Graduate Degree Program

M.S. in Integrated Agricultural Sciences

The M.S. program in Integrated Agricultural Sciences is the first of its kind in Texas, and its development is motivated by the need for graduates with the multidisciplinary technological and professional skills capable of addressing and solving complex food system challenges. Specifically, this M.S. program integrates animal science, plant and soil science, agricultural economics, and agricultural education into one program, so that students will develop the technical and leadership skills necessary for addressing and solving complex, real-world food and agricultural challenges. This integrated approach combines research and education concerning land use strategies, crop and animal production, distribution, sales, economics, policy, and the environment. Through this M.S. program, students will be provided with new opportunities, enriched and rewarding experiences, and future personal and professional success.

Additionally, the structure of this program is well aligned with recommendations made by the 2013 National Academies of Sciences: “Herein is the challenge to colleges and departments of agriculture: to establish a place at the forefront of academe where students and scholars are prepared to learn about the complexities of agriculture and grapple with its evolution and change, and in so doing, find their opportunity to contribute as leaders and participants in the agricultural enterprise. Only this will ensure a system of agriculture and of agricultural education that is sustainable, able to adapt to and thrive in constantly changing times.”

Many agriculture faculty members participate in the M.S. program. Prospective graduate students interested in the program should contact a relevant faculty member to inquire about their participation.  For more information about current research projects, please click on the research page, which provides information about faculty research, and the graduate student page, which details projects being conducted by graduate students.