Natural Resource Sciences

This is an archived copy of the 2023-24 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.ndsu.edu.

To qualify for the M.N.R.M. degree, the candidate must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 30 semester credits of course work in the selected curriculum. This can be done in person or online.

To qualify for the M.S. degree, the candidate must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 30 semester units in the selected curriculum, an oral examination, and a thesis or comprehensive study paper. 

To qualify for the Ph.D. degree, the candidate must satisfactorily complete a course of study of no less than 90 semester credits (including 30 semester credits from the M.S. degree or equivalent), both a written and an oral preliminary examination, a research-based dissertation, and an oral final examination on the dissertation. In addition, the candidate presents final public seminar based on the dissertation research. For more specific information, please refer to the School of Natural Resource Sciences website. 

Courses are offered by the School of Natural Resource Sciences and other participating academic units. These include:

  • Agribusiness and Applied Economics
  • Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
  • Agricultural Systems Management
  • Anthropology
  • Biology
  • Botany
  • Civil Engineering
  • Communication
  • Computer Science
  • Economics
  • Entomology
  • Geosciences
  • Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
  • Mathematics
  • Microbiology
  • Philosophy
  • Plant Pathology
  • Plant Sciences
  • Political Science
  • Range Science
  • Sociology
  • Soil Science
  • Statistics
  • Zoology

Emphasis Areas:

  • Entomology
  • Soil Science
  • Natural Resource Management
  • Rangeland Ecology and Wildlife Management

Minimum credit requirements are listed below. Specific courses shall be decided by the students' advisor and committee. 

M.S. 

Plan A - Thesis Option30
Didactic coursework (601-689, 691; 700-789, 791; 800-889, 891)16
Additional Credits4-8
Master's Thesis (798)6-10
Plan B - Master's Paper Option30
Didactic coursework (601-689, 691; 700-789, 791; 800-889, 891)21
Additional Credits5-7
Master's Paper (797)2-4

Emphasis Areas:

  • Entomology
  • Soil Science
  • Natural Resource Management
  • Rangeland Ecology and Wildlife Management

Minimum credit requirements are listed below. Specific courses shall be decided by the students' advisor and committee.

Master's to Ph.D.60
Didactic coursework (700-789, 791; 800-889, 891)15
Additional Courses
Doctoral Dissertation (899)
Bachelor's to Ph.D.90
Didactic coursework (601-689,691; 700-789, 791; 800-889, 891)27
15 must be at the 700 or 800 level
Additional Courses
Doctoral Dissertation (899)

Adnan Akyuz, Ph.D.
University of Missouri-Columbia, 1994
Research Area/Activity: Applied Climatology and Microclimatology/Climate Based Agricultural Management

Larry J. Cihacek, Ph.D.
Iowa State University, 1979
Research Area/Activity: Erosion and Productivity Relationships, Conventional and Alternative Crop Management, Carbon Sequestration, Nutrient Management

Dennis Cooley, Ph.D.
University of Rochester, 1995
Research Area/Activity: Ethics (Bioethics, Environmental, Agricultural, Business, Professional, and Theoretical)

Edward (Shawn) DeKeyser, Ph.D.
North Dakota State University, 2000
Research Area/Activity: Wetland Ecology, Wetland Assessment and Monitoring, Invasive Species Ecology and Management, Native Prairie and Wetland Restoration

Tom DeSutter, Ph.D.
Kansas State University, 2004
Research Area/Activity: Trace Elements, Land Application of Byproducts, Inorganic Soil Chemistry, Soil Environmental Condition

Paulo Flores, Ph.D.
Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Research Area/Activity: Precision Agriculture, Applications of UASs/Drones in Agriculture, UASs/Drone Imagery Analysis, GIS Applications for Precision Agriculture

Caley Gasch, Ph.D.
University of Wyoming, 2013
Research Area/Activity: Soil Ecology, Restoration, Reclamation, Monitoring of Degraded Soils

Benjamin Geaumont, Ph.D.
North Dakota State University, 2009
Research Area/Activity: Evaluation of Upland Bird Survival Habitat Use, Upland Game Species

Kelsey Griesheim, Ph.D.
University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign, 2022
Research Area/Activity: Soil Fertility, Resource Management, Fertilizer Efficiency,  Nitrogen Management

Christina Hargiss, Ph.D.
North Dakota State University, 2009
Research Area/Activity: Wetland Assessment, Water Quality, Water Use, and Urban Ecosystems

Robert Hearne, Ph.D.
University of Minnesota, 1995
Research Area/Activity: Water Resources Management Institutions, Water Markets, Protected Area Management, Economic Valuation of Environmental Goods and Services

Torre Hovick, Ph.D.
Oklahoma State University, 2014
Research Area/Activity: Global change, Avian Ecology, Fire Ecology, Rangeland Management

Xinhua Jia, Ph.D.
University of Arizona, 2004
Research Area/Activity: Soil and Water Engineering, Hydrology

Zhulu Lin, Ph.D.
University of Georgia, 2003
Research Area/Activity: Water and Soil Resources, Environmental Modeling

Lindsay Malone, Ph.D.
University of Wisconsin - Madison, 2022
Research Area/Activity: Climate Smart Approaches to Agriculture, Soil Management, Soil Health, Science Communication 

Jack E. Norland, Ph.D.
North Dakota State University, 2008
Research Area/Activity: Restoration Ecology, Application of Remote Sensing to Natural Resources Management, Study of Natural Resources Management Problems in a Socio-Ecological Setting Including Urban Systems

Deirdre Prischmann-Voldseth, Ph.D.
Washington State University, 2005
Research Area/Activity: Integrated Pest Management, Biological Control, Insect Ecology

David A. Rider, Ph.D.
Louisiana State University, 1988
Research Area/Activity: Insect Systematics

David Ripplinger, Ph.D.
North Dakota State University, 2012
Research Area/Activity: Bioproducts / Bioenergy Economics

David Roberts, Ph.D.
Oklahoma State University, 2009
Research Area/Activity: Agricultural Production Methods, Precision Agriculture Technologies, Biofuels Policy

Travis Seaborn, Ph.D.
Washington State University, 2019
Research Area/Activity: Conservation Biology, Climate Change, Genetics, Social-Ecological Systems, Fish and Wildlife
Kevin Sedivec, Ph.D.
North Dakota State University, 1994
Research Area/Activity: Plant Community Ecology, Grazing and Wildlife Interaction, Reclamation of Energy Developed Lands, Range Nutrition, Range Monitoring

Dean D. Steele, Ph.D.
University of Minnesota, 1991
Research Area/Activity: Irrigation and Environmental Engineering

Joseph D. Zeleznik, Ph.D.
Michigan State University, 2001
Research Area/Activity: Dendrochronology of Ponderosa Pine and Bur Oak, Bur Oak Regeneration, Riparian Forest Restoration