The mission of the program is to produce scientists with the knowledge needed to support the assessment, maintenance and recovery of environmental resources. This includes an appreciation of the economic, social, political and aesthetic context that shapes our interaction with and knowledge of the environment. Measuring and understanding the balance between environmental protection, sustainable resource management, and economic growth is a major integrating theme within the program.

As a reflection of the interdisciplinary nature of the program, a course of study will be tailored to each student’s own scholarly interests, research, and proposed career direction. The specific quantity and content of each student’s course of study will require approval by the student’s Doctoral Advisory Committee. General course requirements are outlined below and in the section of this Bulletin entitled Program of Study for the PhD in Environmental Sciences. Applicants are advised that admission to Graduate Programs does not imply admission to the PhD in Environmental Sciences Program.

Admission Requirements

Applicants to the PhD Graduate Program in Environmental Sciences Program must hold a baccalaureate degree (BA, BS) and preferably a master’s degree (MA, MS) from an accredited institution in a relevant field of study. Applicants must submit the following to Graduate Admissions:

1. A completed application for admission to the Graduate Program in Environmental Sciences. Applicants are encouraged to submit the application no later than February 15th for the fall semester and July 15th for the spring semester. Applicants should apply online at: http://www.astate.edu/graduate.
2. A nonrefundable application fee. PhD application fee is $50.00. This can be paid online as part of the application or a check can be mailed to the A-State Treasurer’s Office with the applicant’s name and date of birth in the memo line. Checks must be made payable to Arkansas State University. If applications are received without payment, Graduate Admissions will hold all application materials and notify the applicants that no action will be taken until payment is received. International students may utilize a check or an International Postal Money Order to remit payment in the U.S. currency.
3. One copy of official transcripts of all previous undergraduate and graduate course work attempted, to be sent directly from the institution(s) previously attended. Graduate Admissions will compute the graduate GPA by counting all graduate courses completed, including any repeated courses. Applicants need to meet the admission requirements of Graduate Admissions. Applicants should be aware that the breadth of the course work in this program demands that students have a basic background in several disciplines. Preparatory courses for this program may include:
   
   Mathematics: Calculus I as well as an applied statistics course or second semester Calculus course.
   Chemistry: A first and second semester chemistry course sequence.
   Biology: A first and second semester biology course sequence.
   Earth Science: A first and second semester earth science course sequence.
   Economics: An introductory level economics course.
   Political Science: American government, United States history or world history.
   
   Students should contact the Program Director for details regarding course requirements for specific focus areas within the program. Students lacking the appropriate courses for their chosen focus area can be admitted into the program but may be required to complete preparatory course work before enrolling in specific graduate core courses. In some cases, the Environmental Sciences Graduate Program Committee may agree to substitute equivalent, documented work experience in the environmental field for specific courses, and in rare cases, the criteria for admission. Contact the Program Director for questions in these matters. Acceptance into the program will be made by the Environmental Sciences Program Committee.
4. Three letters of recommendation to be reviewed by the Environmental Sciences Graduate Program Committee.
5. Scores from the Graduate Record Examination are required. A score of 150 on both the verbal and quantitative tests are recommended for acceptance.
6. International student applicants must demonstrate a satisfactory level of proficiency in the English language if English is not their native language. To do so, applicants must submit a score of 213 computer based on the Test of English as a Foreign Language or must satisfactorily complete advanced level II of the university’s Center for English as a Second Language program.
7. Statement of Purpose (Maximum of two pages). In essay form, state your reasons for undertaking graduate study in the Environmental Sciences. Please describe your qualifications and your objectives in undertaking this program. Applicants should clearly outline their research interests. We are interested in how the applicant’s interests would complement those research interests of the faculty. Applicants should discuss their plans for their academic and professional career and how the Graduate Program in Environmental Sciences will help them attain their goals. Applicants should also contact faculty they would like to work with and describe in the statement of purpose what faculty member would be a good candidate to be their advisor.
8. Resume or C.V. List all colleges and universities attended, major extracurricular activities, and employment, detailing particularly those relevant to your proposed field of study, any honors or prizes awarded, and publication and research projects with which you have been associated.

