Head of the Department: G. L. Rolfe
Correspondence and Information: Department of Forestry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, W-503 Turner Hall, 1102 South Goodwin, Urbana, IL 61801; (217) 333-2770; FAX: (217) 244-3219
GRADUATE FACULTY
Professors: S. Brown, P. Chow, J. O. Dawson, L. L. Getz, E. E. Herricks,
G. L. Rolfe, R. M. Skirvin
Associate Professors: M. B. David, G. Z. Gertner, G. A. Mendoza, R. E. Warner
Assistant Professors: R. J. Brazee, J. D. Chinea Rivera, D. A. Kovacic, D. W. Onstad, N. J. Smith-Sebasto
Adjunct: A. Hill, D. J. Tazik, C. M. Weller, D. C. White
Affiliate: J. M. Cheeseman, E. H. Delucia, B. A. Orland, M. W. Schwartz
GRADUATE PROGRAM
The Department of Forestry offers graduate work leading to the master of
science degree. The doctor of philosophy degree is not currently offered by the
department, but qualified students may work toward this degree with a forestry
adviser who holds a joint appointment in another department or is on the staff
of an interdisciplinary doctoral program. Such areas of study include ecology,
economics, physiological and molecular plant biology, soils, and wood
science.
ADMISSION
The prerequisite for graduate study in the Department of Forestry is a
bachelor's degree in forestry or a related field. A grade-point average of 4.0
(A = 5.0) in the last 60 semester hours of undergraduate work plus any graduate
work completed is required. Applicants who do not meet the minimum requirements
are encouraged to take the Graduate Record Examination, as exceptions to these
prerequisites are possible on an individual basis. Applicants whose native
language is not English must score at least 550 on the TOEFL examination.
MASTER OF SCIENCE
To qualify for the master of science degree, a student must earn at least 8
units of graduate credit, with at least 3 units in courses at the 400 level. At
least half of the 8 units must be from courses meeting on the Urbana-Champaign
campus or from courses approved by the Graduate College for residence credit,
although meeting at other locations. Depending on their backgrounds,
nonforestry graduates may be required to complete certain basic forestry
courses in addition to the regular degree requirements. Programs are designed
to serve the needs of each student in such areas as biometrics, ecology,
economics, genetics, management, physiology, policy, soils, statistics, and
wood science.
In most cases, a thesis is required, but it may be waived if such waiver will result in a more appropriate program for the individual student. The forestry seminar and a graduate-level statistics course are required of all graduate students. There are no language or qualifying examination requirements.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Major areas of faculty research include agroforestry; atmospheric deposition
effects on forest soils; ecology of forested bottomlands; economics and
management of Illinois forests in particular and national forests in general;
economics of multiple use; biodiversity and tropical forestry; forest-soil
relationships; forest tree improvement; management of forest vegetation in
urban settings; tree physiology; modeling of forest growth, inventory, and
analysis; oak regeneration; properties of wood composite materials; remote
sensing and geographic information system analysis of forested landscapes;
resource education; symbiotic nitrogen fixation by trees and shrubs; tropical
forest ecology; utilization of low-grade hardwood species and plant residues;
water quality and watershed management; and wood mechanics.
FINANCIAL AID
Besides University and other fellowships for which graduate students may
compete, the Department of Forestry offers the Spaeth-Boggess Fellowship and a
number of graduate research assistantships ranging from 25- to 67-percent time.
Graduate assistants are exempt from tuition and the service fee, but not from
the health service and insurance fees.
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