Sven Verlinden, Division Director of Plant and Soil Sciences
email: sven.verlinden@mail.wvu.edu
Daniel Panaccione, Assistant Director of Graduate Programs
email: danpan@mail.wvu.edu
Degree Offered
- Master of Science
*For Ph.D. option, see Applied and Environmental Microbiology area of emphasis under Ph.D. in Plant and Soil Sciences
Nature of the Program
From plants to animals to air, microorganisms inhabit every facet of the world. Both beneficial and harmful, microorganisms play important roles in the areas of public health, plant disease, pollution and ecology. This program is ideal for students who want to have a career at the forefront of these industries. Gain professional development and research experience as you further your education in our graduate program.
Admissions
M.S. Applied and Environmental Microbiology
In order for a student to be admitted to the program, the applicant normally must fulfill the following admission criteria to be considered:
- Possess a baccalaureate degree.
- Have a minimum undergraduate grade point average of 3.0.
- Have an adequate academic aptitude at the graduate level as measured by the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or other tests/evidence.
- Provide three letters of reference from persons acquainted with the applicant’s professional work, experience, or academic background.
- Submit a written statement of approximately 500 words indicating the applicant’s goals and objectives relative to receiving a graduate degree.
International students must meet WVU's minimum score requirement for English language proficiency.
Accelerated B.S./M.S.Applied and Environmental Microbiology
The ABM-AEM program will directly admit first year students (early admission) or admit students after the completion of at least 60 credit hours.
Early Admission
For early admission, entering WVU first-year students must have a minimum high school GPA of 3.0 and SAT or ACT test scores at or above the 70th percentile. Early admitted students must meet the standards described below for regular admission to continue in the ABM-AEM program after the completion of 60 credits. Students must provide a personal statement of no less than 500 words identifying the applicant's goals and objectives in obtaining the ABM-AEM degree and three letters of reference, at least two of which are required from persons familiar with the applicant's academic performance including those serving in an advisory role such as teachers, school administrators, or a guidance counselor.
Regular Admission
Only currently enrolled WVU students may be considered for regular admission to the program. Transfer students must complete at least 24 credit hours as degree-seeking students at WVU before applying to the program. ABM-AEM is not available to students seeking a second (or subsequent) bachelor's degree. Regular admission may not be any earlier than the semester in which an undergraduate student is expected to complete 60 credits or any later than the semester after which the student needs two additional semesters to complete the bachelor's degree. The minimum standard for regular admission is a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.0, with no provisional admissions allowed. Students must provide a personal statement of no less than 500 words identifying the applicant's goals and objectives in obtaining the ABM-AEM degree and three letters of reference, at least two of which are required from persons familiar with the applicant's academic performance including those serving in an advisory role such as teachers, school administrators, or a guidance counselor.
Admission Requirements 2024-2025
The Admission Requirements above will be the same for the 2024-2025 Academic Year.
Major Code: 0772
A candidate for the M.S. degree in Applied and Environmental Microbiology must meet all University, College, Division, and Program requirements as outlined in the WVU Graduate Catalog.
Program Requirements
All M.S. degree candidates are required to follow a planned program of study. The student develops the plan of study during their first year in the program in conjunction with the graduate committee. The plan must be approved by the Director of the Division and the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs of the Davis College.
