Graduate application process for the Department of Wildland Resources

 

The process for applying to any Graduate School can appear mystifying. Utah State University is no exception to that rule. The intention of this web site is help you prepare your package for submission to the Graduate School and the Department of Wildland Resources (WILD). Hopefully, it will also make the process as painless possible. The advice is intended to be practical and represents general observations only. Faculty in WILD differ greatly in how they implement their individual graduate programs, and with the exceptions of specific rules established by the Graduate School and WILD policies, WILD Faculty have considerable autonomy in deciding who to accept as a graduate student into their research programs.

There are several steps you should take when applying for graduate degree programs in WILD. These are:

  • Organize your application packet
  • Search for a possible advisor in WILD
  • Do your homework
  • Contact your potential advisor(s) early in the Fall
  • Consider visiting USU, the College, and your potential Advisor
  • Check for current graduate opportunities

Understand what WILD is about. WILD may or may not be the right Department for your post-graduate education. The best way you can determine that is to research the Department – degrees available, Faculty and Collaborators, courses taught, research opportunities, possible sources of financial support – and then evaluate the department in light of your career objectives.

Degrees Offered.-- The degrees we offer are the M.S. and Ph.D. in Ecology, Forestry, Range Science, and Wildlife Biology. We also offer the opportunity to participate in a college-wide Master of Natural Resources (MNR) degree program administered through the College of Natural Resources. The M.S. degree is offered for students motivated toward a management or administrative career in natural resources management, or for those intending ultimately to enter a Ph.D. program. The M.S. may be obtained through either a Plan A (research thesis) or Plan B (non-thesis) program. The Plan A option requires a thesis based on original research conducted by the student. The Plan B option is recommended for professional forestry, rangeland, or wildlife managers who do not desire research training. The Ph.D. degree is intended for students seeking a natural resources research or academic career.

Master of Natural Resources Program

WILD Collaborators.--Cooperation with other departments and research centers of the University, as well as with government collaborators, permits strong graduate programs in all aspects of forest, range, and wildlife-related sciences. Particular mention should be made of the USU Ecology Center, in which faculty from the Wildland Resources Department are very active; the Utah Agricultural Experiment Station, which has a full program in both applied and basic research; the Utah Cooperative Fisheries and Wildlife Research Unit; the Predator Ecology and Behavior Field Station; the Jack H. Berryman Institute; the U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station; and the USDA Agricultural Research Service. Many WILD Faculty have strong linkages with these programs, and these linkages may be beneficial in helping you achieve your career objectives.

The Ecology Center
The Utah Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit
Jack H. Berryman Institute

Financial Assistance.--The department has a few graduate teaching assistantships for students who help with teaching, grading, or recitation in large courses. These typically pay only a modest supplement on a semester basis, however, and are not sufficient to cover living expenses. Ph.D. students on a research assistantship in some departmental degree programs are required to hold at least one teaching assistantship during their program, to obtain experience in classroom (mainly undergraduate) instruction. M.S. students may also hold teaching assistantships, contingent upon availability of funds. Acceptance to pursue graduate study does not guarantee the student financial assistance. Realistically, most support for graduate students comes from research grants of faculty and the research assistant stipends they offer.

Some Deadlines.--Applications for graduate programs are accepted year-round. However, your chances for acceptance are best if you apply during the period October- January of each academic year. Faculty often accept students into their programs as late as April or May, but typically by that time period few opportunities remain and it is unlikely you will be accepted for the upcoming year. Some deadlines do exist, especially if you wish to compete for the Quinney Ph.D. Fellows, a USU Presidential Fellowship, or a USU Vice President for Research Fellowship. All of these Fellowships are awarded by a College of Natural Resources committee that selects the best candidates from the pool of applicants. The deadline for the upcoming Fall 2007-08 academic year is 30 January 2007. This means you must have a complete application on file at the Graduate School, and have a sponsoring faculty member from WILD who will put your name forward to the selection committee.

