Resources for Enrolled Graduate Students

The Master of Forest Resources (MFR) and Master of Natural Resources (MNR) are terminal degrees suitable for students who desire instruction and training beyond the bachelor’s degree in forestry and natural resources. The MFR and MNR degrees require a minimum of 33 semester hours of graduate-level course work, but additional courses may be required by the student’s advisory committee. No thesis is required.  

It is incumbent upon the student to use this web page, the Graduate School Bulletin, and the MFR/MNR Checklist on each degrees' page to ensure adequate progress toward graduation. Questions may be directed to the Warnell Graduate Office.

MNR Program Details / Forms

Note (MNR students only): Students matriculating in fall 2022 or later are required to take a GradFIRST (GRSC 7001) seminar during their first or second semester. The faculty-led seminars provide first-year graduate students with foundational training in research, scholarship, and professional development. More GradFIRST seminars are scheduled for fall semesters than spring (no summer offerings). This requirement must be included on the program of study as a “University Requirement” but is in addition to the courses required for degree completion.

Learn More about GradFIRST

MFR Program Details / Forms

Time Limit for the Degree

All Graduate School requirements for a master's degree must fall within a six-year time limit beginning with the first registration for graduate courses listed on the program of study and ending with the final semester of the sixth year. Courses completed prior to the six-year limit cannot be included on the program of study. A request for an extension of time must include specific reasons why the student did not complete requirements in the time allotted by Graduate School policy. The appeal should be submitted to the Graduate School dean by the student along with the written approval from the major professor and graduate coordinator.

Graduation

1. Students must be registered for a minimum of 3 hours of graduate-level coursework during the semester in which all requirements are completed for graduation.
2. An Application for Graduation form must be submitted through ATHENA within the first two weeks of the semester in which a student expects to graduate.
3. If a student cannot complete degree requirements in the semester for which a graduation application was submitted, the graduation term will be deleted. The student will need to reapply for a future term and register for a minimum of 3 hours of graduate-level coursework.

Exit Interview

An exit interview is a required part of the Warnell graduation process. The exit interview is conducted by an officer of the Warnell Graduate Student Association. Weekly emails announcing oral exams and defenses contain contact information for scheduling individual exit interviews.

The Master of Science (MS) is a research degree designed for students who desire to specialize in particular academic or scientific areas for an academic, research, or staff specialist career, and those students who plan to pursue a PhD. The MS degree requires the development of a research thesis and minimum of 30 semester hours of graduate-level course work, but additional courses may be required by the student’s advisory committee. 

It is incumbent upon the student to use the resources available from the UGA Graduate School and the Warnell Graduate Office to ensure adequate progress toward graduation. 

MS Program Details / Forms

Note: Students matriculating in fall 2022 or later are required to take a GradFIRST (GRSC 7001) seminar during their first or second semester. The faculty-led seminars provide first-year graduate students with foundational training in research, scholarship, and professional development. More GradFIRST seminars are scheduled for fall semesters than spring (no summer offerings). This requirement must be included on the program of study as a “University Requirement” but is in addition to the courses required for degree completion.

Learn More about GradFIRST

Time Limit for the Degree

All Graduate School requirements for a master's degree must fall within a six-year time limit beginning with the first registration for graduate courses listed on the program of study and ending with the final semester of the sixth year. Courses completed prior to the six-year limit cannot be included on the program of study. A request for an extension of time must include specific reasons why the student did not complete requirements in the time allotted by Graduate School policy. The appeal should be submitted to the Graduate School dean by the student along with the written approval from the major professor and graduate coordinator.

Graduation

1. Students must be registered for a minimum of 3 hours of graduate-level coursework during the semester in which all requirements are completed for graduation.
2. An Application for Graduation Form must be submitted through ATHENA within the first two weeks of the semester in which a student expects to graduate.
3. If a student cannot complete degree requirements in the semester for which a graduation application was submitted, the graduation term will be deleted. The student will need to reapply for a future term and register for a minimum of 3 hours of graduate-level coursework

Exit Interview

An exit interview is a required part of the Warnell graduation process. The exit interview is conducted by an officer of the Warnell Graduate Student Association. Weekly emails announcing oral exams and defenses contain contact information for scheduling individual exit interviews.

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree is frequently required for research and staff specialist positions and is nearly always required for university faculty positions. The PhD is often regarded as a degree of specialized education within a relatively narrow field of expertise. The PhD requires a dissertation and a minimum of 30 hours of graduate-level course work, but additional courses may be required by the student’s advisory committee.

It is incumbent upon the student to use the resources available from the UGA Graduate School and the Warnell Graduate Office to ensure adequate progress toward graduation. 

