Application Deadlines: Jan 15, Nov 1
Degrees Offered: MS, PhD
Min. GPA (Generally): 3.0
GRE (Generally): above 70th percentile
Subject GRE: Not mentioned, so probably not required.
TA'ing: Not required, pays tuition (but only out-of-state for the first year); fill out form when applying
RA'ing: Generally follows the same guidelines as TA'ing; not much information about it; fill out form when applying
Both TA'ing and RA'ing come with a small health benefit IF you get on the school's health insurance. You must work a minimum of 10 hours per week and be a full-time student (at least 6 credits). Support assistantships are also available; these are in administrative offices.
Interesting Sounding Courses: Plant Identification, Poisonous Plants, Aquatic Vascular Plants, Introductory Phycology, Introductory Mycology, Comparative Morphology of Vascular Plants, Global Change Ecology: Impacts and Mitigation, Molecular Ecology, Parasitology and Vector Biology, Ecological Plant Morphology, Topics in Mycology, Presenting Research in Biology, Reproductive Biology of Higher Plants, Molecular Aspects of Plant Development, Phytoremediation, Plant Metabolism, Global Environmental Change: Challenges for Ecology and Economies
Total Cost of Attendance, In-state: $22,316 ($9,164 tuition)
Total Cost of Attendance, Out-of-state: $34,604 ($20,752 tuition)
Potential Advisors: Dr. von Fischer's Webpage (interesting, but really into biogeochem and things that I don't have a background in; microbial ecology and plants affecting each other), see ecology,
No information on pre-requisites.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Colorado School of Mines-Environmental Science and Engineering
It sounds like you don't have to be an engineer to get into this program. The acceptance rate is very high, despite the fact that it is one of the top engineering schools in the country. However, the price tag is very high--$33,000 for in-state alone--and remission of all of those fees is not guaranteed. It sounds like an interesting program, so it may be worth checking out.
Application Deadline: January 15 for Fall Semester; Oct. 1 for Spring Semester
Degrees Offered: MS (thesis and non-thesis options), PhD (does not require a Master's, but one is preferred)
Min GPA: Admitted students have an average GPA of 3.42
GRE score: Admitted students have a combined score of ~1200 (Avg: 679 Quantitative; 515 Verbal) Undergraduates who attended the school and had a GPA greater than 3.25 can have the GRE waived.
GRE subject: Not required
Areas of Emphasis: Water Treatment, Reclamation, and Reuse; Contaminant Hydrology and Water Resources; Applied Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology; Environmental Characterization and Risk Analysis; Site Remediation and Environmental Restoration; PhD students are not required to specialize in one of these areas.
Courses: Environmental Pollution: Sources, Characteristics, Transport, and Fate; Scientific Basis of Environmental Regulation; Solid Waste Minimization and Recycling; Environmental Water Chemistry; Environmental Risk Assessment; Experimental Design and Environmental Data Analysis; Environmental Radiochemistry; Chemistry of Soil/Water Interface; Microbial Process Analysis and Modeling; Aquatic Toxicology; Reclamation of Disturbed Lands; Mining and the Environment; Molecular Microbial Ecology and the Environment
Pre-requisites:
Total Cost of Attendance: In-state: $33,338; Out-of-state: $47, 504
TA'ing: Not required. Highly competitive to get.
Assistantships: Include a stipend depending on how many hours are worked. Also eligible for tuition, fees, and health insurance remission. But these latter are not guaranteed.
Acceptance: 82% of applicants are accepted.
Application Deadline: January 15 for Fall Semester; Oct. 1 for Spring Semester
Degrees Offered: MS (thesis and non-thesis options), PhD (does not require a Master's, but one is preferred)
Min GPA: Admitted students have an average GPA of 3.42
GRE score: Admitted students have a combined score of ~1200 (Avg: 679 Quantitative; 515 Verbal) Undergraduates who attended the school and had a GPA greater than 3.25 can have the GRE waived.
GRE subject: Not required
Areas of Emphasis: Water Treatment, Reclamation, and Reuse; Contaminant Hydrology and Water Resources; Applied Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology; Environmental Characterization and Risk Analysis; Site Remediation and Environmental Restoration; PhD students are not required to specialize in one of these areas.