S. J. and Jessie E. Quinney Ph.D. Fellowships
USU Fellowships

Organize your application packet. If you like what you see in WILD, start the application process. The application process for graduate programs at Utah State University is coordinated through the Graduate School. Minimum standards for acceptance into the Graduate School are quantitative and verbal GRE scores in the 40th percentile or higher, and a 3.0 GPA over your last two years of schooling. Most successful applicants to USU exceed these standards. This is certainly true for WILD. Aside from the application proper, you will need (i) official copies of your transcripts from all past and present institutions; (ii) official copies of GRE scores; and (iii) three letter of reference. Foreign students will need to submit their TOEFL scores, as well certain Immigration and Naturalization Services documents (e.g., I-20). Make sure you keep copies of all documents for your records.

USU Graduate School Homepage
USU Graduate School Application Forms
Graduate Record Examination information
TOEFL information

Search early for a possible advisor in WILD. Graduate students are very rarely selected at large from the pool of available applicants. Most have established contact of some form or another with one or more WILD Faculty whose research interests and theirs overlap. As part of the process by which you search for a potential Advisor, you need to examine the list of WILD Faculty with active graduate programs. Use the key words by which each Faculty member characterizes their research interests as a broad indicator of what they do. However, do not take the key words as the only indication of faculty interests; most faculty are broad-based in their interests. For example, "landscape ecology" as key words does not necessarily mean large spatial extents. After all, beetles occupy landscapes, too. Likewise, "predator ecology" does not necessarily mean your research opportunities are limited only to large carnivores.

 

Do your homework. Most faculty also have homepages that provide additional information on their research interests, their labs, and classes they teach. Start with those to find out more about any WILD Faculty member. Look up some of their published papers. Find out what classes they teach. Ask faculty at your current institution if they know faculty in WILD. In short, do your homework. Remember, your graduate experience is a two-way street, and you need to know as much about potential advisors as they need to know about you.


Contact your potential Advisor(s) early in the Fall. Most faculty are busy; this is a simple fact. Your best bet for initial contact is by email. When initiating the first contact, bear in mind that faculty might not use the same word processor you do. Many also do not use web browsers for reading email. Consequently, send your information based on an assumption of the lowest common denominator. Consider using pdf formats for attachments, such as a vita or letter of interest. Ensure your email sends plain text (or both) rather than html only. And above all be patient. Follow-ups within 3-4 weeks are a good strategy, and tend to work to your advantage.

When contacting faculty for the first time, include a brief description of who you are, your background, and what your particular interests are at this time. Above all, be brief in the email text. If you wish, feel free to provide attachments like a vita or an expanded version of your experience. And don't be bashful. If you decide to apply, make sure you send a copy of the application packet – application form, unofficial GRE score and transcripts - to potential advisors as well. Arrange for those writing your letters of reference to send copies to potential advisors, too. This little extra work can go a long way towards having your application package stand out from the rest.

Consider visiting USU, the College and your potential Advisor. Nothing helps you – and your potential advisor – determine if your interest and theirs overlap better than a face-to-face visit. A visit is wonderful opportunity to meet your potential advisor, their graduate students, other students, and to see what the life in Logan is like. Unfortunately, WILD has a limited amount of funding to support such visits. However, many faculty fund visits by prospective students out of research dollars, so it never hurts to ask as long as you're prepared to fund the visit on your own if support is not available. Even if support is unavailable and you decide to visit, most faculty are happy to help arrange visits with students and other faculty given sufficient advance notice. We have a rich history of visiting students "flea-bagging" with current students, an opportunity that provides you with the best sources of information about what graduate life in WILD is really about. Last, be cognizant of vacations. If you plan on visiting during your Spring break, the odds are we're on break, too.

Check for current opportunities. Graduate opportunities come and go. Faculty are always writing grants, and often do not hear from funding sources until mid- or even late-winter. This means new opportunities can crop up even after the general end-of-January deadline. So stay in touch even if you hear nothing positive back by February. Your most reliable source of information is direct contact with potential advisors! Bookmark this link and check back often.

 

Contact Information. For additional information on graduate programs in WILD, please contact:

Johan du Toit, PhD, Department Head
Wildland Resources Department
5230 Old Main Hill, Utah State University
Logan, UT 84322-5230 USA
435 797-3219 (PH) 435 797 3796 (FAX)
lbarr@cc.usu.edu (E-MAIL)
http://www.cnr.usu.edu/wild (HOMEPAGE)