Formal education in forestry began in Georgia with the formation of the Department of Forestry in the College of Agriculture in 1906. In 1935 the Department was reorganized and renamed the George Foster Peabody School of Forestry. In 1968 the name was changed to School of Forest Resources, and in 1991 to the Daniel B. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources. The first Master of Science (MS) degree was awarded in 1932. The Master of Forest Resources (MFR) degree, which was titled the Master of Forestry until 1970, was initially approved and first awarded in 1950. The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree was initially approved in 1963 and first awarded in 1964.

Graduate students in the WSFR are expected to be creative scholars and to develop the ability to fill positions of leadership in research, education, and management. The WSFR provides advanced education and, through research, extends scientific understanding of forest resources. The School promotes the development of scientists and professional resource managers capable of solving natural resource problems through understanding and application of biological, economic, environmental, social, and analytical principles.

The WSFR graduate program welcomes applications for admission from individuals who hold baccalaureate degrees in forest resources, fisheries, wildlife or other areas. However, applicants with baccalaureate degrees in areas quite different from the intended emphasis in graduate school may have to complete additional course work.

Students must declare their degree objective, MFR, MS or PhD, at the time of application to the graduate program.

The MFR degree is a terminal degree, suitable for students who want additional instruction and training in Forest Resources. The MFR requires 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.

The MS degree is a research degree designed for students who want to specialize in particular academic or scientific areas. This degree is for students who plan an academic, research, or staff specialist career, and for those students who plan to pursue a PhD. The MS requires a thesis and minimum of 30 semester hours of graduate level course work, 12 hours of which must be in courses open to graduate students only, and three hours of which must be in FORS 7300 (thesis).

The 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 consecutive course work, at least 16 hours of which must be in courses open to graduate students only. As a requirement of residency, at least two consecutive semesters of full-time course work or the equivalent must be spent in resident study on this campus (i.e., enrollment for a minimum of 30 hours of consecutive course work included on the Program of Study).

In almost all cases, a Master’s degree is required for admission to the PhD program. However, a student with an extraordinary baccalaureate record may petition the Graduate Affairs Committee for admission to the doctoral program.

Additional requirements for each degree may be found in the UGA Graduate School Bulletin (Graduate School requirements) and on our website.

Specialized programs are offered in ten general fields of study. Opportunities for interdisciplinary research are available within most of the programs. Individual faculty members are identified with a particular field of study. Some are identified with more than one area. Faculty addresses, e-mail and telephone numbers are listed on the Web page and in the Faculty section. Alternatively, they can be contacted by mail at the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-2152 USA, or by telephone at (706)542-2686.