Courses: Environmental Pollution: Sources, Characteristics, Transport, and Fate; Scientific Basis of Environmental Regulation; Solid Waste Minimization and Recycling; Environmental Water Chemistry; Environmental Risk Assessment; Experimental Design and Environmental Data Analysis; Environmental Radiochemistry; Chemistry of Soil/Water Interface; Microbial Process Analysis and Modeling; Aquatic Toxicology; Reclamation of Disturbed Lands; Mining and the Environment; Molecular Microbial Ecology and the Environment
Pre-requisites:
- 1 year Chemistry
- 1 semester Physics
- 1 year Calculus
- 1 semester Statistics
Total Cost of Attendance: In-state: $33,338; Out-of-state: $47, 504
TA'ing: Not required. Highly competitive to get.
Assistantships: Include a stipend depending on how many hours are worked. Also eligible for tuition, fees, and health insurance remission. But these latter are not guaranteed.
Acceptance: 82% of applicants are accepted.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
University of Chicago-Ecology & Evolution
The Ecology & Evolution department does not have a FAQ posted yet, so when that gets posted I should be able to update this with more relevant information. Reading the Biology Department's FAQ, I came across the obnoxious statement that they do not disclose statistics of how many applicants they receive, average scores, GPAs, etc. of accepted students, and so on. Although this is a top-ranking school, I didn't much care for it. The price is so high, for one, though theoretically this is all taken care of by assitantships. Information is hard to find because the website is so difficult to navigate, the ecology and evolutionary biology department's website is spare, and they aren't willing to give you all the info. you want and need. They seem rather unfriendly.
Application Deadline: Dec. 1.
Degrees Offered: PhD only, but you don't need a Master's to apply.
Min. GPA: None specified.
GRE scores: None specified, but you do have to take the test.
GRE subject: Not required, unless you apply for an NSF grant.
Total Cost of Attendance: $48,920 (not specified if this is in or out of state or both)
Financial Aid: The following comes directly from the biology FAQ: "The financial aid package provides you with a stipend of $26,500 per year. Your tuition costs (approximately $48,920 in 2008-2009) and health insurance fees (approximately $2,600) are also covered in the financial aid package. You will also be provided with a one time $500 supplement to aid you in relocating to attend the Division of Biological Sciences Graduate Program at the University of Chicago." Aid comes in the form of, "Predoctoral training grant appointments or research assistantships."
TA'ing: Required to TA twice! They offer a training course as well as a TA'ing handbook to help out. Areas of Emphasis: None specified.
Courses: Environmental Ecology, Natural History of North American Deserts, Prairie Ecosystems: Lessons of Sustainability in the Past, Present, and Future, Tropical Ecology: Biodiversity and Human Impacts, Biological Poisons and Toxins, Ecological Applications to Conservation Biology, Mammalian Ecology, Plant Development and Molecular Genetics, Intro. to Virology, Image Processing in Biology, Ecology and Evolution in the Southwest, Marine Ecology (Note: These are all undergrad courses. They don't seem to have a listing of grad. courses.)
Pre-requisites: While none are listed, the biology website states, "Evidence of a sound background in the candidate's intended field of study is important, as well as academic credentials suggesting that the applicant has the ability to pursue advanced study and research successfully."
US News & World Report Ranking: For all graduate ecology programs, it is ranked Number 1, as of 2007.
Application Deadline: Dec. 1.
Degrees Offered: PhD only, but you don't need a Master's to apply.
Min. GPA: None specified.
GRE scores: None specified, but you do have to take the test.
GRE subject: Not required, unless you apply for an NSF grant.
Total Cost of Attendance: $48,920 (not specified if this is in or out of state or both)
Financial Aid: The following comes directly from the biology FAQ: "The financial aid package provides you with a stipend of $26,500 per year. Your tuition costs (approximately $48,920 in 2008-2009) and health insurance fees (approximately $2,600) are also covered in the financial aid package. You will also be provided with a one time $500 supplement to aid you in relocating to attend the Division of Biological Sciences Graduate Program at the University of Chicago." Aid comes in the form of, "Predoctoral training grant appointments or research assistantships."
