Offered at: San Luis Obispo Campus
https://brae.calpoly.edu/department/ag_eng
The MS in Agriculture program provides students with advanced knowledge and skills in their areas of interest to succeed in their future endeavors. The BioResource & Agricultural Systems specialization gives students the opportunity to focus their MS program on the application of bioresource and agricultural systems. Graduates will be prepared to enter a career in a variety of areas including production agriculture, consulting, regulatory compliance, equipment sales and technical support, etc.
Requirements for Admission
Students apply via Cal State Apply and must submit a transcript, a personal statement addressing motivation for pursuing a Master’s in Agriculture at Cal Poly, and two letters of recommendation. In addition, applicants who did not obtain their undergraduate degree at Cal Poly are also required to submit scores from the GRE General test. Communicating with the Graduate Program Coordinator before applying is strongly recommended. Please contact the graduate coordinator for further information.
International Students must meet all the standard eligibility criteria and demonstrate proficiency in English (English Proficiency Exam Requirements)
Prerequisites: A bachelor’s degree from a closely related field to BioResource & Agricultural Systems.
Minimum GPA: Must have attained a minimum grade point average of 2.75 in the last 60 semester units attempted.
An applicant not meeting these academic standards, but who meets the basic university standard of a grade point average of 2.5 in the last 60 semester units attempted may be considered for admission as a conditionally classified graduate student.
Application due date: Applications are accepted for Fall and Spring semesters. Please see Graduate Student Dates and Deadlines for application deadlines.
Advancement to Candidacy
Six units of graduate coursework completed with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher and completion of the CAFES Graduate Committee Form.
Culminating Experience
Thesis: Along with a faculty advisor, students will work on a specific research topic, preparing a written thesis, and present it to the public as a 45-minute thesis seminar, after which the thesis committee will have the opportunity to privately ask related questions as the student defends the thesis.
Program Learning Objectives
- Demonstrate expertise in managing agricultural production systems.
- Develop, test or select the appropriate technology in managing agricultural production systems based on current conditions and future needs.
- Demonstrate effective communication skills.
- Formulate decisions utilizing professional ethics within their respective disciplines.
- Examine the value and role of diversity of people and ideas when developing agricultural system solutions.
- Investigate problems using critical thinking and derive appropriate solutions for managing agricultural production systems.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| REQUIRED COURSES | ||
| BRAE 5599 | Thesis | 6 |
| or AG 5599 | Thesis | |
| ESCI 5501 | Research Planning | 3 |
| FSN 5505 | Orientation to Graduate Studies | 1 |
| STAT 5110 | Introductory Statistics for Graduate Students | 3 |
| STAT 5120 | Intermediate Statistics for Graduate Students | 3 |
| Approved Electives | ||
| Select any 4000-5000 level AGED, BRAE, ENVE, or ME courses | 14 | |
| Total Units | 30 | |