Code | Title | Hours |
---|---|---|
Thesis Option: | ||
A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 is required in all courses applied toward degree requirements. | ||
Select one of the following: | 3 | |
Statistical Methods 1 | ||
Applied Biostatistics 1 | ||
Select one of the following: | 3 | |
Statistical Methods 2 | ||
Applied Biostatistics 2 | ||
Seminar | 3 | |
Graduate Seminar | ||
Research | 6 | |
Research | ||
Discipline-Oriented Coursework * | 15 | |
(AEM, AGBI, AGRN, BIOL, ENTO, GEN, HORT, IMMB, MICB, PLSC, PPTH) | ||
Plan of Study | ||
Thesis | ||
Total Hours | 30 |
Code | Title | Hours |
---|---|---|
Non-Thesis Option: | ||
A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 is required in all courses applied toward degree requirements. | ||
Select one of the following: | 3 | |
Statistical Methods 1 | ||
Statistical Methods 2 | ||
Applied Biostatistics 1 | ||
Applied Biostatistics 2 | ||
Graduate Chemistry/Biochemistry Course | 3 | |
Nutritional Biochemistry | ||
General Biochemistry | ||
General Biochemistry | ||
Soil Chemistry | ||
Plant Biochemistry | ||
Seminar | 3 | |
Graduate Seminar | ||
Teaching Practicum | 2 | |
Teaching Practicum | ||
Discipline-Oriented Coursework * | 15 | |
(AEM, AGBI, AGRN, BIOL, ENTO, GEN, HORT, IMMB, MICB, PLSC, PPTH) | ||
Independent Study | 3 | |
Independent Study | ||
Electives | 7 | |
Plan of Study | ||
Total Hours | 36 |
- *
Excludes 797 and limit 590, 690, and 790 to no more than 3 credit hours
- **
Students must complete a minimum of 30 total hours, of which at least 24 hours must be coursework other than research, thesis, project, internship, etc. credits.
Accelerated BS/MS Applied Environmental Microbiology
Curriculum Requirements
Code | Title | Hours |
---|---|---|
University Requirements | 26 | |
Environmental Microbiology Program Requirements | 22 | |
Environmental Microbiology Major Requirements | 60 | |
M.S. Applied and Environmental Microbiology Requirements | 36 | |
Total Hours | 144 |
University Requirements
Code | Title | Hours |
---|---|---|
General Education Foundations (GEF) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 (31-37 Credits) | ||
Outstanding GEF Requirements 1, 4, 5, 6, and 7 | 18 | |
ANRD 191 | First-Year Seminar | 1 |
General Electives | 7 | |
Total Hours | 26 |
Environmental Microbiology Program Requirements
Code | Title | Hours |
---|---|---|
BIOL 115 & 115L | Principles of Biology and Principles of Biology Laboratory (GEF 8) | 4 |
BIOL 117 & 117L | Introductory Physiology and Introductory Physiology Laboratory (GEF 8) | 4 |
CHEM 115 & 115L | Fundamentals of Chemistry 1 and Fundamentals of Chemistry 1 Laboratory (GEF 2) | 4 |
CHEM 116 & 116L | Fundamentals of Chemistry 2 and Fundamentals of Chemistry 2 Laboratory (GEF 8) | 4 |
Select one of the following (GEF 3): | 3 | |
Applied Calculus | ||
Calculus 1a with Precalculus | ||
Calculus 1 | ||
STAT 211 | Elementary Statistical Inference | 3 |
Total Hours | 22 |
Environmental Microbiology Major Requirements
Code | Title | Hours |
---|---|---|
AEM 216 | Living in a Microbial World | 3 |
AEM 341 | General Microbiology | 3 |
AEM 341L | General Microbiology Laboratory | 1 |
AEM 401 | Environmental Microbiology | 3 |
AEM 401L | Environmental Microbiology Laboratory | 1 |
AEM 470 | Microbes and Global Change | 3 |
AGBI 410 | Introductory Biochemistry | 3 |
BIOL 219 | The Living Cell | 3 |
BIOL 219L | The Living Cell Laboratory | 1 |
CHEM 233 & 233L | Organic Chemistry 1 and Organic Chemistry 1 Laboratory | 4 |
CHEM 234 & 234L | Organic Chemistry 2 and Organic Chemistry 2 Laboratory | 4 |
GEN 371 & 371L | Principles of Genetics and Principles of Genetics Laboratory | 4 |
PHYS 101 & 101L | Introductory Physics 1 and Introductory Physics 1 Laboratory (GEF 8) | 4 |
