Graduate Programs

To ensure forests for our future, our global society needs to find the optimal balance between maintaining forest ecosystems and the demand for forest products. As this challenge becomes more complex, professionals trained in the principles of forest ecology, soil science, and silviculture as well as in political science, sociology, and the humanities, will be in great demand in the next ten to twenty years and beyond.

The Forestry Department at Michigan State University offers master of science and doctoral degree programs that can provide you with the additional knowledge, skills, and resources to meet this challenge effectively. Career opportunities in research, management, teaching, extension, or consulting are available with private corporations, environmental organizations, universities, environmental consultants, and governmental agencies.

Forestry at MSU
Formally established in 1902, the Department of Forestry at MSU is the oldest existing in the United States and widely recognized as one of the nation's finest. Our programs are at the forefront of teaching and research in management policy, economics, conservation, and other aspects of the human dimension, as well as ecology, physiology, silviculture, and soil science. In fulfilling the university's land grant mission, the department is committed to serving the needs of Michigan's citizens.

Our faculty, who are considered among the top professionals in their fields, are actively engaged in research in a wide variety of disciplinary issues and multidisciplinary projects involving both domestic and international students. In addition to teaching, research, graduate student advising and extension activities, they frequently serve as scientific journal editors, consultants to industry and government, and officers of professional organizations. They have been extraordinarily successful in obtaining research funds from state and federal agencies and private industry.

Programs of Study