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Undergraduate Academic Resources

Core Curriculum

The core curriculum consists of 60 semester hours plus one hour of physical education. This meets the University Core Curriculum requirements.

See Full Curriculum

Advising Resources

  • Course Sequences
  • Online Grade Changes
  • Field Trip Liability Waiver
  • Early Alert Referral Form for Students in Academic Distress
  • Student Affairs Student/Faculty Enrichment Fund
  • Pre-professional students may make an advising appointment through the SAGE system.

    Once you enter the professional program, you are assigned a faculty mentor based on your area of interest. Each fall or spring term, professional students must be cleared first through the staff advisor (Matt Head) in one of two ways:

    Then, you must meet with your faculty mentor, who will help with selecting electives and provide career advice. Once you have been cleared first through your staff advisor and then through your faculty mentor, you will be cleared to register.

    The ideal time for advisement in both the pre-professional and professional programs is between the third week of the semester and the midpoint. You must be advised for each term for which you intend to register.

     

    Academic Appeals

    Types of Appeals

    • Appeals on denial or deferral of admission to the Professional Program.
    • Appeals for readmission to the University or Professional Program following first dismissal for  poor academic performance.
    • Appeals for deviation from prescribed Professional and Pre-professional curricula.
    • Appeals for waivers of Warnell undergraduate courses.
    • Appeals of undergraduate course grades issued by Warnell faculty.
    • Charges of academic dishonesty in Warnell undergraduate courses.

    How to proceed with an appeal

    • An appeal of course grades and charges of academic dishonesty should be taken directly to the Office of the Vice President of Academic Affairs.
    • An appeal for the waiver of course prerequisites should be taken to the course instructor.  The instructor’s decision is final.  If the waiver is granted, the instructor must notify the undergraduate academic advisor in writing.
    • For all other appeals, see the ‘How to appeal’ section below.

    The Appeals Committee

    All appeals submitted to the associate dean for academic programs will be brought before an Appeals Committee. This committee will be composed of three faculty members who serve on the Undergraduate Affairs Committee. Appeals Committee members serve for two academic quarters, after which another three UAC faculty members will be chosen to serve. UAC faculty members who are not on the Appeals Committee may serve as alternates.

    All cases require review by the three regular committee members or their alternates. Decisions will be based on a majority vote. The associate dean may ask the undergraduate degree program specialist or other parties to attend to provide background information.

    The associate dean for academic affairs will call meetings of the Appeals Committee as needed, and assume responsibility for recording the proceedings. Petitioners need not appear before the Appeals Committee. However, petitioners may appear before the Appeals Committee if they so request.

    In conformance with University Policy, a representation may accompany the petitioner; however, that representative may only support or advise the petitioner and may not be allowed to address the Appeals Committee. The associate dean of academic Ppograms will transmit the decision of the Appeals Committee in writing to the petitioner, with copies to the Dean, and undergraduate degree program specialist, and the petitioner’s academic advisor if applicable.

    If an appeal is denied, the petitioner may once request reconsideration by the Appeals Committee. The request for reconsideration should be submitted in writing to the associate dean for academic programs. Letters requesting reconsideration should be addressed to the associate dean for academic programs and must include information not presented in the original appeal. The associate dean for academic programs will keep a record of each case considered. Case records will be maintained for five years following resolution of the appeal, after which they will be destroyed. Appeals denied by the Appeals Committee may be appealed to the dean of Warnell. A denial by the dean may be appealed to the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs.

    How to appeal

    You may appeal an undergraduate requirement by clicking on the ‘Start an Appeal’ button below. If you are trying to substitute a course, you will need to provide syllabi for the courses involved.

    Start an Appeal

    Deadlines

    Appeals are considered as they are received, and generally a decision is available within two weeks after submission of an appeal. However, the appeals committee may occasionally take longer to come to a decision. Therefore, you should always make an appeal with ample time before you need the decision. Earlier is better. If your appeal is denied, you may need time to make a different appeal.

    Final Exam Schedules

    Please note that schedules are subject to change, and will be posted prior to the end of each semester.

    Registrar's Office Final Exam Calendar

     

    Student Laptop Minimum Requirements

    Warnell does not recommend a specific brand or model of laptop. Please note, however, many of the software packages you will use while enrolled at Warnell are Windows only.  If you decide to purchase a Mac, you must use software virtualization (VMWare Fusion, Virtual Box, or Parallels) to install a copy of Windows inside iOS (a license for the Windows operating system can be obtained through the University at a deep discount). 

    When purchasing your laptop, any modern "gaming" laptop is appropriate where a better CPU and more RAM will deliver a superior computing experience. Tablet-style devices or a Chromebook are not suitable for many of the intensive computing tasks you will be asked to perform.

    If an Apple laptop is used and  ArcGis or other Window software is needed, the student is responsible for purchasing, installing, and maintaining Windows, Parallels to operate. 

    In addition to a computer, you will probably need a small flash drive to transfer files and some form of backup storage (device or cloud).