Program Information

Substitution of equivalent courses may be made upon the recommendation of the doctoral advisory committee with the approval of the Environmental Sciences Program Committee. In addition, each student will normally take courses in their specialty area sufficient to bring the total number of credits to the minimum of 72 required for the PhD in Environmental Sciences beyond the bachelor’s degree or 42 beyond the master’s degree. Any additional course work requirements will be determined by the Doctoral Advisory Committee to meet the student’s specific program needs. Each candidate for the PhD in Environmental Sciences must execute an original and rigorous research project culminating in the completion and defense of a dissertation.

Doctoral Advisory Committees

Each student is expected to identify a doctoral advisory committee chair during the first year of their program of study. The Doctoral Advisory Committee will consist of members of the graduate faculty and other professionals as deemed appropriate and approved by the Director of Environmental Sciences. Each committee must have at least five members with at least one member of the natural and social sciences. Committee membership is subject to approval by the Environmental Sciences Program Director and must be a member of the graduate faculty. The Doctoral Advisory Committee is to review the student’s dissertation proposal and to provide guidance toward the successful completion of the research project.

Membership of advisory committees may be changed if either the student or a member of their committee feels that such a change is appropriate and the requested change is approved by the Environmental Sciences Program Director and Dean of the College of Sciences and Mathematics. Such a change will not be approved except in clearly unusual circumstances.

A Doctoral Advisory Committee chair must be a member of the graduate faculty and must be approved to direct the research of graduate students by the Environmental Sciences Program Director, and the Dean and Graduate Council.

General Program of Study

A program of study, to be developed by the student in consultation with the Doctoral Advisory Committee, is to be submitted to the Director of the Environmental Sciences Program for approval no later than the end of the second semester after admission to the program. Programs of study may change to meet course requirements and match the student’s academic goals, scholarly aspirations and career preparation needs. Each Doctoral Advisory Committee will meet at least once a year to review and provide a record of the student’s progress.

Satisfactory Progress

Students are required to earn a grade of “B” or better in the core courses. A single grade of “C” will be accepted for courses in the focus area. A second instance of a grade of “C” or a single instance of a grade below “C” will be cause for the review of the student’s status within the program by the Environmental Sciences Program Committee. After such review, the Environmental Sciences Program Committee may recommend the student enter the Master’s of Science program in Environmental Sciences or dismissal of the student from the program.

Time to Degree

A minimum of six semesters of graduate study beyond the baccalaureate degree is required. All requirements for the degree must be completed within eight calendar years of admission to the program. Requirements subsequent to admission to candidacy must be completed within four calendar years of admission to candidacy. A student exceeding the time limit may be required to repeat the qualifying examination, replace out-of-date credits with up-to-date ones, and/or show other evidence of being current within both the core curriculum and the student’s area of specialization. Extension of the eight-year requirement will be granted only if a student has obtained prior approval from his or her Doctoral Advisory Committee, the Environmental Sciences Graduate Program Committee and the Graduate School.

Residence Requirement

One year of full-time residence at Arkansas State University normally will be required. This requirement may be waived under special circumstances if approved by the student’s Doctoral Advisory Committee, the Environmental Sciences Program Committee and the Arkansas State University Graduate School.

Qualifying Examination

These examinations are required by the Program, but take a variety of forms in the case of individual students. The practice requirement is determined by the student’s choice of specialty area and the student’s advisory committee and approval by the Director of the Graduate Program in Environmental Sciences. The goal of these examinations is to assess the students preparedness for doctoral level study and assess the students potential in their chosen field. The examination may be written or oral in part or in whole. The subject(s) of the examination may include core course work and /or work relevant to the students specialty area. One examination, typically oral, is taken in a core course area outside of the students specialty area. The second can be oral or written in part or whole in the specialty area (administered by the Doctoral advisory committee or portion thereof) or in a second non-specialty core discipline. Possible outcomes of these examinations are (i) pass, (ii) fail with option to retake (one time only) the examination, or (iii) fail. Students who fail initially or after the second attempt will be reclassified to the MS Program and will be re-considered for the PhD Program only under extraordinary circumstances. It should be noted that there is a Program requirement that ten calendar weeks must pass before a retake of either or both of the qualifying examinations may be scheduled. These examinations must be taken prior to the end of the fourth semester in residence.

