Science Master's Program in Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences at the University of Idaho

Regents Of The University Of Idaho, Moscow ID

Investigators

Abstract

Abstract. Science Master?s Program in Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences at the University of Idaho. Stephen Mulkey, PI. NSF 1011374 This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). The new Science Master?s degree program at the University of Idaho provides professional training in interdisciplinary science in the environmental and natural resource sciences. The Intermountain West has a high potential for job growth in the areas of forestry, conservation, range management, fisheries and wildlife biology, environmental mitigation, water resource management, and related fields. Employers in these economic sectors have stated their need for professionals trained in management, scientific ethics, and professional and scientific communication skills. The Idaho SMP curriculum includes training in these areas as part of a new core curriculum that will also be open to all science graduate students at the University of Idaho. This foundation complements sustainability science, which is an integral part of the natural resource and environmental science curriculum in the SMP, and professional training, which includes internships with government agencies and industrial partners and team-based research experiences in existing faculty research programs. The Science Master?s program at the University of Idaho will contribute directly to society and economic development by creating a professional workforce for the local, regional, and national markets in areas of natural science crucial to future wellbeing. Graduates of the program will increase the number of professional scientists in an underserved region and advance public discovery and understanding as effective science ambassadors to the broader public. The program expands minority participation in the sciences by specifically recruiting and training Native students of the Intermountain West who will serve tribal needs for professionals in the environmental and natural resource sciences.