The Ph.D. Program in Soil Science
Eligibility
Students applying for admission to the Ph.D. program, either from another
institution or from the University of Minnesota, must have completed a
Masters degree with thesis (Plan A) or present documented evidence of
research experience equivalent to a Plan A thesis. On occasion, students
currently enrolled in the M.S. program who have demonstrated exceptional
academic and research competencies may be advanced to the Ph.D. program
without prior completion of the M.S. degree upon formal petition signed
by the student and advisor and approved by the Graduate Advisory Committee.
Masters students from the University of Minnesota must make formal application
through the Graduate Advisory Committee by filing the Change of Status
Readmission Request Form (G.S. 72) after completion of the M.S. degree.
GRADUATE STUDENTS ON THE MS TRACK INTENDING TO CARRY ON WITH A PHD
AT THE U OF M SHOULD MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED IN THE GRADUATE
PHD PROGRAM BEFORE THEY OFFICIALLY OBTAIN THEIR MS DEGREE. IN OTHER WORDS,
SUBMIT YOUR DOCTORAL APPLICATION FORMS TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL AT LEAST
ONE MONTH BEFORE YOU GRADUATE. OTHERWISE, THERE WILL BE A PERIOD WHEN
YOU WILL NO LONGER BE A STUDENT AT THE U OF M, WITH FINANCIAL CONSEQUENCES,
AND MORE SERIOUS IMPLICATIONS FOR FOREIGN STUDENTS.
The Graduate Advisory
Committee will consider the formal application in connection with a review
of the personal file of the student and appropriate interviews with the
student or staff members. Students may not enroll in courses toward the
Ph.D. without the necessary approval of the Graduate Advisory Committee,
the Director of Graduate Studies, and the Graduate School.
Background Requirements
Academic background requirements for the Ph.D. degree are the same as
those described earlier in this document for graduate work in Soil Science
plus the minimum credit requirements in the major field as described for
the Plan A Type M.S. program..
Registration Requirements
Candidates for the Ph.D. must register in the Graduate School for at
least six semesters. Students should familiarize themselves with the Graduate
School Bulletin for other registration requirements. The above
applies to registration requirements only. The University of Minnesota
does not have residency requirements.
Minimum Coursework Requirements
Requirements for the PhD are similar
to those for the Plan A Type M.S. with some exceptions. There are no minimum
credit requirements for the PhD but there are coursework requirements. A minimum of 12 credits are
required for a supporting program, or the number of credits required by
a minor. In addition to making up any specified deficiencies in academic
background, the Ph.D. degree program must include a minimum of two credits of Seminar
(SOIL 8128) and 2 credits of Teaching Experience SOIL 8550. An additional 24-doctoral-thesis credit
(SOIL 8888) must be completed before receiving the Ph.D. degree; doctoral
thesis credits may not be taken before completion of all program coursework
requirements and advancement to candidacy. Up to 6 University of Minnesota
master's thesis credits can be used toward the 24 credit doctoral requirement.
Students in the Soil Science Track are required to take all four of the
following four core courses:
- SOIL 5232, Vadose Zone Hydrology,
- SOIL 5311, Soil Chemistry and Mineralogy;
- SOIL 5515, Soil Genesis and Landscape Relations; and
- SOIL 5611, Soil Biology and Fertility.
Students in the Climatology Track are required to take a minimum of three
or more graduate level courses in Climatology or Atmospheric Sciences
(approved by the student's advisory committee) and two of the four core
courses in Soil Science listed below.
- Core Courses in Soil Science
- SOIL 5232 Vadose Zone Hydrology
- SOIL 5311 Soil Chemistry and Mineralogy
- SOIL 5515 Soil Genesis and Landscape Relations
- SOIL 5611 Soil Biology and Fertility
- Graduate Courses Acceptable for Climatology Track
- SOIL 5211 Environmental Biophysics and Ecology
- SOIL 5402 Biometeorology.
Specific subject area requirements may be waived, where a given subject
area is either adequately represented on the undergraduate transcript,
or an alternate course is approved by written petition (signed by the
student and advisor) to the Graduate Advisory Committee.
Beyond these courses, the number and nature of the courses to be taken
in the major field will be determined in consultation with the advisor
and in accordance with the interests and competence of the advisee, and
final approval of the student's thesis committee, the Graduate Advisory
Committee, and Director of Graduate Studies. Courses in the major field
may consist of Soil Science courses and courses in closely allied fields.
Unless approved by petition to the Graduate Advisory Committee, all courses
in the major field must be taken on a regular grading basis (A-N) unless
offered on an (S-N) basis only, such as seminar and colloquia.
Graduate Student Education in Research and Professional Ethics - Soil 8123
Students must take this required class to meet the requirement for professional ethics in research.
Language Options
There is no foreign language requirement for the Ph.D. degree, but the
option to include one such component in the Ph.D. program is available.
Candidates who have special career objectives and who wish to document
a foreign language proficiency in their record that is particularly pertinent
to those career objectives may wish to consider this option. Higher proficiency
in a single foreign language is meant to embody a level of both reading
and conversational skill adequate to the use of the language as a professional
tool. The determination of proficiency will be made by the appropriate
language department.
