SSA Program Requirements

Upon joining the PSS program, each graduate student, advisor, and the GPD will sign an agreement regarding these requirements. The student, advisor, and GPD all will maintain a copy of this agreement.
All students are required to submit an annual progress report in consultation with their advisors to the GPD who will forward it to the evaluation committee. The Graduate Policy Committee (GPC) will act as the evaluation committee.
For the first year, the GPC will act as advising committee in consultation with student’s advisor. GPC will meet each student and the advisor at the beginning of the fall and spring semester to ensure students are taking appropriate courses. This should be a brief 10-15-minute meeting with each student.
The Program requires all Ph.D. students to have comprehensive knowledge in core areas of the program. This requirement is assessed through “Preliminary Exam” or just “Prelims,” for Ph.D. degrees.
The qualifying exam should be completed prior to start of 5th semester or earlier of a Ph.D. candidate’s program. At that point, students must present a clear understanding of their research topic and demonstrate fundamental knowledge in plant and soil science.
Student’s advisor should officially send the names of qualifying exam committee members to the GPD. The qualification exam committee will decide how to proceed with the written and oral exam.
There is no qualifying exam requirement for the MS student but will have a MS thesis defense that consists of a public presentation of their thesis research and a closed final exam with the committee.
Each student’s graduate dissertation committee should be appointed by the end of the 2nd semester. For Ph.D. candidates who have not yet passed the qualifying exams, this committee is not the “official” dissertation committee but will serve as a guidance committee.
Ph.D. students should present their dissertation proposal/prospectus to the Graduate dissertation committee and graduate faculty during the 4th semester or earlier.
MS students should get their thesis outline approved by thesis examination committee and submit to the graduate school before the beginning of 3rd semester of initiation of MS degree program.
It is mandatory for all PSS students to meet yearly with their graduate committee to evaluate and discuss the progress report. The committee will sign off on the annual report and sent it to the GPD and GPC. The GPC just checks whether everything is okay, and if not, it intervenes. This will help avoid any problem a student might face and will keep the students on track to graduate on time.
It is mandatory for all PSS graduate students to present their research (poster) at SSA’s Annual Research Symposium (most likely in spring semester). Senior level undergraduate students engaged in research are also encouraged to participate and present posters.
All Ph.D. students must have at least two 1st author submitted/accepted, peer-reviewed publication before scheduling their final dissertation defense. MS students are highly encouraged to have at least a draft of the manuscript before graduation.
All doctoral candidates must spend the equivalent of at least one continuous academic year (two consecutive semesters) of full-time graduate work (nine credits per semester) in residence at the University to satisfy their residency requirement. The residency year must be either in a Fall/Spring or Spring/Fall sequence.

Course Credit Requirement

The minimum course credit requirements for different graduate program are listed below. Please note that your advisor and committee should be satisfied with your course credits. Graduate students must consult with their advisor to determine if they need additional courses based on the research project.

MS Degree (thesis option) Course Requirement

A minimum of 30 course credits is required.
At least 6 credits in letter-graded 600-800 series courses are required.
Required courses include Global Challenges in Agriculture and the Environment (STOCKSCH 650) (3 credits). It is highly recommended for MS degree students with thesis option to take a statistical/biometry course, such as Public Health 640, Statistics 501, or a similar course.
Master’s thesis is 6-10 credit.
Up to 6 credit can be taken as independent study.
Up to 6 credits with ≥ B grade and advisor’s approval can be transferred from other universities. Requests to transfer credits must be filed and approved by your advisor, and by the GPD, and then be sent to the Graduate School.
The remainder course credits should be graduate-level courses in a major field defined as Plant & Soil Science or Environmental Science, determined primarily by advisor and thesis committee. No Pass/Fail grading in major field is allowed. See the list of available graduate level courses in the appendix.

