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Program Description

The mission of NDSU's Emergency Management Program is to create a cadre of graduates with extensive theoretical and applied knowledge in emergency management who can advance the field and discipline of emergency management. The program is built on a core of emergency management and methods/theory courses to help students approach the study of disasters and emergency management from the emergency management disciplinary perspective. Additionally, the program draws from other disciplines that enhance the development of processes and techniques to deal with emergencies and disasters.

The master's and doctoral degree programs in emergency management at NDSU are campus-based. Potential students are encouraged to visit the campus and meet faculty and current graduate students.

Master of Science Degree

The comprehensive and challenging Master's degree programs in Emergency Management are intended to explore the academic research literature related to emergency management as well as provide students with opportunities to apply their knowledge through research and/or practicum. The program is built on a core of emergency management courses to help students learn how human beings create, interact, and cope with hazards, vulnerability, and associated events. The program emphasizes the study of how human beings cope with hazard events through activities related to preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation.

The Department of Emergency Management offers two tracks in its master's degree program. The first option - the thesis track - is a research-focused degree track that entails a combination of emergency management course work and research methods. This option is ideal for graduate students who intend to pursue a doctoral degree in Emergency Management or a related discipline and for those students who want to complete a traditional master's degree. The second option - the comprehensive study option - is a more practice-based track with course work in emergency management and a significant practicum requirement.

Admissions Requirements

The Department of Emergency Management at NDSU is selective in choosing graduate applicants for entry into the master’s and doctoral programs. Admission is competitive reflecting the department's commitment to small, high quality, student cohorts that match the mentoring capacity of the faculty.

Applicants will be evaluated in a two-stage process. In the first stage, the applicant’s Graduate School application, letters of reference, GRE scores (if applicable), and academic writing paper samples will be reviewed by the Department of Emergency Management faculty. Applicants demonstrating goodness-of-fit with the Department of Emergency Management’s mission and goals and an aptitude for graduate study will be invited to complete the second stage of the admissions process. 

Admissions Process

The two-stage admissions process for graduate studies in the Department of Emergency Management is as follows:

STAGE ONE

1. Applicants must first complete the Graduate School's online application form  and submit the required materials. 
2. Applicants must submit transcripts from the higher education institutions they have attended to the Graduate School.
3. Applicants must submit three letters of reference through the Online Application tool. Academic references are preferred.
4. All applicants who have not completed a master's degree in the United States must submit GRE scores. If an applicant has completed a master's degree in the United States, then GRE scores are not required but still strongly recommended. It is helpful to have as much data as possible about applicants and their aptitude for graduate work in our program. In no case are specific GRE discipline tests required. At this time, however, no specific score totals are used as a cutoff. Applications are evaluated holistically using all indicators of student aptitude for successful completion of graduate study in this program. Applicants must submit GRE scores by requesting that ETS-GRE send the NDSU Graduate School their score. 
5. Applicants must submit electronic copies of two writing samples through the Online Application tool. The samples may be a publication, material from prior course work, or specifically written for this application. The samples do not have to focus on emergency management or disasters. The samples must be written in English. Writing samples are used to gain information on the applicant's writing style and ability to write research-based papers. Samples submitted in support of an application would ideally be eight or more pages in length. In addition, to meet the objective of the admission criteria, the paper must employ formal citations. Writing samples will most typically be library-based research papers but papers based on original data gathering are also encouraged. The latter might be more likely to come from an applicant with a master's degree.

STAGE TWO

1. Applicants invited to participate in the second stage of the admissions process will take part in a conference call interview with two or more of the program faculty. Applicant interviews are designed to provide two-way communication between the faculty and prospective applicant. Faculty will ask questions but will also want the applicant to pose questions about the program and departmental educational objectives. The interview should assist the applicant and faculty to further assess the goodness-of-fit between the program and the applicant. Interviews will also evaluate the applicant's ability to engage in evidence-based reasoning.

We are most likely to accept doctoral applicants who demonstrate their understanding of the concepts included in the following list of books: 

• Mileti, D. (ed) (1999). Disasters by design: A reassessment of natural hazards in the United States. Washington, DC: John Henry Press.
• Rubin, C. (ed) (2007). Emergency Management: The American experience 1900-2006. PERI.
• Sylves, R. (2008). Disaster policy & politics. Washington, DC: CQ Press.
• Tierney, K., Lindell, M., & Perry, R. (2001). Facing the unexpected: Disaster preparedness and response in the United States. Washington, DC: John Henry Press.
• Wisner, B., Blaikie, P., Cannon, T., & Davis, I. (2004). At risk: Natural hazards, people’s vulnerability and disasters. New York: Routledge.

The emergency management faculty at NDSU believe that the best doctoral degree program in emergency management will be made up of a diverse student body. We welcome applicants to the doctoral degree program with master's degrees from a variety of disciplines; applicants from all countries; applicants with different professional backgrounds; and applicants with varying goals and interests. We want to ensure, however, that applicants entering the program are knowledgeable about emergency management and some of the literature that provides the foundation for the discipline. Therefore, when applicants are interviewed during the application process, the faculty expects that the best candidates will demonstrate their familiarity with the major concepts presented in the books listed above.

By asking potential doctoral students to enter the program with foundational knowledge of the emergency management literature, the department hopes to accomplish several goals. First, in reading the books on the reading list, prospective students will be able to confirm their desire to pursue a doctoral education in the discipline of emergency management. Second, the department assumes that students who undertake this reading in preparation for their application interview will be bright, motivated, and passionate about the study of emergency management. Third, and finally, a basic understanding of the emergency management literature will help students coming into the program from a variety of backgrounds succeed once they begin their studies at NDSU.

