Degree Programs and Specializations

The Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees are offered as follows: (1) Plant Science with specializations in crop physiology, crop production and management, molecular biology, plant breeding and cytology, plant biotechnology and tissue culture, plant nutrition, space biology, weed science, and bioinformatics and computational biology; (2) Soil Science with specializations in molecular biology (interdepartmental program), soil and water chemistry, soil biochemistry and ecology, soil conservation systems, soil fertility and plant nutrition, soil physics, soil-plant-water relations, soil taxonomy and genesis, and soils and irrigation; (3) Climate Sciences with specializations in climate dynamics, hydroclimate modeling, general and micro-meteorology, and turbulence; and (4) Ecology. A Master of Professional Studies in Horticulture (MPSH) is also offered. This program is available to out-of- state students at in-state tuition rates through WICHE-WRGP.

Course Requirements

Course requirements leading to MS or PhD degrees are developed jointly by the student and the student’s advisory committee. Course selections reflect areas of specialization. There are, however, specific departmental requirements regarding physical sciences, biological sciences, and mathematics courses, which differ depending on the area of specialization.

Bioinformatics and Computational Biology Specialization

Total course credits needed for the specialization: 16 credits

Required course credit hours: 12 credits

Elective courses, take any four credits from the list: 4 credits

Students need to take all five required courses (12 credits), and can select another four credits from the list of elective courses.

Required Courses (12 credits)

• DATA 5500 - Advanced Python Programming for Analytics 3 credit(s)
• PSC 6150 - Bioinformatics and Big Data Mining 3 credit(s)
• STAT 5050 - Introduction to R 1 credit(s)
• STAT 6570 - Statistical Bioinformatics 2 credit(s)
• STAT 6685 - Deep Learning Theory and Applications 3 credit(s)

Elective Courses (4 credits)

Students must take four credits from the list of electives.

• ADVS 5260 - Methods in Biotechnology: Molecular Cloning 3 credit(s)
• BENG 5630 - Synthetic Biological Engineering 3 credit(s)
• BENG 6630 - Synthetic Biological Engineering 3 credit(s)
• BIOL 6300 - Programming for Biologists 3 credit(s)
• CS 5030 - High Performance Computing 4 credit(s)
• CS 6030 - High Performance Computing 4 credit(s)
• CS 5040 - Scientific Visualization 3 credit(s)
• CS 6040 - Scientific Visualization 3 credit(s)
• CS 5800 - Introduction to Database Systems 3 credit(s)
• PSC 5260 - Methods in Biotechnology: Molecular Cloning 3 credit(s)
• STAT 5550 - Statistical Visualization I 2 credit(s)