Associate of Science in Turfgrass Management

What's Turfgrass Management?

Turfgrass Management is an applied science program that focuses on the production and maintenance of grassed areas, including home lawns, parks, golf courses, and other athletic surfaces. This two-year program integrates scientific theory with practical experience and covers such topics as grass and seed identification, turfgrass culture and physiology, pest control, and equipment maintenance. 

Students in this major have the option to enhance their degree with business courses from the Isenberg School of Management, or with advanced science coursework from allied science departments at UMass.  

Professional turfgrass managers blend their technical expertise of turfgrass culture and physiology with the daily challenges of managing insects, diseases, and weed populations, to keep turf areas green and healthy.  Many graduates find employment in the golf course industry, while others choose to specialize in sports turf management. The lawn care industry also employs many of our graduates in jobs as varied as research, sales, and direct lawn maintenance.

The Stockbridge Advantage

The Stockbridge associate degree program in Turfgrass Management is ranked #1 nationally, and contributes to the university's #1 ranking in the U.S. for agricultural sciences.  Since launching the nation's first turfgrass course in 1927, over 7000 Stockbridge students have been trained and educated by notable turfgrass pioneers and educators here on the UMass Amherst campus.

Our specialty is hands-on, experiential education.  Small class sizes mean you'll have direct access to the tools of the trade, including a wide variety of modern turf machines, greenhouses, and labs.  

Our research enriches our teaching.  We operate the Joseph Troll Turf Research Center—the longest running center of its kind in the United States—which uses turfgrass, plant, and soil sciences to improve climate resiliency in urban landscapes, while advancing 21st century sustainability goals across the wide world of sports.  

We also work closely with the UMass Extension Turf Program to address the highest priority needs of turf-related industries by developing and sharing knowledge about safe, efficient, economically viable, and environmentally sound turf management practices with emphasis on natural resource protection.

Our team of turfgrass experts is known throughout the turf industries for consistently producing the most talented professionals entering the field today.  Because of our position in the industry, Stockbridge students can access a wide variety of scholarships offered by many national & regional turfgrass organizations, including the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, Professional Grounds Management Society, Scotts Company Scholars Program, Sports Turf Managers Association, and the New England Sports Managers Association.

After your first year, you'll complete a 3-month summer internship, learning-and-earning at a professional turf business, giving you a taste of a specific career direction within the field, and putting industry experience on your resume well before you graduate.

In your second year, you'll have opportunities to participate in national collegiate industry competitions, attend industry career fairs, and network with employers from across the golf, sports, and broader turfgrass industries.

With the help of our on-campus career center, and our network of alumni employers, most graduates have their pick of skilled jobs after just two years.

See the course requirements for the two-year associate degree in Turfgrass Management

Careers in Turfgrass Management

Our alumni work at many of the top 100 golf courses in the United States.  While many gravitate to the golf course industry, our graduates also work as managers of grounds and sports fields, crew leaders, lawncare specialists, irrigation technicians, and turf product suppliers.  They find employment in equipment manufacturing, product sales, parks, cemeteries, local K-12 schools and national colleges.  Several run their own successful companies.

The turf industries are a major part of the emerging green industries, and they continue to expand and provide many levels of excellent career opportunities.  New England hosts more than 800 golf courses, and the sod industry in southern New England covers thousands of farm acres with a value in the tens of millions of dollars.

The field is very broad and includes careers in seed and sod production, machinery sales and repair, and turfgrass establishment and maintenance.  There are opportunities in municipal and state positions, on private and public golf courses and sport stadiums, and at lawn and landscape companies.  Some turf management graduates work for suppliers of turf products in sales, as technical representatives, or as private consultants.  Additional career opportunities include golf course design, urban planning, marketing, and environmental land planning. 

Average salary for an assistant golf course superintendent is over $60k, and with experience a superintendent can make $120k.  Turfgrass salaries steadily increase every year as the need for skilled turf managers expands.

The UMass Turf Club is a Student Chapter of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA), and is open to all Stockbridge students majoring in Turfgrass Management.  Membership provides the opportunity to network with potential employers while at college.  Turf Club meets weekly during the academic year to explore career opportunities in the field.  Students invite professional speakers to campus, and organize field trips to local golf courses, professional sports facilities, and regional turf conferences.

Yesterday’s experts are retiring from the turfgrass industry.  Today’s experts use emerging tools for precision turfgrass management including aerial drones, GPS technologies, geographic laser scanners, autonomous robotic mowers and wireless robotic stations, combined with knowledge of plant, soil, and turfgrass sciences.  Lucrative careers are within reach, and Stockbridge is actively fulfilling the need for skilled workers across the turfgrass industries.

New England Tuition Break Program

Students who are residents of Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont are eligible for reduced tuition through the New England Tuition Break Program. Learn how to claim your New England Tuition Break if accepted.

Option to Transfer to a Bachelor Degree Program

While most graduates will find skilled employment in the field, you'll also have the option to seamlessly transfer into our Applied Plant & Soil Sciences bachelor degree program, without the need to re-apply.  All of your completed courses count towards the bachelor's degree, so you'll be able to graduate with both an associate of science degree and a bachelors of science degree in just four years.  We can also help you transfer into a different allied bachelor's program, such as Sustainable Food & Farming, or Natural Resources Conservation or Environmental Science.