Four + One Master of Forestry (MF) Degree Proposal School of Forest Resources (SFR) University of Maine

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1 Background Four + One Master of Forestry (MF) Degree Proposal School of Forest Resources (SFR) University of Maine The Master of Forestry has been in existence at the University of Maine since It is a stand-alone professional degree, accredited by the Society of American Foresters (SAF), most recently in There are basically two pathways to the MF depending on the student s undergraduate background: 1. Undergraduate degree from an SAF-accredited program. The requirements are the general criteria of the Graduate School plus the following: (a) the Master of Forestry Project (SFR 690), which is not considered to be part of the Graduate School requirement of 12+ credits of 500+ level coursework; and (b) at least 6 of the graduate (500+) credits must be SFR courses. 2. No undergraduate accredited forestry degree. Students are required to take as many as credits if the they have no forestry background, including some classes below the 400-level that do not count towards the graduate-degree criteria (see Exhibit A). Such students typically complete this program in four semesters. This has been by far the more popular option, as it offers any student with a BA or BS a pathway to an accredited professional forestry degree in half the time it would take them to complete another BS degree. This program is directed at the first category of students who are enrolled in the University of Maine s School of Forestry s undergraduate degree programs. 1. Capacity. All SFR graduate-level courses (500 and above) have historically had some unfilled capacity, so no new sections will be required. Most SFR graduate courses are offered only in alternate years, so it is essential that any 4+1 candidate take such courses during their senior year of the BS program. 2. Purpose and Scope. The purpose of this 4+1 Degree is to allow academically strong students to enroll in up to 9 credits of MF coursework during their senior year, which would then count toward both the BS and MF degree requirements (assuming a grade of B or higher). Following graduation with the BS, students would complete the MF degree with 21 more graduate-level credits, normally within a 15-month period. The typical program would thus entail two semesters of 9 credits each, followed by the 3-credit Master of Forestry Project (SFR 690) taken during the summer term. 3. Eligibility. This degree is open to the following SFR undergraduate majors: Forestry (FTY), Forest Operations Bioproducts and Bioenergy (FOBB), and Parks, and Recreation and 1

2 Tourism (PRT) with either the Parks and Recreation Management or the Conservation Law Enforcement concentration. Specific requirements differ among these programs; these are detailed in Exhibits B through E. Students will normally apply to the combined degree program during their junior year after completing at least 60 credit hours in the BS degree (i.e., junior class standing). 4. Application and Provisional Admission. Once applicants earn 60 undergraduate credits (typically during the junior year), they can apply for Provisional Admission directly to the School of Forest Resources. Applications are reviewed by the SFR Master of Forestry admissions committee consisting of the MF Program Coordinator and four other members of the SFR graduate faculty. Applicants must have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher, and must maintain this cumulative 3.5 GPA during their senior year (the final 30 credits). For the purpose of this provision, GPA is calculated from courses with the SFR designator, which comprise 77 of the 120 credits in the SFR Forestry undergraduate curriculum. 5. Advisory Committee; Program of Study. The SFR MF program coordinator will work with students granted Provisional Admission status to create an advisory committee and a program of study that leads to graduation within 15 months after the BS degree has been received. Provisional admission and the program of study will be communicated to the Graduate School. 6. Joint Degree. During the period of provisional admission (typically the senior year), students can enroll in up to 9 credits that will count jointly toward both the BS and MF degrees. These courses must be part of the student s MF Program of Study. 7. Application to the Graduate School. Upon graduation with a BS from the School of Forest Resources, and with satisfactory performance in courses taken as an undergraduate (defined as described in item 4 above, with no grade below B in the courses to be transferred for the Master s degree), the student must apply for formal admission to the Graduate School. For such students in good standing, SFR will waive the requirement to submit Graduate Record Examination scores. If other elements of the student s graduate application (e.g., letters of reference) are satisfactory, the SFR MF Program Coordinator, in consultation with the admissions committee as needed, will recommend to the Graduate School that the student be formally admitted to the MF program. If a student receives a grade lower than B on any required MF program course during their senior year after receiving provisional admission status, the student may still apply for Graduate Admission but the course will count only toward the student s BS degree. 8. Timetable. In general, once students are admitted to the Graduate School, they must complete their MF program within 15 months after receiving their BS in order to use the joint credits. Extenuating circumstances may allow a variance to this rule, and the student must appeal to the Dean of the University of Maine Graduate School. 2