TA'ing: Required to TA twice! They offer a training course as well as a TA'ing handbook to help out. Areas of Emphasis: None specified.
Courses: Environmental Ecology, Natural History of North American Deserts, Prairie Ecosystems: Lessons of Sustainability in the Past, Present, and Future, Tropical Ecology: Biodiversity and Human Impacts, Biological Poisons and Toxins, Ecological Applications to Conservation Biology, Mammalian Ecology, Plant Development and Molecular Genetics, Intro. to Virology, Image Processing in Biology, Ecology and Evolution in the Southwest, Marine Ecology (Note: These are all undergrad courses. They don't seem to have a listing of grad. courses.)
Pre-requisites: While none are listed, the biology website states, "Evidence of a sound background in the candidate's intended field of study is important, as well as academic credentials suggesting that the applicant has the ability to pursue advanced study and research successfully."
US News & World Report Ranking: For all graduate ecology programs, it is ranked Number 1, as of 2007.
University of Michigan-Natural Resources and Environment
This sounds like an excellent program. However, the price is outrageous! $30,000 just for in-state alone.
Degrees Offered: MS, PhD (must have Master's to get into PhD program)
Total Cost of Attendance: In-state: $34,571; Out-of-state: $52,229
Prerequisites: None!
Min. GPA: None that I could see.
GRE scores: Test is required, but no min. scores are listed.
GRE subject: Not required, as far as I can tell.
TA'ing: (Called TI'ing here) Generally, includes full tuition remission, health and dental benefits, and monthly stipend
RA'ing: Tuition remission, health benefits, month stipend
The school also hires Grad Student Staff Assistants, who take care of administrative duties.
Areas of Emphasis (Master's):
Courses: Ecological Restoration, Sustainable Energy Systems, Wetland Ecology, Aquatic Entomology, Geology of the Great Lakes, Psychology of Environmental Stewardship, Soils, Woody Plants, Forest Ecology, Neotropical Plants, Biofuels Bio-Based C-Mitigation, Environmental Microbiology, Soil Ecology, Negotiation Skills in Environmental Disputes Resolutions
Potential Advisors:
Degrees Offered: MS, PhD (must have Master's to get into PhD program)
Total Cost of Attendance: In-state: $34,571; Out-of-state: $52,229
Prerequisites: None!
Min. GPA: None that I could see.
GRE scores: Test is required, but no min. scores are listed.
GRE subject: Not required, as far as I can tell.
TA'ing: (Called TI'ing here) Generally, includes full tuition remission, health and dental benefits, and monthly stipend
RA'ing: Tuition remission, health benefits, month stipend
The school also hires Grad Student Staff Assistants, who take care of administrative duties.
Areas of Emphasis (Master's):
- Aquatic Sciences: Research and Management
- Behavior, Education and Communication
- Conservation Biology
- Environmental Informatics: GIS and Modeling
- Environmental Justice
- Environmental Policy and Planning
- Sustainable Systems
- Terrestrial Ecosystems
Courses: Ecological Restoration, Sustainable Energy Systems, Wetland Ecology, Aquatic Entomology, Geology of the Great Lakes, Psychology of Environmental Stewardship, Soils, Woody Plants, Forest Ecology, Neotropical Plants, Biofuels Bio-Based C-Mitigation, Environmental Microbiology, Soil Ecology, Negotiation Skills in Environmental Disputes Resolutions
Potential Advisors:
Donald R. Zak, Ph.D. (microbial ecology)
Brad Cardinale (restoration ecology; loss of biodiversity; no publications listed)
William S. Currie: (ecosystem ecology, sustainability) Actually takes on new MS students every year, but is going to Sweden soon (for a sabbatical? I don't know.) http://www-personal.umich.edu/~wcurrie/index.html
Even has his own website about financial aid!
