Program Overview

Introduction to the Fisheries and Wildlife Administration Graduate Major (PSM)

The Professional Science Master's degree in Fisheries and Wildlife Administration (PSMFWA) is designed to provide advanced training for early- and mid-career professionals employed by natural resources agencies, non-government organizations, and other entities with a need for expertise in fisheries and wildlife science.

Program Overview

The PSMFWA degree will help employers meet workforce planning goals and contribute to self-improvement goals of current employees. It is taught primarily as a distance, online curriculum via Ecampus, although some students may choose to work toward the PSMFWA degree while in residence at OSU or at the Hatfield Marine Science Center.

Program Structure

The PSMFWA degree is offered as a non-thesis program only. Students have an advisor and graduate committee to review their program of study, provide career and internship advice, and evaluate a final report based on the internship experience.

Learning Outcomes

The program aims to achieve the following learning outcomes:

• Conduct research or produce some other form of creative work.
• Demonstrate mastery of subject material.
• Conduct scholarly or professional activities in an ethical manner.
• Communication of Science in outreach product.
• Produce a well-written thesis that places their work in proper context and uses correct style and grammar to effectively communicate major findings.
• Deliver a well-organized and easy-to-follow defense seminar.
• Demonstrate good oral communications skills during the closed defense with their committee.
• Display evidence of critical thinking skills during the oral defense.
• Articulate subject area knowledge related to Human Dimensions and Policy through their defense and project write-up.

Curriculum

The 45-credit PSMFWA curriculum is organized into six main sections:

1. Biology, Ecology, and Habitat core (15-16 credits)
2. Technical Skills core (6-8 credits)
3. Social Sciences core (9-10 credits)
4. Communication and Management Skills core (6-8 credits)
5. Ethics (1 course)
6. Internship (6 credits)

Biology, Ecology, and Habitat Core

Select a minimum of 15 credits from the following courses, including at least one course from the Habitat list:

• Wildlife:
  • FW 519: THE NATURAL HISTORY OF WHALES AND WHALING
  • FW 527: PRINCIPLES OF WILDLIFE DISEASES
  • FW 535: WILDLIFE IN AGRICULTURAL ECOSYSTEMS
  • FW 551: AVIAN CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT
  • FW 558: MAMMAL CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT
  • FW 563: CONSERVATION BIOLOGY OF WILDLIFE
  • FW 569: METHODS IN PHYSIOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR OF MARINE MEGAFAUNA
  • FW 575: WILDLIFE BEHAVIOR
  • FW 581: WILDLIFE ECOLOGY
• Fish:
  • FW 554: FISHERY BIOLOGY
  • FW 564: MARINE CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
  • FW 573: FISH ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION
  • FW 576: FISH PHYSIOLOGY
  • FW 597: AQUACULTURE
• Habitat:
  • FES 536: CARBON SEQUESTRATION IN FORESTS
  • FES 548: INVASIVE PLANTS: BIOLOGY, ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
  • FW 518: URBAN ECOLOGY
  • FW 521: AQUATIC BIOLOGICAL INVASIONS
  • FW 526: COASTAL ECOLOGY AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
  • FW 534: ESTUARINE ECOLOGY
  • FW 545/FES 545: ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION
  • FW 552/FES 552: FOREST WILDLIFE HABITAT MANAGEMENT
  • FW 556: FRESHWATER ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION
  • FW 562: ECOSYSTEM SERVICES
  • FW 567: ANTARCTIC SCIENCE AND CONSERVATION
  • FW 579: WETLANDS AND RIPARIAN ECOLOGY
  • FW 580: STREAM ECOLOGY
  • MNR 530: TROPICAL FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT: A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE
  • MNR 538: ADAPTING FORESTS TO CLIMATE CHANGE
  • MNR 550: CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS ON FOREST ECOSYSTEMS
  • RNG 521: RANGELAND RESTORATION AND MANAGEMENT
  • SNR 530: ECOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES OF SUSTAINABLE NATURAL RESOURCES
  • SNR 535: SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF AQUATIC AND RIPARIAN RESOURCES
  • SNR 540: GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE
  • SOIL 511: SOIL: A NATURAL AND SOCIETAL RESOURCE
  • BOT 540: FIELD METHODS IN PLANT ECOLOGY