Filing of the Ph.D. Program
The "Degree Program Transmittal" form obtained from the Graduate
School is used to submit the proposed course work program for the Ph.D.
degree. This program is approved by
the advisor and thesis committee and submitted to the Graduate Advisory
Committee for review and recommendation to the Director of Graduate Studies
who in turn submits it to the Graduate School. Early submission of the
proposed program is encouraged and it must be submitted before completion
of the end of the second semester of enrollment. If the program has not
been completed by this time, or if there are 4 or more semester hours
of incomplete credits, or an overall GPA of 3.0 or less, a warning will
be placed on the student's registration for the third semester. If the
cause of the warning has not been corrected, a hold will be placed on
the student's registration for the fourth semester. A recent copy of the
student's operational record must accompany the Ph.D. program form.
Selection of Ph.D. Examining Committee
The student's advisor is asked to attach a list of at least five recommended
examining committee members to the Graduate Advisory Committee for approval
along with the Ph.D. program form. These should include at least three
members representing different sub-discipline areas in the major field
as well as at least two members from the minor or supporting fields. The
list of proposed committee members is then passed on to the Director of
Graduate Studies for approval and submission to the Graduate School. Changes
in committee assignments can be made for valid reasons on request of the
advisor or Director of Graduate Studies to the Graduate School. The membership
of the Ph.D. Examining Committee may be significantly different from that
of the student's Preliminary Examination Committee.
Preliminary Written Examination
A written preliminary examination in the major field is required for
all students in the Ph.D. program. All students in the soil science track
take the same integrative written preliminary examination covering all
4 core areas of soil science (Rules of the climatology track will be forthcoming).
Administration of the examination is the responsibility of the Graduate
Examination Committee. The examination will be prepared and graded by
this committee. Grading will be accomplished in a timely manner. Exams
will be given twice a year, shortly after the end of each semester. The
written examination must be taken at the end of 2 semesters of residency.
Results of the examination are reported to the Graduate School on the
appropriate Graduate School form, signed by the Advisory Committee for
information and entry into the student's personal file.If this form is not
signed and filed with the Graduate School, you cannot take the oral exam. Three types of
results are possible: pass, pass with a marginal mention, and fail. In
case of failure, upon approval of the Graduate Examination Committee,
only one retake of the Preliminary Written Examination is allowed, to
be taken at the next regularly scheduled period. The Graduate Examination
Committee will specify some remedial activities for students who have
passed with a marginal mention.
Preliminary Oral Examination
The preliminary oral examination should be scheduled and completed
four weeks after successful completion of the preliminary written examination.
The examination will probe the candidate's weaknesses in the written exam,
and the ability to do research. Reference should be made to the Graduate
Bulletin for details relating to the scheduling, reporting of results,
and re-examination if necessary. The advisor, as chairman of the examination
committee, will provide a copy of the candidates' Ph.D. program and their
graduate progress file at the time of the examination. The date of the
preliminary oral, the names of the committee members, and the outcome
of the examination are recorded in the student's graduate progress file
immediately after the examination, and are reported to the Graduate School.
Prospectus
Within 6 months of passing the written examination, students
must present a research prospectus and defend it to their research advisory
committee.
Filing the Ph.D. Thesis Title Form
The Ph.D. thesis title form and form for thesis statement should be completed
and submitted to the Graduate Advisory Committee along with or shortly
after the program form has been submitted. If this form has not been submitted
to the Graduate School within one semester after passing the preliminary
oral examination, a warning will be placed on the student's registration.
If it has not been submitted by the next semester, a hold will be placed
on the registration.
A list of suggested thesis readers and members for the final oral examination
should be accompany the thesis title form for approval by the Graduate
Advisory Committee. The list of proposed readers and committee members
is then passed on to the Director of Graduate Studies for approval and
submission to the Graduate School.
The Ph.D. Thesis
The Ph.D. thesis must be completed and registered in accordance with
guidelines stipulated by the Graduate School. In addition to the required
copies for the Graduate School, a copy of the thesis is to be provided
to the advisor and one for the Soil Science Reference Room.
Final Oral Examination
The final oral examination is scheduled after successful completion of
the preliminary oral examination and acceptance of the thesis by the thesis
review committee. Students should check with the Graduate School for procedures
for scheduling the examination and deadline and registration requirements
for graduation during a given semester. The committee for the final oral
examination is appointed by the Dean of the Graduate School and is made
up of the candidate's advisor, two official thesis readers and at least
two other members of the graduate faculty. The student's advisor is not
permitted to chair the final oral examination. In addition to the thesis
readers, other members of the committee must be furnished a copy of the
thesis to read several days in advance of the examination. Acceptance
of the thesis by the readers, indicated by signing of the Graduate School
form stating that the thesis is ready for oral defense, is based on the
assumption that the thesis will be corrected in proper response to the
readers' comments. It is the responsibility of the advisor to assure that
the thesis has been corrected accordingly.
The final oral examination involves an open presentation (not for credit)
of the Ph.D. thesis which is immediately followed by the formal meeting
of the Ph.D. examining committee.
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