Inés Ibáñez, Ph.D. (plant community ecology) (PhD from Duke 2006, not very many publications)
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
University of Wisconsin-Madison: Botany
Degrees Offered: MS, PhD
GRE subject: Highly recommended, especially for financial aid
Min. GPA: 3.0; 3.8 for fellowships
GRE scores: above 70th percentile; above 90th percentile for fellowships
No MS required before going for PhD by department, but specific professors might require it.
TAships: $11,263-14,100
RAships: $17,700
Those with fellowships or assistantships get health insurance at little to no cost. It doesn't sound like they will totally cover their grad students, especially out-of-state ones. Consider establishing residency before attending.
Total Cost of Attendance: $38, 815 for out-of-state; $23, 892 for in-state; $25,206 for Minnesota residents
Areas of Emphasis: Plant anatomy/morphology, physiology, taxonomy, cellular and molecular biology, taxonomy, mycology, phycology, ecology, lichenology (though on an obscure, hard to find page).
Courses: Algae; Fungi; Transmission Electron Microscopy Techniques for Plant and Microbial Sciences; Bryophytes; Grassland Ecology; Dendrology; Field Collections and Identification; Plant Geography; Tropical Plant Diversity; Ecological Techniques for Field Monitoring; Plant-Microbe Interactions: Molecular and Ecological Aspects; Fungal Genetics and Development; Plant Pathogenic Fungi; Mineral Nutrition of Plants; Biology and Genetics of Filamentous Fungi; Conservation Biology; Adaptive Restoration Lab; Advanced Mycology; Physiological Plant Ecology; Taxonomy and Evolution of Wild and Domesticated Grasses; Ecological Methods; Community Analysis; and other advanced courses in ecology/mycology/phycology
Potential advisors: Sara C. Hotchkiss, Linda E. Graham, Thomas J. Givnish, Joy Zedler, Paul Zedler
None are specifically looking at lichens or fungi; all seem to have something to do with ecology, however. Graham is looking at algae and bryophytes.
Pre-requisites: These are only "recommended preparation", implying that they either don't have to be made up or can easily be made up.
GRE subject: Highly recommended, especially for financial aid
Min. GPA: 3.0; 3.8 for fellowships
GRE scores: above 70th percentile; above 90th percentile for fellowships
No MS required before going for PhD by department, but specific professors might require it.
TAships: $11,263-14,100
RAships: $17,700
Those with fellowships or assistantships get health insurance at little to no cost. It doesn't sound like they will totally cover their grad students, especially out-of-state ones. Consider establishing residency before attending.
Total Cost of Attendance: $38, 815 for out-of-state; $23, 892 for in-state; $25,206 for Minnesota residents
Areas of Emphasis: Plant anatomy/morphology, physiology, taxonomy, cellular and molecular biology, taxonomy, mycology, phycology, ecology, lichenology (though on an obscure, hard to find page).
Courses: Algae; Fungi; Transmission Electron Microscopy Techniques for Plant and Microbial Sciences; Bryophytes; Grassland Ecology; Dendrology; Field Collections and Identification; Plant Geography; Tropical Plant Diversity; Ecological Techniques for Field Monitoring; Plant-Microbe Interactions: Molecular and Ecological Aspects; Fungal Genetics and Development; Plant Pathogenic Fungi; Mineral Nutrition of Plants; Biology and Genetics of Filamentous Fungi; Conservation Biology; Adaptive Restoration Lab; Advanced Mycology; Physiological Plant Ecology; Taxonomy and Evolution of Wild and Domesticated Grasses; Ecological Methods; Community Analysis; and other advanced courses in ecology/mycology/phycology
Potential advisors: Sara C. Hotchkiss, Linda E. Graham, Thomas J. Givnish, Joy Zedler, Paul Zedler
None are specifically looking at lichens or fungi; all seem to have something to do with ecology, however. Graham is looking at algae and bryophytes.
Pre-requisites: These are only "recommended preparation", implying that they either don't have to be made up or can easily be made up.