Technical Skills Core Courses

Select a minimum of 6 credits from the following courses:

• FES 522/MNR 522: RESEARCH METHODS SOCIAL SCIENCE
• FW 523: MONITORING WILDLIFE POPULATIONS AND THEIR HABITATS
• FW 524: INTRODUCTION TO FISHERIES ASSESSMENT
• FW 529: ICHTHYOPLANKTON IDENTIFICATION LABORATORY
• FW 569: METHODS IN PHYSIOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR OF MARINE MEGAFAUNA
• FW 583: SPECIES RECOVERY PLANNING AND RESTORATION
• FW 598: AQUACULTURE LABORATORY
• GEOG 560: GISCIENCE I: INTRODUCTION TO GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SCIENCE
• GEOG 561: GISCIENCE II: ANALYSIS AND APPLICATIONS
• GEOG 580: REMOTE SENSING I: PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATIONS
• GEOG 581: SATELLITE IMAGE ANALYSIS
• MCB 671/VMB 671:
• ST 516: FOUNDATIONS OF DATA ANALYTICS
• ST 517: DATA ANALYTICS I
• WRP 523: ENVIRONMENTAL WATER TRANSACTIONS

Social Sciences Core Courses

• FW 560: PSYCHOLOGY OF ENVIRONMENTAL DECISIONS (3 credits) Select a minimum of 6 credits from the following courses:
• AEC 532: ENVIRONMENTAL LAW
• AEC 534: ENVIRONMENTAL AND RESOURCE ECONOMICS
• FES 554:
• FES 555/HORT 555: URBAN FOREST PLANNING, POLICY AND MANAGEMENT
• FES 585: CONSENSUS AND NATURAL RESOURCES
• FW 515: FISHERIES AND WILDLIFE LAW AND POLICY
• FW 522: INTRODUCTION TO OCEAN LAW
• FW 539: COMMUNITY SCIENCE
• FW 549: HISTORY OF FISHERIES SCIENCE
• FW 620: ECOLOGICAL POLICY
• GEOG 540: CONFLICT, COOPERATION, AND CONTROL OF WATER IN THE US
• PHL 543: WORLD VIEWS AND ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES
• PPOL 548: MARINE POLICY IN THE UNITED STATES
• PS 555: THE POLITICS OF CLIMATE CHANGE
• PS 575: ENVIRONMENTAL POLITICS AND POLICY
• PS 577: INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLITICS AND POLICY
• SNR 520: SOCIAL ASPECTS OF SUSTAINABLE NATURAL RESOURCES
• SNR 521: ECONOMICS OF SUSTAINABLE NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
• SNR 540: GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE
• SOC 580: ENVIRONMENTAL SOCIOLOGY
• SOC 581: SOCIETY AND NATURAL RESOURCES

Communication and Management Skills Core Courses

Select a minimum of 6 credits from the following courses:

• AHE 534: ORGANIZATIONS AND SYSTEMS THEORY
• AHE 567: LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AND HUMAN RELATIONS
• COMM 550:
• FES 585: CONSENSUS AND NATURAL RESOURCES
• FW 514: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: MEETING COMMUNICATIONS
• FW 537: STRUCTURED DECISION MAKING IN NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
• GRAD 542: THE INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM: DIFFERENCE, POWER AND DISCRIMINATION
• LEAD 542: LEADERSHIP SKILLS FOR CAREER SUCCESS
• LEAD 543: LEADERSHIP THROUGH CONVERSATIONS
• WRP 521: WATER CONFLICT MANAGEMENT AND TRANSFORMATION

Ethics

Select one of the following courses:

• GRAD 520: RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH
• PHL 540: ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS
• PHL 547: RESEARCH ETHICS
• SNR 522: BASIC BELIEFS AND ETHICS IN NATURAL RESOURCES

Internship

• FW 510: PROFESSIONAL INTERNSHIP (6 credits) or
• FW 506: PROJECTS

Total Credits

Total Credits: 45

All courses on these lists are available online. Students taking on-campus or hybrid courses may find logical substitutions that can be approved by the program director.