    Component Recommended Minimum Specification
    Windows OS Windows 10 Pro or newer
    Mac OS* OS X 10.13 or newer *
    Processor i7, (7th, 8th gen., +), i9 or AMD Ryzen 5 or newer
    Memory 32GB+
    Video/Graphics card 256MB or higher
    Hard drive 512GB SSD for operating system and programs, 2TB for data
    Optical drive Not required
    Networking Gigabit ethernet and wireless 802.11 (g, n, and/or ac)         
    External ports At least one USB 3.0
    Touch screen Not necessary

     

    Internships

    Internships provide students with practical experiences, and many employers seek interns through Warnell. Can you see yourself combing the beach for sea turtle nests, walking through the forest inventorying timber resources, or trekking through the wilderness with a group of campers? These are just a few examples of how Warnell students are spending their summers.

    Course Credit

    Depending on the nature of the internship, students will enroll in one of the following courses to receive credit for the experience:

    • Community Forestry and Arboriculture Internship (COFA 3900)
    • Fisheries Internship (FISH 3900)
    • Forestry Internship (FORS 3900)
    • Geospatial Information Science Internship (GISC 3900)
    • Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management Internship (PRTM 3900)
    • Water and Soil Internship (WASR 3900)
    • Wildlife Internship (WILD 3900)

    Students must have their internship approved and receive permission to enroll in the course BEFORE starting their work experience. Internships will only be approved if they represent a professional natural resources experience appropriate to the area of study, and the student is supervised by and receives mentoring from a natural resources’ professional. Most internship courses occur during fall semester and are completed immediately after the summer internship.

    Steps to Pursuing Internship Credit

    1. You must first obtain approval for your internship! To do so, please fill out the Internship Application Form. *NOTE: Unpaid internships with for-profit organizations are illegal and will not be approved. Unpaid internships for non-profit organizations cannot be taken for credit but might be acceptable for completion of the experiential learning requirement. When applying, please choose 0 credit hours when prompted for "Credit Hours Seeking."
    2. Once your application form is submitted, you will be contacted as to whether your internship was approved or not.

       
      • If your application IS approved, a Warnell staff member will contact you with a Memorandum of Understanding that MUST BE SIGNED by your employer and returned before your internship begins. 
      • If your application is NOT approved, you will be contacted to provide more information about your internship site.

    All paperwork is due on the following dates…

    • Internship completed in fall semester: Aug. 1 (1 credit hour only)
    • Internship completed in spring semester: Jan. 1 (1 credit hour only)
    • Internship completed over summer: May 1 (1-3 credit hours) 

    No internship is approved for course credit hours unless an internship application form is submitted, approved, and a MOU is on file.

     

    Senior Project and Senior Thesis

    To graduate from the professional program, all Warnell students are required to complete Senior Project or Senior Thesis. Most students will take Senior Project, but a limited number may be permitted to enroll in Senior Thesis. 

    Put simply:

    • Senior Thesis requires a research project; Senior Project usually involves a management project.
    • Senior Thesis is an individual effort; Senior Project is normally conducted in teams.
    • Enrollment in Senior Thesis is by permission only; enrollment in Senior Project is open to all BSFR candidates.
    • Senior Thesis is intended for students who want to pursue a research career.

    Both Senior Project II (FANR 4502S) and Senior Thesis (FANR 4990R) satisfy the Experiential Learning Requirement.

    About Senior Project

    Senior Project involves the identification and solution of a resource management decision problem by several students working as a team. This option best suits most students at Warnell. Registration is offered each fall and spring semester, and you should schedule Senior Project as close to the end of your program of study as possible (usually your last year in residence), because it integrates material from all courses in your major.

    Senior Project consists of a two-course sequence, FANR 4501 (Senior Project I, 1 hour) and FANR 4502S (Senior Project II, 3 hours). FANR 4501 should be taken the fall or spring prior to FANR 4502S. The names of the instructors will be listed in Athena.

    FANR 4501 is a series of 1-hour classes designed to familiarize you with the process and products expected in 4502S. By the end of 4501, students will have selected a team and received initial approval for the project they will undertake in 4502S.

    What makes a good Senior Project?

    • A client with the responsibility for deciding how a particular resource should be managed to best achieve stated ends or objectives
    • Include more than one feasible method to accomplish the client’s objectives; teams evaluate each alternative or option and rank them based on how well they meet the stated objectives
    • Results in written and oral reports that recommend an alternative to meet client objectives and to justify this recommendation
    • Be completed in one semester (upon the completion of FANR 4502S).
    • The majors of team members correspond to the management objectives of the client; teams with a mix of majors usually produce stronger projects and are highly recommended by the instructors, while a team with members from one major require special circumstances for approval

    Semester expectations

    Students are expected to attend and participate in weekly lectures during FANR 4501. Weekly lectures concern topics that are important to the completion of projects and are sequenced to coincide with the steps required to complete projects. This includes defining problems and solutions, sampling and data collection, analysis of management alternatives, report writing, preparation for oral presentations, etc.

    Students attend weekly team meetings with instructors, complete final oral presentations, and transmit a final report (i.e., management plan) to the client in FANR 4502S. Weekly team meetings give teams an opportunity to gain technical input from class instructors. Teams are expected to report on progress up through that week and on plans for the next week. These progress and planning meetings serve to keep the team’s work on schedule throughout the semester.