3 9. Specific Requirements for the SAF-accredited SFR undergraduate major in FTY (Forestry): Basic requirements for the Master s Degree of the Graduate School, plus SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project. See Exhibit B. 10. Specific Requirements for SFR undergraduate majors in FOBB (Forest Operations, Bioproducts and Bioenergy). Basic requirements for the Master s Degree of the Graduate School, plus SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project. In addition, all courses in the MF degree curriculum (Exhibit A) that were not taken during the undergraduate program must be included on the program of study and successfully completed with a grade of B or better. Specifically, SFR 349 (Applied Forest Ecology and Silviculture) will not count toward the MF requirements, so applicants following this sequence should instead take SFR 407, 408 and 409 during their undergraduate program instead of SFR 349. Other courses needed include SFR 457/557, SFR 406, and WLE 423 or PSE 413. See Exhibit C. 11. Specific Requirements for SFR undergraduate majors in PRT Parks and Recreation Management Concentration. Basic requirements for the Master s Degree of the Graduate School, plus SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project. In addition, all courses in the MF degree that were not taken during the undergraduate program must be on the program of study and successfully completed with a grade of B or better. Specifically, SFR 349 (Applied Forest Ecology and Silviculture) will not count toward the MF requirements, so applicants following this sequence should instead take SFR 407, 408 and 409 during their undergraduate program instead of SFR 349. Other courses needed include SFR 457/557, SFR 402, SFR 406, and WLE 423 or PSE 413. See Exhibit D. 12. Specific Requirements for SFR undergraduate majors in PRT - Conservation Law Enforcement Concentration. Basic requirements for the Master s Degree of the Graduate School, plus SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project. In addition, all courses in the MF degree that were not taken during the undergraduate program must be on the program of study and successfully completed with a grade of B or better. Specifically, SFR 349 (Applied Forest Ecology and Silviculture) will not count toward the MF requirements, so applicants following this sequence should instead take SFR 407, 408 and 409 during their undergraduate program instead of SFR 349. Other courses needed include SFR 457/557, SFR 402, SFR 406,,SFR 464, SFR 477, and WLE 423 or PSE 413. See Exhibit E. For cross-reference, the table below lists the courses and credits currently required by the MF degree which are not included in the respective undergraduate degree, and would thus need to be part of the student s program of study. Each 4+1 curriculum is shown below in the form of the Graduate School s Program of Study form, as Exhibits B, C, D and E. 3

4 FOBB SFR Undergraduate Degree PRT (Parks and Recreation Management) PRT (Conservation Law Enforcement) SFR 407, 408, SFR SFR SFR SFR SFR WLE 423 or PSE Total Total as part of the MF Degree

5 Exhibit A. Work for the Program of Study Generic Master of Forestry The following courses fulfill the requirement for Master of Forestry degree accredited in 2013 by the Society of American Foresters. If you are a graduate from any U. Maine undergraduate SFR degree program, add Prereq in the first column for any course that shows on your undergraduate transcript. If your undergraduate degree is from another institution, add Prereq in column 1 for any course that fulfills the requirement and fill in columns 2-7 with the appropriate descriptors from that institution. Place a syllabus from this course in your file to validate this substitution if the course content is not obvious from its title. If you took any course at or elsewhere that counts toward these requirements either (a) after completing your undergraduate degree, or (b) as a part of the 4+1 combined degree at, enter Transfer in column one, and refer to Exhibit B. Title SFR 100 Forest Biology 3 MAT 122 Pre-calculus 4 CHY 121 Intro to Chemistry 3 SFR 205 Forest Measurements and Statistics 3 SFR 107 Forest Vegetation 3 SFR 211 Forest Operations Planning 4 PSE 140 Soil Science 3 SFR 407 Forest Ecology 3 SFR 406 Remote Sensing Image Interpretation 3 SFR 409 Silviculture and Ecology Lab 2 SFR 444 Forest Economics 3 SFR 446 Forest Policy 3 SFR 457 Tree Pests and Disease 3 SFR 402 Advanced Forest Measurements 3 SFR 408 Silviculture 3 SFR 477 Forest Landscape Management 3 ERS 350 WLE 423 PSE 413 Watershed/Wetlands Elective 3 SFR 400 INT 527 Geographic Information Systems elective 4/3 SFR 450 SFR 464 Processing of Biomaterials Forest Business, Marketing, Entrepreneurship 3 5