MS Degree (non-thesis On-campus option) Course Requirement

A minimum of 30 course credits is required.
Twenty-one (21) of these must be in major field defined as Plant & Soil Science or Environmental Science courses or closely related courses.
At least 12 credits in letter-graded 600-800 series courses are required. See the list of available graduate-level courses in the appendix.
Required courses include Global challenges in Agriculture and the Environment (STOCKSCH 650) (3 credits).
No more than 6 credits of Independent Study can be taken to meet degree requirements.
An independent written report or literature review is required. Up to 3 Independent Study credits can be used for this purpose.
No more than 6 degree credits of grade "B" or better can be transferred from another institution.
A final General Examination is also required.
No financial support is committed by the department for the non-thesis MS degree students.

Accelerated M.S. Degree

Accelerated Master’s Degree in the Plant and Soil Sciences

Brief Description of the Program

The Stockbridge School of Agriculture (SSA) offers Accelerated Masters of Science degree (AcMS) in the Plant and Soil Science Graduate Program. B.S. students in Stockbridge or interdepartmental majors who wish to continue current undergraduate research projects and complete a M.S. degree efficiently are eligible to enroll in this option.

Course sequence for AcMS and the timeline to completion for students.

Students who already are conducting research or an independent internship/project in SSA or related departments will be eligible for the AcMS option. Also, undergraduate students who are not conducting undergraduate research but would like to continue their education in a non-thesis option are eligible. A minimum of 6 and a maximum of 9 credits at the 500 level courses are required to be completed by the end of the senior year for the AcMS. These credits will be transferable to the MS degree if they are within the student’s indicated area of interest, however, the total number of credits, taken across both bachelors and masters programs, must be at least 150.

Students may apply to the program in the first semester of their junior year, or during their senior year if adequate course and lab work are in progress or completed. Application materials should include two letters of recommendation, of which one letter should be from the student’s research advisor or mentor explicitly assuring that they approve the student’s proposed work. There is no GRE requirement. Applications will be reviewed, and acceptance based on a vote of the PSS Graduate Policy Committee.

Students must complete their degree requirements within 15 months of the completion of their baccalaureate degree.

No financial support is committed by the department for the AcMS degree students. Students are liable to pay the tuition and other mandatory fees required by the program and the Graduate School.

Accelerated M.S Requirements

A minimum of 30 credits (500-level and above) are required. Of these, a minimum of 6 must be completed by the end of the student’s senior year; a maximum of 9 of these credits may be counted towards both student’s BS and AcMS degrees, however the total number of credits, taken across both bachelors and masters programs, must be at least 150. Transfer credits must have a grade of B or above. Students can select either a thesis or nonthesis option.

Thesis Option –minimum 30 credits

Six to 10 thesis credits can be applied towards the degree.
A maximum of 6 credits can come from Independent Study (696, 796) courses.
No Pass/Fail grading in required courses is allowed, except for 700- level seminars and thesis credits.
The grade-point average of courses submitted for the degree must be 3.0 or above.
Taking a statistics or biometry course offered by other departments is highly recommended.
See the list of available graduate-level courses in the appendix.

Table 1: List of required credits for M.S. in Plant & Soil Sciences, Thesis Option

Number	Course Name	Credits
STOCKSCH 650	Global Challenges in Agriculture & the Environment	3
STOCKSCH 699	Master's Thesis	6-10
STOCKSCH 696	Independent Study	Up to 6
Elective	Graduate-level courses (500-800 level)	9 - 15

This table is intended to be used as a convenient check-off sheet; the information in it does not take precedence over Graduate School requirements.

Seminar courses (STOCKSCH 792A) and Independent study (STOCKSCH 696 and STOCKSCH 796) cannot be used to substitute the requirement for 600-level without the permission from the Graduate Program Director.

Non-thesis Option – minimum 30 credits

All elective credits must be at the 500-level or above.
A maximum of 6 Practicum/Internship credits are accepted; and a minimum of 3 are required. All Practicum/Internship projects must be approved by the SSA Graduate Program Director. These credits must be taken as a matriculated graduate student.
No Pass/Fail grading in required courses is allowed, except for 700- level seminars and Practicum/Internship credits. • The grade-point average of courses submitted for the degree must be 3.0 or above.