    Don't have a project or team?

    Team formation occurs over several weeks in the second half of 4501, after the list of available projects is released and discussed by the class. The course instructors can assist in assigning members to a team if students need a team. If the team is unable to locate and define a suitable project, a project can be assigned at the team’s request.

    About Senior Thesis

    Students intending to take senior thesis should complete their research and data collection prior to completing their thesis. This means Senior Thesis will take at least two semesters to complete. Only upon successful appeal can the research be completed in the same term as the thesis. Also, students with a GPA of less than 3.0 will be required to successfully appeal to do the Senior Thesis option. Students can apply for undergraduate research credit using the Application for Research Credit. Students must take at least one hour of senior thesis. The remaining three hours (to reach the required four hours) may be completed using approved research credit or additional hours in senior thesis.

    Do not apply to Senior Thesis prior to starting research. 

    Senior Thesis is an autonomous capstone requirement under the direct supervision of a faculty research advisor. Students will write a thesis that describes their systematic and in-depth inquiry into a fundamental, unknown, scientific, economic, or social problem. Students who pursue a Senior Thesis must:

    • Apply understanding of the discipline to identify or shape the research question and skills and techniques learned to complete the research project
    • Gather data, synthesize relevant literature, analyze, and interpret data
    • Demonstrate in writing the contribution to the discovery and interpretation of knowledge significant to their field of study

    Results must be presented in the form of a properly formatted, professionally rigorous thesis document and through the formal presentation of the thesis to faculty and peers during an approved event (e.g., Senior Thesis and Senior Project Symposium). The student is also required to attend a minimum number of presentations by peers.

    Apply to Senior Thesis and View Guidelines

     

    Experiential Learning Requirement

    All undergraduate students must satisfy UGA's experiential learning requirement to graduate. Fisheries & wildlife students should not confuse this requirement with the "professional experience" requirement under that major. That requirement is separate.

    Warnell offers many courses that satisfy the experiential learning requirement:

    Capstone Courses:

    Internship Courses:

    Study Abroad and Field Courses:

    Service-Learning Courses:

    • FANR 4273S (Field Studies in Sustainable Development)
    • FANR 4444S (Foundations of Environmental Education)
    • FANR 4500S (Senior Project in Forestry and Natural Resources Management)

     

    Tutorials & Training

    Online Course Evaluations

    • Franklin College is hosting and administering the online evaluations for Warnell courses. If you have any trouble with the online evaluation, please email Jenny Yearwood. You may review the Evaluation Questions beforehand.

    For instructors and TAs

    • Log in using your UGA MyID to see the list of classes you're teaching
    • You can see details of courses by clicking on the Stats link. See who has/has not completed evaluations (results are available only after grades are turned in).
    • Instructor access limitations are to protect confidentiality, and instructors can not add to or edit available questions—this must be done as a faculty
    • All TAs assigned by Warnell will automatically get an evaluation; volunteer TAs may also be evaluated

    Instructor login

    For students

    Once you log in using your UGA MyID, you will see list of all class evaluations that are open and are using the Franklin system, regardless of school/college. When you finish evaluation for one class, you will be returned to the main menu where you can continue evaluations for all open courses

    Evaluations for Warnell TAs are available through the same menu. It is possible that your TA is not in the online system—if this is the case, contact your instructor

    Student login

    For administrators

    College administrators collect course information for all Warnell instructors. They also have access to open/close evaluations, enter and edit some of the course/instructor/student information. At the end of the evaluation period, they collect data and back it up.

    ArcGIS Training

    Under our UGA ESRI site license, students have access to ESRI's Virtual Campus. Here, you can enroll in online ArcGIS courses that are self-instructed and self-paced. This is an excellent way to get up to speed with ArcGIS (ArcMap, ArcCatalog, ArcToolbox, etc). Here is a list of courses available to us.

    If you see a class you are interested in, email Geoff Garland requesting an "ESRI Virtual Campus class login code." Include the course title and that you are a student enrolled at Warnell. This is available to faculty and staff also.

    Also, ESRI offers a 1-year timeout version of ArcView 9.2 to students for educational purposes. Unlike the software we get under the University of Georgia ESRI Site License, students can install this on their personal computer. For students who are interested in this program, get your professor to submit a request to ESRI.

    If you have questions, email Tripp Lowe or call 706-542-1074.

    Accessing Folders On Warnell Server

    All faculty, staff, and students are given access to folders on Warnell servers. The simplest way to access these folders is to log in with your MYID and password on any machine that is joined to the UGA msmyid.uga.edu domain.

    On a Windows machine, these folders are automatically mapped to drive letters. If you are off campus, first go through the Remote Access VPN.

    All faculty, staff, and student may use either Microsoft OneDrive for Business or Google Drive for your personal files and/or to share files. 

    N: Class folders: This is a repository for materials professors would like to automatically make available to students. Faculty have full rights to this folder and all subfolders, while students have read-only rights to these materials.

    O: Giff folders: Available to students, this is data that is made available by our GIS/Spatial group for use in the Spatial Labs and courses. Students should have read access to this folder and subfolders.

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