6 Graduate work (MF Generic) Title 400+ level advisory committee (may include courses from the above list if not taken as undergraduate; list individually) 15 SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project or 600-level advisory committee (list individually). At least one course cannot be dual-listed with a 400- level course. At least 6 of these credits must be SFR courses. 12+ Total Graduate Total All

7 Exhibit B. Work for the Program of Study Master of Forestry 4+1 Option Forestry (FTY) Undergraduate Degree The following courses fulfill the requirement for Master of Forestry degree accredited in 2013 by the Society of American Foresters. s labeled as Prereq are included in the FTY undergraduate curriculum. Title Prereq SFR 100 Forest Biology 3 Prereq MAT 122 Pre-calculus 4 Prereq CHY 121 Intro to Chemistry 3 Prereq SFR 205 Forest Measurements and Statistics 3 Prereq SFR 107 Forest Vegetation 3 Prereq SFR 211 Forest Operations Planning 4 Prereq PSE 140 Soil Science 3 Prereq SFR 407 Forest Ecology 3 Prereq SFR 402 Advanced Forest Measurements 3 Prereq SFR 406 Remote Sensing Image Interpretation 3 Prereq SFR 409 Silviculture and Ecology Lab 2 Prereq SFR 444 Forest Economics 3 Prereq SFR 446 Forest Policy 3 Prereq SFR 408 Silviculture 3 Prereq ERS 350 WLE 423 Watershed/Wetlands Elective 3 PSE 413 Prereq SFR 400 Geographic Information Systems 4/3 Prereq SFR 464 Forest Business, Marketing, Entrepreneurship 3 Senior (Double-counted toward MF) Transfer SFR 557 Tree Pests and Disease 3 Fall Transfer SFR 477 Forest Landscape Management 3 Fall Transfer 500-level Alternate-year graduate course available only during this year 3 Both Note: The above is only one of many possibilities. Any 400-level required course can be substituted. There are 9 credits of graduate (500+) electives and 12 credits of electives in 400-level or above. 7

8 Graduate work (FTY) Title 400+ level advisory committee (list individually) 15 (minus double-counted undergrad credits taken as a senior 500 or 600-level advisory committee (list individually). At least one course cannot be dual-listed with a 400- level course. At least 6 of these credits must be SFR courses. 12 (minus double-counted grad credits taken as a senior) SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project 3 Subtotal, as Grad Student 21+ Total Graduate Total All

9 Exhibit C. Work for the Program of Study Master of Forestry 4+1 Option Forest Operations, Bioproducts, and Bioenergy (FOBB) Undergraduate Degree The following courses fulfill the requirement for Master of Forestry degree accredited in 2013 by the Society of American Foresters. s labeled as Prereq are included in the FOBB undergraduate curriculum. Title Prereq SFR 100 Forest Biology 3 Prereq MAT 122 Pre-calculus 4 Prereq CHY 121 Intro to Chemistry 3 Prereq SFR 205 Forest Measurements and Statistics 3 Prereq SFR 107 Forest Vegetation 3 Prereq SFR 211 Forest Operations Planning 4 Prereq PSE 140 Soil Science 3 Transfer SFR 402 Advanced Forest Measurements 3 Prereq SFR 407 Forest Ecology 3 Prereq SFR 409 Silviculture and Ecology Lab 2 Prereq SFR 408 Silviculture 3 Prereq SFR 444 Forest Economics 3 Prereq SFR 446 Forest Policy 3 Replace SFR 349, Fall Prereq SFR 400 Geographic Information Systems 4 Prereq SFR 464 Forest Business, Marketing, Entrepreneurship 3 Prereq SFR 477 Forest Landscape Management 3 Senior (Double-counted toward MF) Any 3 courses of the following: Transfer SFR 557 Tree Pests and Disease 3 Fall Transfer WLE 423 PSE 413 Watershed/Wetlands Elective 3 Fall Transfer SFR 406 Remote Sensing Image Interpretation 3 Spring Transfer 500-level Alternate-year graduate course available only during this year 3 Both Note: The first 3 courses above are required and must be a part of the MF program of study. There are 9 credits of graduate (500+) electives and 9 credits of electives in 400-level or above. 9

10 Graduate work (FOBB) Title 500 or 600-level advisory committee (list individually). At least one course cannot be dual-listed with a 400- level course. At least 6 of these credits must be SFR courses. 12 (minus double-counted grad credits taken as a senior) 400/500 Required undergraduate courses not taken as seniors as part of the double-counted credits advisory committee (list individually) SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project 3 9 Subtotal, as Grad Student 21+ Total Graduate Total All