Table 2: List of required credits for M.S. Plant & Soil Sciences, NonThesis Option

Number	Course Name	Credits
STOCKSCH 650	Global Challenges in Agriculture & the Environment	3
STOCKSCH 698	Practicum/Internship	3
STOCKSCH 696	Independent Study (Individual Project)*	3- 6
Elective	Graduate-level courses (500-800 level)**	9 - 18

This table is intended to be used as a convenient check-off sheet; the information in it does not take precedence over Graduate School requirements.
Seminar courses (STOCKSCH 792A) and Independent study (STOCKSCH 696 and 796) cannot be used in the requirement for 600-level and above courses without the permission from the Graduate Program Director.

*An independent project written report is required. This may be an in-depth literature review, or a report of a research project. The student will present their project to the committee and the graduate faculty in a seminar, followed by final exam.

**Elective courses need to be approved by the SSA Graduate Committee.

M.S. Degree (non-thesis, Off-campus Soils Option)

A minimum of 30 course credits is required.
Twenty-three (23) of these must be in major field (defined as Soil courses) or closely related courses such as Geology.
The following courses are required:
- STOCKSCH 566 (Soil formation) (3 credits)
- STOCKSCH 575 (Environmental soil chemistry) (3 credits)
No Pass/Fail grading in major field is allowed.
At least 12 credits in letter-graded 600-800 series courses are required. See the list of available graduate-level courses in the appendix.
An independent written report or literature review is required. This may be an in depth literature review, or a report of a research project. The student will present their project to the committee and the graduate faculty in a seminar, followed by the final examination. Six credits of Independent Study are required however, these 6 credits may be taken over the course of study.
No more than 6 degree credits of grade "B" or better can be transferred from another institution.

M.S. Degree (non-thesis, Off-campus Soils Course Requirements)

Required Courses	Completed
Number	Course Name	Credits	Fall	Spring	Year	Credits	Grade
STOCKSCH 696	Independent Study (Individual Project)*	6
STOCKSCH 602	Research Literature	3
STOCKSCH 793A	Seminar Presentation	1
	Graduate-level courses (see list below)	18

At least 15 credits in addition to those required must be complete prior to graduation. These credits must be acquired through completion of a combination of the following courses:

STOCKSCH 515 Microbiology of the Soil (3 credits)
STOCKSCH 564 Environmental Soil Science (4 credits)
STOCKSCH 566 Soil Formation (3 credits)
STOCKSCH 575 Environmental Soil Chemistry (4 credits)
STOCKSCH 576 Hydric Soils (1 credit)
STOCKSCH 577 Advanced Hydric Soils (1 credit)
STOCKSCH 580 Soil Fertility (3 credits)
STOCKSCH 585 Inorganic Contaminants in Soil, Water and Sediment (3 credits)
STOCKSCH 597M Morphology and Mapping (3 credits)

Ph.D. Degree

While the Graduate School requires no minimum number of credits for a doctoral program, all doctoral students need to take a minimum of 18 course credits to prepare for the comprehensive exams and to achieve mastery of the subject. On average, doctoral students may take a minimum of two years of coursework to build their knowledge before taking the comprehensive exam.

Doctoral comprehensive exam include both written and oral examination. Your advisor will forward a memo to the GPD recommending members of the Examination/Advisory Committee. This committee may or may not be the same as dissertation committee. Each member of examination committee will give the student a pass/fail grade.

A minimum of 18 course credits is required before the comprehensive exam. However, your advisor and committee may recommend taking more course credits, based on your research project.

Required courses Global challenges in Agriculture and the Environment (STOCKSCH 650) (3 credits). While biometry is not a required course, it is strongly recommended that Ph.D. candidates take at least one biometry/statistic course such as Public Health 640 or Statistics 501 or other similar course.
The remainder 15 course credits should be graduate-level courses (500-800 level) in major field defined as Plant & Soil Science and Environmental Science, determined primarily by advisor and thesis committee.
No Pass/Fail grading in major field is allowed.
Dissertation is 10 - 18 credits.
See the list of available graduate-level courses in the appendix.
Up to 6 credits with ≥ B grade and advisor’s approval can be transferred from other universities.