PhD Program Details / Forms

Note: Students matriculating in fall 2022 or later are required to take a GradFIRST (GRSC 7001) seminar during their first or second semester. The faculty-led seminars provide first-year graduate students with foundational training in research, scholarship, and professional development. More GradFIRST seminars are scheduled for fall semesters than spring (no summer offerings). This requirement must be included on the program of study as a “University Requirement” but is in addition to the courses required for degree completion.

Learn More about GradFIRST

Residency Requirement

The residency requirement for PhD students is interpreted as 30 hours of consecutive graduate coursework that is included on the program of study.

1. A PhD student must register every fall and spring semester (summer is optional) until the 30-hour residency requirement has been met.
2. Courses may be taken at a minimum of three hours a semester to fulfill this requirement.
3. A break in residence is not incurred if a student elects not to register for the summer term; however, if the student does register for a course on the program of study during the summer, that course may be used toward the residence requirement.
   • All students paid on an assistantship over summer must register for summer hours.
4. The Graduate School allows 15 of the 30 hours to be research (FANR 9000) and 3 hours to be writing (FANR 9300).
   • Dissertation research credits in excess of 15 hours do not count toward the residence requirement, but these hours do not constitute a break in the residence if they are the only hours taken during a given semester.
5. After the residency requirement has been met, doctoral students must adhere to the Graduate School Enrollment policy, which states that students must register for a minimum of 3 credit hours in at least 2 semesters per academic year (fall, spring, summer).

Research Prospectus

All PhD students are required to write a research prospectus for approval by their advisory committee before any significant research work is undertaken. The Research Prospectus form, with abstract, should be signed by the committee and submitted to the Warnell Graduate Office no later than the end of the first calendar year of study.

PhD Preliminary Examination

The PhD preliminary examination consists of written and oral comprehensive exams. The purpose of the preliminary examination is to provide the student with an opportunity to demonstrate knowledge in an oral and written manner, and to ensure that advanced degree holders from the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources have attained a level of knowledge and understanding commensurate with their degree status.

1. Written Comprehensive Examination
   1. Procedures for conducting the written exam are determined by the advisory committee.
      
      1. Usually an individual examination is prepared, administered, and graded by each committee member.
      2. The completed examination should be reviewed by all advisory committee members.
   2. Students may not proceed to the oral exam until passing the written exam.
      
      1. No more than one dissenting vote is permitted for the student to pass the written examination.
      2. The major professor’s/co-major professors’ vote of approval is required to pass the examination. 
      3. Students who fail written examinations will be allowed one re-examination, pending approval of the advisory committee.
2. Oral Comprehensive Examination
   1. The comprehensive oral examination is conducted by the advisory committee and scheduled soon after the student passes the written examination.
   2. Format and content of the oral examination are determined by the advisory committee.
      • Questions are generally related to the student’s coursework, research interests, and career goals.
   3. The student must submit a Notice of Examination form to the Warnell Graduate Office at least three weeks prior to the examination.
      • The required Announcement of doctoral oral comprehensive exam will be submitted to the Graduate School by the Warnell Graduate Office.
   4. All members of the advisory committee must be present for the entire oral exam. If, for a good reason, a member cannot be present, the student must choose one of the following options:
      
      1. The absentee member may participate via a teleconference or video conference in which all participants can hear each person’s comments.
         • The major professor must sign the approval form for the absentee member, register his/her vote and indicate that the member’s participation was by teleconference or video conference (the major professor signs the absentee member's name followed by the major professor's initials).
      2. A substitution may be made with another faculty member who can replace the former member in expertise of the subject field and who has knowledge of the student’s research.
         • A revised advisory committee form must be submitted to the Graduate School prior to the examination.
         • A majority of graduate faculty members must be maintained.
      3. The defense may be canceled or rescheduled at a later time and the Warnell Graduate Office must be notified.
   5. No more than one dissenting vote is permitted for the student to pass the oral examination.
      
      1. The major professor’s/co-major professors’ vote of approval is required to pass the examination. 
      2. An abstention is not an appropriate vote for comprehensive examinations.
      3. Students who fail oral examinations may be allowed one re-examination with the Committee’s approval.
      4. A minimum of 30 days should elapse between examinations.
3. Re-examination
   1. Upon failure of any part of the PhD preliminary examination, the committee may elect to re-examine the student. This can be done on either the subject areas in which the student performed poorly, or on all subject areas.
   2. A minimum of 30 days should elapse between re-examinations.
   3. Upon a second failure of the preliminary examination, the advisory committee will decide whether the student will be allowed to pursue a master's degree in their field.

Admission to Candidacy

PhD students who successfully pass the preliminary examination are admitted to PhD candidacy. 

1. Candidacy Application Form:
   1. The top portion of the form is to be completed by the student and the bottom portion is completed by the major professor at the oral examination upon successful completion of the preliminary examination.
   2. Completed form is submitted to the Warnell Graduate Office to forward to the Graduate School for final approval.
2. PhD Candidates
   1. After being admitted to candidacy, a student must register for a combined minimum of 10 hours of graduate-level coursework to be eligible for graduation.
   2. Must enroll for a minimum of 3 hours of credit in any semester when using university facilities and/or faculty or staff time.