Dissertation Proposal

Each PhD student must pass the oral research proposal defense examination. Possible outcomes of the first examination are i) pass, ii) fail with option to retake (one time only) the examination, or iii) fail. The oral defense of the research proposal occurs after successful completion of the qualifying examination. Students who have not defended their proposal by end of their fifth semester or who have not passed by the end of their sixth semester will no longer be in good standing in the PhD Program. They will be reclassified into the MS program and will be reconsidered for the PhD program only under extraordinary circumstances. It should be noted that there is a Program requirement that ten calendar weeks must pass before a retake of the oral proposal defense examination may be scheduled.

It is imperative that each student register the time and date of the oral proposal defense with the Environmental Sciences Program two weeks in advance of the proposal defense seminar. Announcements of the public portion of the proposal defense must be posted a minimum of two weeks in advance of the presentation. The timing of this examination should be in coordination with the student’s advisory committee.

Admission to Candidacy

A student may apply for admission to candidacy upon successful completion of the qualifying examination and defense of the dissertation proposal. A student may not apply for candidacy while on probation or with a GPA of less than 3.00. Doctoral students, upon reaching PhD candidacy (passing both qualifying examinations, oral proposal defense and examination, and completing the core course requirements (9 hours of core, 6 hours of statistics, 1 or 3 hours of research ethics, 2 hours of topical seminar, 2 hours of environmental seminar) are granted an MS in Environmental Science provided that they have met the requirements above. Students who intend to earn an MS in Environmental Sciences must complete an Intent to Graduate Form in the semester they will attain candidacy. This form is available online through Self Service.

Comprehensive Examination

The comprehensive examination is designed to test general knowledge of environmental science as well as the student’s expertise in specialized areas of research and interest. The examination consists of a mandatory oral component and an optional written component. Students intending to take comprehensive examinations must submit an intent form to the program office at the beginning of the semester in which they intend to take the examination.

Students will have not more than eight hours to complete their answers to the questions. The oral examination is conducted by the student’s Doctoral Advisory Committee. In case of failure, the examination may be retaken if the committee feels that additional study is justified and the student continues such studies for an additional period of time as specified by the committee. A second failure will result in dismissal from the program.

Continuous Enrollment

Students must maintain continuous enrollment subsequent to passing the qualifying examination. They must maintain a minimum of one semester hour of dissertation during each regular semester, including at least one summer term each year, until the final dissertation has been approved and submitted to Arkansas State University.

Dissertation Defense

After the research is completed, the student will submit a draft of the dissertation to his or her advisory committee. Upon the recommendation of the committee, the candidate will arrange with the chair of his or her advisory committee to schedule and conduct a presentation of the results.

The candidate will also be required to orally defend the dissertation before the Doctoral Advisory Committee, members of the faculty, students, and interested persons. Arrangements for the dissertation defense will be made through the Environmental Sciences Program Office. Students are advised to be aware of the deadlines set by the Environmental Sciences Program and the Registrar for submission of defense results and dissertations.

The defense must occur at least four weeks before the date of graduation. A successful defense receives no more than one negative vote by the members of the Doctoral Advisory Committee. Failure of the defense requires a one semester probation before a second defense can be scheduled. A second failure of the defense constitutes elimination from the program.

Deadline for Submission

The completed dissertation must follow the format requirements of Graduate Programs as contained in the Guide to Dissertations and Theses: Preparation and Electronic Submissions. Before submission online, the completed dissertation must be approved by the advisory committee. Candidates will also be responsible for the preparation of an abstract of the dissertation, not to exceed 350 words, which will be submitted with the completed dissertation.

The student is required to purchase three copies of the bound dissertation for the A-State Library, the Environmental Sciences Program office, and the dissertation advisor.

Checklist for the Last Semester Before Graduation

In the last semester before graduation, candidates must:

• register for the graduation fee.
• file an Intent to Graduate Form with the Office of the Registrar by the relevant deadline.
• complete the oral defense of the dissertation.
• submit the dissertation by the relevant deadline.