- Mathematics (up to and including one semester of calculus):
- Statistics (one semester at the college level):
- Chemistry (General Chemistry and Organic Chemistry):
- Physics (College level course including electricity and light):
- Foreign Language (two years at High School or two semesters at college):
- Biology (Strong background in the biological sciences typically including cell biology, ecology, evolution, genetics, and molecular biology).
Mental Health Care: Limit of 10 individual sessions per student per academic year or 20 individual sessions for entire academic career. All sessions are free.
Groups: Dissertation Support Group, Graduate Women's Group, Social Anxiety, Social Skills and Navigating the Dating World, Mindfulness, Meditation, and many others
Friday, February 13, 2009
Frostburg State University-Maryland (Applied Ecology & Conservation Biology; Wildlife/Fisheries Biology)
While the program sounds pretty good, there are some major problems with going to this school. The worst is the lack of financial aid. They will pay for tuition if you have an assistantship, but there are no other stipends to cover all expenses. They also don't provide an estimate of total fees on their website nor do they provide a estimate of total tuition costs. The biology website has hardly any information on it; most of the information is in the graduate school catalog. All of this makes me think it is probably not a very good school and lacks resources to help graduate students. This also suggests that the proper facilities may be lacking, though they do offer a course in electron microscopy. There is no FAQ, and information on TA'ing and the subject GRE is nowhere to be found. I cannot recommend this school because of these important details being left out.
Areas of Emphasis: Conservation Biology, Landscape and Watershed Ecology, Wildlife/Fisheries Biology
Min. GPA: 3.0
GRE: May be waived if you have a min. GPA of 3.5 and a graduate degree. If GPA is less than 3.0, a min. score of 1000 on the verbal and quantitative sections combined is required.
Subject GRE: Not required
Degrees Offered: MS only
In-state Tuition & Fees: $528 per semester per credit hour
Out-of-state Tuition & Fees: $575 per semester per credit hour
Financial Aid: Assistantships provide tuition waivers, provided the student takes 9-12 credits per semester that are relevant to the the degree. (I don't know if this includes the pre-requisites.) A few scholarships are available. Student loans are another option.
TA'ing Required: I can't find any information on whether or not it is required, so I'm assuming no.
Appealing Courses: Environmental Toxicology, Electron Microscopy, Watershed Hydrology, Plant Disease, General Parasitology
Pre-requisites for Applied Ecology and Conservation Biology:
Areas of Emphasis: Conservation Biology, Landscape and Watershed Ecology, Wildlife/Fisheries Biology
Min. GPA: 3.0
GRE: May be waived if you have a min. GPA of 3.5 and a graduate degree. If GPA is less than 3.0, a min. score of 1000 on the verbal and quantitative sections combined is required.
Subject GRE: Not required
Degrees Offered: MS only
In-state Tuition & Fees: $528 per semester per credit hour
Out-of-state Tuition & Fees: $575 per semester per credit hour
Financial Aid: Assistantships provide tuition waivers, provided the student takes 9-12 credits per semester that are relevant to the the degree. (I don't know if this includes the pre-requisites.) A few scholarships are available. Student loans are another option.
TA'ing Required: I can't find any information on whether or not it is required, so I'm assuming no.
Appealing Courses: Environmental Toxicology, Electron Microscopy, Watershed Hydrology, Plant Disease, General Parasitology
Pre-requisites for Applied Ecology and Conservation Biology:
- 1 yr. General Biology
- 1 yr. General Chemistry
- 1 semester Organic Chemistry
- 1 semester Statistics
- 1 semester of Genetics for Conservation Biology Emphasis
- 1 semester of Physical Science for Landscape and Watershed Ecology Emphasis
- 1 course in 3 out of 8 of the following fields: Anatomy or Morphology, Ecology, Physiology, Cellular or Molecular Biology, Evolution or Systematics, Natural Resource Management, Developmental Biology, Environmental or Earth Science
- 1 semester Organic Chemistry
- 1 yr. General Biology
- 1 yr. General Chemistry
- 1 semester Calculus
- 1 semester Statistics
- 1 course in 4 out of 8 of the following fields: Anatomy or Morphology, Cellular or Molecular Biology, Developmental Biology, Ecology, Evolution or Systematics, Genetics, Physiology, Natural Resource Management
- Natural Resource Management
- Developmental Biology
- Environmental or Earth Science
Deficiencies in either major's pre-reqs may be made up.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
University of California-Berkeley (Plant Biology)
Although Berkeley is a top school, their plant biology program doesn't sound that great. Coming from an ecological background, there isn't much offered here; it's all molecular and cellular biology. It may be better to go for Environmental Science, Policy, and Management if you want to go to Berkeley for plant ecology or a similar field of botany. Nevertheless, there are some really cool sounding courses. The GRE scores don't have to be too terribly high to get in, and they offer full funding, which is promising since it is so expensive for out-of-state students. TA'ing may be a hard requirement to get waived, and their pre-requisites may be difficult to meet if you don't have a background in botany. Overall, I can't recommend this school for this program, unless you are insterested in doing something with plants that involves the molecular and cellular side of them.