Dissertation

The doctoral dissertation should demonstrate that the student is capable of doing independent, original research, the results of which represent a significant contribution to the discipline of forestry and natural resources.

1. All dissertations submitted to the Graduate School as a requirement for the PhD degree must be submitted in digital format using the Guidelines for Electronic Thesis and Dissertations Submission.
2. The student must submit the dissertation to the Graduate School for a format check before the deadlines listed on the Graduate School website.
3. Students must submit a complete dissertation to the advisory committee for review at least 2 weeks prior to the dissertation defense.
4. Some changes to the dissertation are often necessitated by information that comes to light during the dissertation defense.
5. Deadlines for electronic thesis and dissertation submission are found on the Graduate School website.
6. A bound copy of the dissertation is available to order through Tate Print and Copy.

Final Oral Examination and Dissertation Defense

Students must submit a Notice of Examination form to the Warnell Graduate Office at least three weeks prior to the final examination and defense.

1. Final Exam and Defense Procedure
   1. The PhD final oral examination is a defense of the dissertation. The exam is administered by the advisory committee, open to all members of the faculty, and is announced by the Warnell Graduate Office.
   2. The exam focus is generally on determining whether the candidate fully understands the materials contained in the dissertation, rather than on determining the adequacy or validity of the dissertation.
   3. All members of the advisory committee must be present for the entire defense. If, for a good reason, a member cannot be present, the student must choose one of the following options:
      
      1. The absentee member may participate via a teleconference or video conference in which all participants can hear each person’s comments.
         • The major professor must sign the approval form for the absentee member, register his/her vote and indicate that the member’s participation was by teleconference or video conference (the major professor signs the absentee member's name followed by the major professor's initials).
      2. A substitution may be made with another faculty member who can replace the former member in expertise of the subject field and who has knowledge of the student’s research.
         • A revised advisory committee form must be submitted to the Graduate School prior to the examination, maintaining a majority of UGA graduate program faculty members.
      3. The defense may be canceled or rescheduled at a later time and the Warnell Graduate Office must be notified.
2. Dissertation Defense
   1. The PhD candidate must present an announced public seminar summarizing dissertation research.
   2. The dissertation defense focuses on issues of dissertation design, data collection, analysis, and interpretation.
3. Approvals / Dissentions
   1. The advisory committee must approve the student’s dissertation and defense with no more than one dissenting vote and must certify approval in writing.
   2. The major professor’s/co-major professors’ vote of approval is required to pass the examination.
   3. An abstention is not an appropriate vote for the defense.
   4. If a vote of approved with suggested changes is selected, the major professor must review the corrections and submit the final signature before the form is submitted to the Graduate School by the deadline.
   5. For all graduate requirements to be met, the Graduate School must receive the Dissertation Defense & Final Examination Approval form signed by the committee, the Electronic Thesis & Dissertation Submission Approval form signed by the student and major professor, and the final corrected dissertation submitted by the student.
   6. The final dissertation/defense approval deadline is posted at the UGA Graduate School website three semesters in advance.

Time Limit for the Degree

Time limits for completion of all requirements for the PhD are as listed in the Graduate School Bulletin.

1. All degree requirements except for the dissertation and defense must be completed within a period of 6 years.
2. A PhD candidate who does not complete all degree requirements within 5 years of admission to candidacy will be required to take the preliminary examination again and be readmitted to candidacy.

Graduation

1. Students must be registered for at least 3 hours of graduate-level coursework during the semester in which all requirements are completed for graduation.
2. An Application for Graduation form must be submitted through ATHENA within the first two weeks of the semester in which a student expects to graduate.
3. If a student cannot complete degree requirements in the semester for which a graduation application was submitted, the graduation term will be deleted. The student will need to reapply for a future term and register for a minimum of 3 hours of graduate-level coursework.

Exit Interview

An exit interview is a required part of the Warnell graduation process. The exit interview is conducted by an officer of the Warnell Graduate Student Association. Weekly emails announcing oral exams and defenses contain contact information for scheduling individual exit interviews.

All Warnell graduate student appeals are handled through the Warnell Graduate Office. Procedures for three of the most common appeals are below and other appeals will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the graduate coordinator.   

1. Change of degree objective (MNR/MFR to MS or MS to PhD)
   
   1. Appeal forms are submitted to the Warnell Graduate Office by the applicant and advisor.
   2. Appeal forms and application package are then distributed electronically to the Graduate Affairs Committee (GAC) for review. 
   3. GAC votes electronically (yes/no/meeting needed), typically within 2 weeks of receipt.
      1. A quorum is required. 
      2. A majority of "yes" or "no" votes resolves the issue.
      3. If any "meeting needed" vote is cast, all other previous votes are nullified and the GAC meets to discuss the case and vote again.
      4. Graduate Coordinator may call for a meeting. All previous votes are nullified and the GAC meets to discuss the case and vote again.

