Graduate
Program Description
The Department of Entomology has an internationally recognized graduate
program, offering both the Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees.
Degree requirements include a combination of core entomology courses
plus electives, and completion of a thesis or dissertation project.
Students can develop their interests in a wide diversity of
focus areas. Graduate students are advised by the Department's
faculty
and
adjunct faculty
. Many of the faculty have received awards and recognitions for contributions
in teaching, research, extension, and service. They have also been highly
successful at winning competitive grants and contracts, which support graduate
students’ stipends and provide funds for students’ research
projects. Several faculty members participate in international research
arrangements, which provide opportunities for graduate student training.
Entomology is also formally linked to several inter-departmental and
inter-institutional graduate programs. These include
Maryland Center for Systematic Entomology
,
Center for Agricultural Biotechnology
,
Maryland Center for Agro-Ecology
,
Marine-Estuarine-Environmental Sciences Program
,
Molecular and Cellular Biology Program
,
Toxicology Program
, and
Behavior, Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics Program
Facilities and support
The Department is housed in the Plant Sciences Building with state-of-the
art facilities that provide an excellent environment for research and
teaching. The University of Maryland's strategic location in the Washington,
DC area provides excellent opportunities for students to conduct research with
leading scientists at the
Smithsonian Institution
,
USDA-ARS Beltsville Agricultural Research Center
,
Walter Reed Research Institute
,
National Institutes of Health
,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
, and other nearby governmental agencies.
Adjunct and affiliate faculty members
from various agencies strengthen and complement different areas of
departmental expertise.
Graduate students in the Department are supported by extramural funding,
University and departmental fellowships and assistantships, grant-associated
research assistantships, and teaching assistantships from the General Biology
program as well as from other departments and programs including chemistry,
environmental sciences, biostatistics, and others.
Student Success
Our graduates have done very well in securing employment in academia; private
industry; federal, state and local governments; and international and national
agencies and enterprises. Highlights include placement in the following
fields:
-
Tenure-track positions
at U.S institutions of higher education including Cornell University,
University of South Dakota, Auburn University, University of Connecticut,
Fordham University, North Carolina State University, Shepherd University,
University of Missouri, Rutgers, University of Wyoming, University of
Delaware, University of Illinois, Virginia Commonwealth University, University
of Minnesota, and other institutions. Within this group, several are or have
been department chairs or in positions of higher administration (including
president) at their institutions.
-
Curatorial and other positions
at museums including the American Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian
Institution National Museum of Natural History, National Museum of Natural
Science (Taiwan), and Museum of Comparative Zoology (Harvard University).
-
Positions with US and international government and public agencies
including USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS), USDA Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service (APHIS), US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),
National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute of Environmental
Health Sciences (NIEHS), Maryland Cooperative Extension, Purdue Extension,
Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, National Agricultural Library, US
Department of Defense, California Department of Food and Agriculture, U.S.
General Services Administration, the Maryland Department of Agriculture, and
New South Wales (Australia) Department of Primary Industries.
-
Faculty and administrative positions
in the armed forces including the US Air Force and Walter Reed Army Institute
of Research. One of these former grad students was appointed to a
position so unique that it required approval by the Secretary of the Air
Force, the U.S. Senate and the White House.
-
Positions in private industry
including pest management services, agricultural production, pesticide
industry research divisions, and private consultancy in agriculture, landscape,
and structural pest management. Several of these former graduate
students are owners of their own businesses.
-
Faculty and research positions at foreign institutions of higher education
including Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Universidad Autonoma del Estado de
Hidalgo (Mexico), Universidad de Costa Rica, Mahidol University (Thailand),
University of Natal (South Africa), Chungbuk National University (Korea),
National Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology (Korea), National
Chung Hsing University (Taiwan), and Université de Neuchâtel
(Switzerland).
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