PHYS 102 & 102L | Introductory Physics 2 and Introductory Physics 2 Laboratory (GEF 8) | 4 |
PPTH 401 | General Plant Pathology | 3 |
PPTH 401L | General Plant Pathology Laboratory | 1 |
Restricted Electives | 15 | |
Food Microbiology | ||
Food Microbiology Lab | ||
Special Topics | ||
Independent Study | ||
Animal Biotechnology | ||
Animal Biotechnology Laboratory | ||
Introduction to Virology | ||
Principles of Soil Science | ||
Principles of Soil Science Laboratory | ||
Soil Fertility | ||
Environmental Soil Management | ||
Environmental Soil Management Laboratory | ||
Agricultural and Natural Resources Law | ||
Introduction to Virology | ||
Immunology | ||
Evolution of Infectious Diseases | ||
Microbial Symbiosis | ||
Global Ecology | ||
Technical Writing | ||
Principles of Entomology | ||
Principles of Entomology Laboratory | ||
Pest Management | ||
Environmental Sampling and Analysis | ||
Environmental Impact Assessment | ||
Environmental Impact Assessment Laboratory | ||
Nematology | ||
Nematology Laboratory | ||
Forest Pest Management | ||
Forest Pest Management Laboratory | ||
Special Topics | ||
Independent Study | ||
Mycology | ||
Mycology Laboratory | ||
Total Hours | 60 |
M.S. Applied and Environmental Microbiology Requirements
Code | Title | Hours |
---|---|---|
A minimum GPA of 3.0 is required. | ||
Choose from the following courses: | 12 | |
Food Microbiology | ||
or AEM 545 | Food Microbiology | |
Special Topics | ||
Basic Concepts of Modern Genetics | ||
Nematology and Nematology Laboratory | ||
Nematology and Nematology Laboratory | ||
Mycology and Mycology Laboratory | ||
Statistical Methods 1 | ||
Seminar | 2 | |
Graduate Seminar | ||
Electives | 22 | |
Oral Examination | ||
Total Hours | 36 |
Suggested Plan of Study
First Year | |||
---|---|---|---|
Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
ANRD 191 | 1 | CHEM 116 & 116L (GEF 8) | 4 |
BIOL 115 & 115L | 4 | BIOL 117 & 117L | 4 |
CHEM 115 & 115L (GEF 2) | 4 | STAT 211 (GEF 8) | 3 |
ENGL 101 (GEF 1) | 3 | GEF 4 | 3 |
MATH 150 (GEF 3) | 3 | GEF 5 | 3 |
15 | 17 | ||
Second Year | |||
Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
AEM 216 | 3 | AEM 341 & 341L | 4 |
CHEM 233 & 233L | 4 | CHEM 234 & 234L | 4 |
ENGL 102 (GEF 1) | 3 | BIOL 219 & 219L | 4 |
PHYS 101 & 101L | 4 | PHYS 102 & 102L | 4 |
14 | 16 | ||
Third Year | |||
Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
AGBI 410 | 3 | AEM 470 | 3 |
GEN 371 & 371L | 4 | GEF 6 | 3 |
Restricted Electives | 3 | GEF 7 | 3 |
General Electives | 4 | Restricted Electives | 6 |
General Elective | 3 | ||
14 | 18 | ||
Fourth Year | |||
Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
PPTH 401 & 401L | 4 | AEM 401 & 401L | 4 |
Restricted Elective | 3 | Graduate Course 3 | 3 |
Graduate Course 1 | 3 | Graduate Course 4 | 3 |
Graduate Course 2 | 3 | Restricted Elective | 3 |
13 | 13 | ||
Fifth Year | |||
Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
Graduate Electives | 11 | Graduate Electives | 11 |
PPTH 796 | 1 | PPTH 796 | 1 |
12 | 12 | ||
Total credit hours: 144 |
Major Learning Outcomes
Applied and Environmental Microbiology
Students will acquire fundamental knowledge of applied and environmental microbiology and associated fields such as biochemistry, genetics, and biology.
Students will acquire detailed knowledge of their particular subdiscipline or research area, including the scientific literature fundamental to their discipline and the ability to stay current on scientific literature.
Students will acquire technical skills in the laboratory.
Students will develop the ability to communicate in writing and orally about scientific concepts and the results of their research.
Students will develop the ability to design, conduct, and interpret the results of experiments.