previously earned a graduate degree from Purdue University where GRAD 61200 (Responsible Conduct of Research) was already completed as part of the Plan of Study are not required to repeat GRAD 61200. Graduate students who have previously earned a graduate degree from FNR are not required to take FNR 50600 (Theory and Application of Natural Resource Extension Programming) or FNR 59000 (Introduction to Teaching Natural Resources) given they meet both requirements below:

  1. The student has previously taken and received a passing grade in the courses, and
  2. The student’s Advisory Committee deems the student has demonstrated sufficient proficiency and skills related to extension and teaching.

Exceptions or substitutions involving the above required courses can only be granted by the FNR Graduate Committee upon receipt of a written request from the graduate advisor for the student requesting the exception/substitution.