2. Admission to the PhD program without an MS
   
   1. Appeal forms are submitted to the Warnell Graduate Office by the applicant and advisor.
   2. Appeal forms and application package are then distributed electronically to the GAC for review. 
   3. GAC votes electronically (yes/no/meeting needed), typically within 2 weeks of receipt.
      1. A quorum is required. 
      2. A majority of "yes" or "no" votes resolves the issue.
      3. If any "meeting needed" vote is cast, all other previous votes are nullified and the GAC meets to discuss the case and vote again.
      4. Graduate Coordinator may call for a meeting. All previous votes are nullified and the GAC meets to discuss the case and vote again.
         
          
3. Applicant does not meet Warnell admission requirements
   
   1. An appeal form is submitted to the Warnell Graduate Office by the prospective advisor.
   2. Appeal form and application package are then distributed electronically to the GAC for review.
   3. GAC votes electronically (yes/no/meeting needed), typically within 2 weeks of receipt.
      1. A quorum is required.
      2. A majority of "yes" or "no" votes resolves the issue.
      3. If any "meeting needed" vote is cast, all other previous votes are nullified and the GAC meets to discuss the case and vote again.
      4. Graduate Coordinator may call for a meeting. All previous votes are nullified and the GAC meets to discuss the case and vote again.

A. Assistantship Eligibility

Students accepted by the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources as a prospective degree candidate are automatically considered for an assistantship; however, funds are limited. Consideration for Graduate School Assistantships are only available to students admitted for Fall matriculation. Consideration for Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources assistantships are available for students admitted for Fall or Spring matriculation.

B. Assistantship Types

1. Graduate School Assistantships

Competition for Graduate School Assistantships are administered by the Graduate School under rules published in the Graduate School Bulletin and only research degrees are eligible for consideration. The Graduate Coordinator selects candidates for the competition from the top applicants to the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources.  Only applications complete by January 1 and recommended for acceptance by faculty will be eligible for consideration.

2. Warnell Assistantships

Warnell assistantships are funded by the School, and are awarded solely on the basis of merit.  The recipient’s duties will include assisting faculty members in teaching and research. Standard length of support in 6 semesters, including summer, for a Master’s student and 9 semesters, including summer, for a Doctoral student. Students are obligated to TA one semester per academic year, for the duration of departmental support. Only applications complete by   February 1st and recommended for acceptance by faculty will be eligible for consideration.

3. Research Assistantships

Graduate Research assistantships are funded by research grants.  Recipients are selected by the Principal Investigator (PI) of the grant and are required to assist the PI in research.  Research assistantships may be awarded at any time during the year. 

4. Teaching Assistantships

The Associate Dean for Academic Affairs will award a limited number of Teaching Assistantships. Students will be notified by email when the online application is available. Teaching Assistantships are paid at 35 percent time and duties and funding run from the first day of class to the last day of final exams for the semester in which the assigned course is taught.

Students whose funding is not departmental (e.g., Graduate School, special fellowships, specific research grants), but wish to gain experience in teaching, may apply for a volunteer teaching assignment through the online Teaching Assistant application.

C. Assistantship Stipend

The assistantship stipend amount varies, depending on the funding source. Graduate School Assistantships and Warnell Graduate Assistantships are granted at 40 percent time (0.4 EFT). Research Assistantship stipends vary depending on the funding source. No graduate student may work at a rate greater than 50 percent time. Students on assistantship must register for 18 hours of graduate credit per semester, including summer.

D. Assistantship Offer Letters/Renewals

1. Graduate assistants and their supervising professors must give careful attention to the duties listed and dates covered by the original offer letter, which serves as the assistantship contract. Once funds are budgeted, it is difficult to alter dates to fit contingencies and individual plans.
2. Renewal of an assistantship requires action on the part of the supervising professor. The appropriate renewal forms will be made available to supervising professors, who then will complete the budget portion and hand off the form to the student to complete personnel information and indicate acceptance of the renewal.
3. During the contract period, there is no provision for annual leave or vacation. The graduate assistant’s supervisor should be notified as soon as possible of an absence caused by illness. Absence for other reasons must receive prior approval.

Scholarships

Thanks to the generosity of alumni and friends of Warnell, our students can access a variety of scholarships to assist with paying for their education. Announcements for scholarship applications are sent out to Warnell students via email at the start of each spring semester. Incoming freshmen also have opportunities to apply for scholarships—look for this information during UGA Orientation and via email.

Scholarship recipients are honored at our annual Spring Awards Banquet in April.

Learn More