Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences - 5-Year Bachelor of Science and Master of Public Service Administration
The Department of Rangeland, Wildlife and Fisheries Management and The Bush School of Government and Public Service offers a five-year joint-degree program that allows undergraduate students majoring in Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences to enter the Master of Public Service and Administration program at the beginning of their fourth year. The program integrates the science and practice of managing fish and wildlife populations with policies for these public resources on both public and private lands. Students are prepared for careers in conservation with a foundation in life and physical sciences, mathematics, and problem-solving skills that accommodate animals and their habitats within larger ecological systems. After completing the joint-degree, students are prepared for a wide variety of post-graduate opportunities including employment in local, state, or federal government, non-profit organizations, and private industry.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Semester Credit Hours | |
| BIOL 111 | Introductory Biology I | 4 |
| MATH 140 | Mathematics for Business and Social Sciences | 3 |
| RENR 205 | Fundamentals of Ecology | 3 |
| WFSC 101 | Introduction to Wildlife and Fisheries | 3 |
| Free elective 1 | 3 | |
| Semester Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| BIOL 112 | Introductory Biology II | 4 |
| ENGL 104 | Composition and Rhetoric | 3 |
| HIST 105 | History of the United States | 3 |
| MATH 142 | Business Calculus | 3 |
| Language, philosophy and culture elective 1 | 3 | |
| Semester Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| CHEM 119 | Fundamentals of Chemistry I | 4 |
| HIST 106 | History of the United States | 3 |
| POLS 206 | American National Government | 3 |
| WFSC 302 | Natural History of the Vertebrates | 3 |
| Free elective | 1 | |
| Creative arts elective 1 | 3 | |
| Semester Credit Hours | 17 | |
| Spring | ||
| CHEM 222 | Elements of Organic and Biological Chemistry | 3 |
| PHYS 201 | College Physics | 4 |
| POLS 207 | State and Local Government | 3 |
| RENR 215 | Fundamentals of Ecology--Laboratory | 1 |
| WFSC 303 | Fish and Wildlife Laws and Administration | 3 |
| WFSC 401 | General Mammalogy | 3 |
| Semester Credit Hours | 17 | |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| ESSM 351/RENR 405 | Geographic Information Systems for Resource Management | 3 |
| WFSC 311 | Ichthyology | 3 |
| WFSC 403 | Animal Ecology | 3 |
| WFSC 408 | Techniques of Wildlife Management | 3 |
| WFSC 433 | Molecular Ecology in Wildlife and Fisheries | 3 |
| Social and behavioral sciences elective 1 | 3 | |
| Semester Credit Hours | 18 | |
| Spring | ||
| COMM 203 or ENGL 210 | Public Speaking or Technical and Professional Writing | 3 |
| WFSC 304 | Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation | 3 |
| WFSC 402 | General Ornithology | 3 |
| WFSC 484 | Internship | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Wildland Watershed Management | ||
| Wildland Plants of North America | ||
| Agrostology | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Introduction to Biometry | ||
| Statistical Methods | ||
| Statistical Methods | ||
| Semester Credit Hours | 18 | |
| Fourth Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| BUSH 631 | Quantitative Methods in Public Management I 2 | 3 |
| PSAA 601 | Foundations of Public Service 2 | 3 |
| PSAA 621 | Economic Analysis 2 | 3 |
| PSAA 643 | Foundations of the Nonprofit Sector 2 | 3 |
| Semester Credit Hours | 12 | |
| Spring | ||
| PSAA 611 | Public Policy Formation 2 | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Quantitative Methods in Public Management II | ||
| Quantitative Methods in Public Management II: Policy Analysis Emphasis | ||
| Program Evaluation in Public and Nonprofit Organizations | ||
| PSAA Track Core | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Public Finance | ||
| Public Management | ||
| Management and Leadership of Nonprofit Organizations | ||
| WFSC Directed Elective 2 | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Wildlife Restoration | ||
| Wetland Ecology and Pollution | ||
| Wildlife Ecotoxicology | ||
| Applied Biodiversity Science I | ||
| Directed Studies | ||
| Semester Credit Hours | 12 | |
| Fifth Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| PSAA 675 | Public Service and Administration Capstone Seminar | 3 |
| PSAA Track Core | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Policy Analysis | ||
| Budgeting in Public Service | ||
| Fiscal Management for Nonprofits | ||
| Directed electives 3 | 6 | |
| Semester Credit Hours | 12 | |
| Spring | ||
| PSAA 676 | Public Service and Administration Capstone Seminar II | 3 |
| Directed electives 3 | 9 | |
| Semester Credit Hours | 12 | |
| Total Semester Credit Hours | 150 | |
| 1 | Graduation requirements include a requirement for three hours of an international and cultural diversity course and three hours of a cultural discourse course. A course satisfying a core category, a college/department requirement, or a free elective can be used to satisfy this requirement. |
| 2 | Courses taken for credit in both the undergraduate and graduate degree for a combined total of 18 credits: BUSH 631, PSAA 601, PSAA 611, PSAA 621, PSAA 643, and WFSC Directed Elective (WFSC 619, WFSC 628, WFSC 639, WFSC 655/RPTS 655, or WFSC 685). |
| 3 | Directed electives to be chosen to meet requirements for one of the three degree tracks in Master of Public Service and Administration (MPSA); Public Policy Analysis (PPA), Public Management (PM), or Non-Profit Management (NPM). |
Students are required to make a C or better in all WFSC and RENR 205/RENR 215 courses.
The program includes a total of 168 hours which up to 18 hours may be applied toward both the Bachelor of Science in Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences and the Master of Public Service Administration.