Areas of Emphasis: Basic Plant Research, Development of Biotechnologies, Molecular, Cellular, Genetic, Biochemical, Physiological, Developmental, Structural, Plant Microbe Interactions
Degrees offered: PhD only
Min. GPA: 3.0
GRE: No min. score required, but current enrolled students have an average of 620 on the verbal and 700 on the quantitative portions of the test.
Subject GRE: Not required, but recommended
Appealing Courses: Diversity of Plants and Fungi, Biology of Fungi, California Mushrooms, Biology of Algae, Environmental Plant Biology, Digital Imaging for Biologists, Plant Biochemistry, Plant Molecular Genetics, Plant Cell Biology, Grant Writing and Research
Total in-state Costs: $31,702
Total out-of-state Costs: $46,708
Financial Aid: Guaranteed support of approx. $25,500 stipend. (All students are completely funded, currently, with all students having health insurance.) Research Assistantships or TA positions support students during the second year and on. Out-of-state fees are covered as well for the first year, after which time students are expected to have gained California residency. Fellowships are also available.
TAing Requirements: Required for 2 semesters; no information on whether or not it can be waived.
Pre-requisites: They say that you should have an undergraduate curriculum that is, "Roughly equivalent to undergrad program in Genetics and Plant Biology." The requirements for this major are listed below. They do not indicate if you can make up deficiencies or not.
Areas of Emphasis: Basic Plant Research, Development of Biotechnologies, Molecular, Cellular, Genetic, Biochemical, Physiological, Developmental, Structural, Plant Microbe Interactions
Degrees offered: PhD only
Min. GPA: 3.0
GRE: No min. score required, but current enrolled students have an average of 620 on the verbal and 700 on the quantitative portions of the test.
Subject GRE: Not required, but recommended
Appealing Courses: Diversity of Plants and Fungi, Biology of Fungi, California Mushrooms, Biology of Algae, Environmental Plant Biology, Digital Imaging for Biologists, Plant Biochemistry, Plant Molecular Genetics, Plant Cell Biology, Grant Writing and Research
Total in-state Costs: $31,702
Total out-of-state Costs: $46,708
Financial Aid: Guaranteed support of approx. $25,500 stipend. (All students are completely funded, currently, with all students having health insurance.) Research Assistantships or TA positions support students during the second year and on. Out-of-state fees are covered as well for the first year, after which time students are expected to have gained California residency. Fellowships are also available.
TAing Requirements: Required for 2 semesters; no information on whether or not it can be waived.
Pre-requisites: They say that you should have an undergraduate curriculum that is, "Roughly equivalent to undergrad program in Genetics and Plant Biology." The requirements for this major are listed below. They do not indicate if you can make up deficiencies or not.
- Chemistry (General and Organic)
- Physics (1 semester)
- 1 yr. Calculus
- Computer Literacy Statistics
- Biology focusing on the molecular, cellular, and development side of things
- Biology focusing on ecology and evolution
- Plant Morphology
- Plant Developmental Genetics
- Cell and Developmental Plant Biology
- Physiology and Biochemsitry of Plants
- Several Upper Division Plant, Chemistry, or Biology Courses
US News & World Report Ranking: 2/152
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.jpg)