Financial Assistance

Both teaching and research assistantships are available, contingent on departmental and faculty research funds. All students are automatically considered for graduate assistantships, unless they request otherwise, so no separate application process is required for such consideration. Awards are based on past academic and professional performance. The review process is highly competitive.

Emergency Management Master's Thesis Track

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Core
SOC 700	Qualitative Methods 1	3
SOC 701	Quantitative Methods 1,2	3
EMGT 720	Theory, Research and Practice	3
Disaster Phases
EMGT 761	Preparedness Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 762	Mitigation Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 763	Response Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 764	Recovery Theory and Practice	3
Electives
Select 3 of the following:		9
EMGT 610	Comprehensive Emergency Management Planning
EMGT 614	Spatial Analysis in Emergency Management
EMGT 620	Hazard, Risk, and Vulnerability Assessments
EMGT 625	International Emergency Management
EMGT 645	Vulnerability and Functional Needs in Emergency Management
EMGT 661	Business Continuity & Crisis Management
EMGT 663	Voluntary Agency Disaster Services
ANTH 664	Disaster and Culture
EMGT 681	Disaster Analysis
EMGT 696	Special Topics
EMGT 730	Advanced Research Methods
Practicum
EMGT 795	Field Experience	3
Thesis
EMGT 798	Master's Thesis (minimum 6 - maximum 10 credits, only 6 count toward degree)	6
Total Credits		39

1	Students must have completed an undergraduate research methods course prior to enrolling in Quantitative and Qualitative Methods.
2	Students must complete a statistics course as a prerequisite for Quantitative Methods.

Those students lacking in field experience will be expected to complete an applied, field-based emergency management practicum; however, students with ample field experience in emergency management will be expected to complete a research practicum to fulfill the practicum credits. The research practicum can be fulfilled by participating in a member of the faculty's research or by the student conducting his/her own research under the supervision of a faculty member. The student and his /her adviser will determine the type of practicum a student ought to take.

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Emergency Management Master's Comprehensive Study Track

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Core
EMGT 720	Theory, Research and Practice	3
EMGT 761	Preparedness Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 762	Mitigation Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 763	Response Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 764	Recovery Theory and Practice	3
Electives
Group A: Emergency Management Elective Courses
Select four of the following:		12
EMGT 610	Comprehensive Emergency Management Planning
EMGT 620	Hazard, Risk, and Vulnerability Assessments
EMGT 625	International Emergency Management
EMGT 635	Issues in Homeland Security and Emergency Management
EMGT 645	Vulnerability and Functional Needs in Emergency Management
EMGT 661	Business Continuity & Crisis Management
EMGT 663	Voluntary Agency Disaster Services
ANTH 664	Disaster and Culture
EMGT 681	Disaster Analysis
EMGT 696	Special Topics
Group B: Critical Thinking and Analysis Elective Courses
Select two of the following:		6
EMGT 614	Spatial Analysis in Emergency Management
SOC 700	Qualitative Methods 1
SOC 701	Quantitative Methods 1,2
STAT 725	Applied Statistics
EMGT 730	Advanced Research Methods
Practicum
EMGT 795	Field Experience	6
Comprehensive Study Paper
EMGT 797	Master's Paper	3
Total Credits		42

1	Students must have completed an undergraduate research methods course prior to enrolling in Quantitative and Qualitative Methods.
2	Students must complete a statistics course as a prerequisite for Quantitative Methods.

Those students lacking in field experience will be expected to complete an applied, field-based emergency management practicum; however, students with ample field experience in emergency management will be expected to complete a research practicum to fulfill the practicum credits. The research practicum can be fulfilled by participating in a member of the faculty's research or by the student conducting his/her own research under the supervision of a faculty member. The student and his /her adviser will determine the type of practicum a student ought to take.

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Doctorate in Emergency Management

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Core
Theory and Methods
SOC 700	Qualitative Methods 1	3
SOC 701	Quantitative Methods 1,2	3
EMGT 720	Theory, Research and Practice	3
STAT 725	Applied Statistics	3
EMGT 730	Advanced Research Methods	3
Emergency Management Functional Areas
EMGT 761	Preparedness Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 762	Mitigation Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 763	Response Theory and Practice	3
EMGT 764	Recovery Theory and Practice	3
Functional Area Specialization (complete two courses)
EMGT 861	Preparedness Theory II
EMGT 862	Mitigation Theory II
EMGT 863	Response Theory II
EMGT 864	Recovery Theory II
Electives
Group A: Emergency Management Elective Courses (complete seven courses)		21
EMGT 610	Comprehensive Emergency Management Planning
EMGT 614	Spatial Analysis in Emergency Management
EMGT 620	Hazard, Risk, and Vulnerability Assessments
EMGT 625	International Emergency Management
EMGT 635	Issues in Homeland Security and Emergency Management
EMGT 645	Vulnerability and Functional Needs in Emergency Management
EMGT 661	Business Continuity & Crisis Management
EMGT 663	Voluntary Agency Disaster Services
EMGT 681	Disaster Analysis
EMGT 696	Special Topics
Practicum
EMGT 794	Practicum/Internship 4	6
EMGT 895	Field Experience	1-15
Dissertation
Dissertation		15
Total Credits		70-84