11 Exhibit D. Work for the Program of Study Master of Forestry 4+1 Option Parks, Recreation and Tourism (Parks and Recreation Management Concentration) Undergraduate Degree The following courses fulfill the requirement for Master of Forestry degree accredited in 2013 by the Society of American Foresters. s labeled as Prereq are included in the PRT undergraduate curriculum for this concentration. Title Prereq SFR 100 Forest Biology 3 Prereq MAT 122 Pre-calculus 4 Prereq CHY 121 Intro to Chemistry 3 Prereq SFR 205 Forest Measurements and Statistics 3 Prereq SFR 107 Forest Vegetation 3 Prereq SFR 211 Forest Operations Planning 4 Prereq PSE 140 Soil Science 3 Prereq SFR 407 Forest Ecology 3 Prereq SFR 409 Silviculture and Ecology Lab 2 Prereq SFR 408 Silviculture 3 Prereq SFR 444 Forest Economics 3 Prereq SFR 446 Forest Policy 3 Replace SFR 349, Fall Prereq SFR 400 Geographic Information Systems 4 Prereq SFR 464 Forest Business, Marketing, Entrepreneurship 3 Prereq SFR 477 Forest Landscape Management 3 Senior (Double-counted toward MF) Any 3 courses of the following: Transfer SFR 557 Tree Pests and Disease 3 Fall Transfer WLE 423 PSE 413 Watershed/Wetlands Elective 3 Fall Transfer SFR 406 Remote Sensing Image Interpretation 3 Spring Transfer SFR 402 Advanced Forest Measurements 3 Spring Alternate-year graduate course available only Transfer 500-level 3 Both during this year Note: The first 4 courses above are required and must be a part of the MF program of study. There are 9 credits of graduate electives (500+) and 6 credits of electives 400-level or above. 11

12 Graduate work (PRT Parks and Rec Management Concentration) Title 500 or 600-level advisory committee (list individually). At least one course cannot be dual-listed with a 400- level course. At least 6 of these credits must be SFR courses. 12 (minus double-counted grad credits taken as a senior) Required undergraduate courses not taken as seniors as part of the double-counted credits advisory committee (list individually) SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project 3 Subtotal, as Grad Student 21+ Total Graduate Total All

13 Exhibit E. Work for the Program of Study Master of Forestry 4+1 Option Parks, Recreation and Tourism (Conservation Law Enforcement Concentration) Undergraduate Degree The following courses fulfill the requirement for Master of Forestry degree accredited in 2013 by the Society of American Foresters. s labeled as Prereq are included in the PRT undergraduate curriculum for this concentration. Title Prereq SFR 100 Forest Biology 3 Prereq MAT 122 Pre-calculus 4 Prereq CHY 121 Intro to Chemistry 3 Prereq SFR 205 Forest Measurements and Statistics 3 Prereq SFR 107 Forest Vegetation 3 Prereq SFR 211 Forest Operations Planning 4 Prereq PSE 140 Soil Science 3 Prereq SFR 407 Forest Ecology 3 Prereq SFR 409 Silviculture and Ecology Lab 2 Prereq SFR 408 Silviculture 3 Prereq SFR 444 Forest Economics 3 Prereq SFR 446 Forest Policy 3 Replace SFR 349, Fall Prereq SFR 400 Geographic Information Systems 4 Senior (Double-counted toward MF) Any 3 courses of the following: Transfer SFR 557 Tree Pests and Disease 3 Fall Transfer WLE 423 PSE 413 Watershed/Wetlands Elective 3 Fall Transfer SFR 406 Remote Sensing Image Interpretation 3 Spring Transfer SFR 402 Advanced Forest Measurements 3 Spring Transfer SFR 477 Forest Landscape Management 3 Fall Transfer SFR 464 Forest Business, Marketing, Entrepreneurship 3 Spring Transfer 500-level Alternate-year graduate course available only during this year 3 Both Note: The first 6 courses above are required and must be a part of the MF program of study. There are 9 credits of graduate electives (500+) and no available credits for electives 400-level or above. 13

14 Graduate work (PRT Conservation Law Enforcement Concentration) Title 500 or 600-level advisory committee (list individually). At least one course cannot be dual-listed with a 400- level course. At least 6 of these credits must be SFR courses. 12 (minus double-counted grad credits taken as a senior) 400 Required undergraduate courses not taken as seniors as part of the double-counted credits 6-12 SFR 690 Master of Forestry Project 3 Subtotal, as Grad Student 21 Total Graduate Total All