Ecology and Environmental Sciences - MS

The Ecology and Environmental Sciences Program (EES) at the University of Maine mission is to provide outstanding interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate programs that equip our students with the skills and knowledge necessary to address today’s complex environmental problems.

EES offers students courses and research opportunities with world-class faculty spanning over a dozen academic disciplines ranging from ecology to environmental engineering and anthropology.  The faculty and students are engaged in cutting-edge research on complex environmental problems in Maine’s forests, lakes, streams, marine and estuarine systems, agricultural systems and human communities.  The students in EES receive broad-based training in both biophysical sciences and social sciences.

The graduate program in Ecology and Environmental Sciences capitalizes on University strengths in ecology, environmental science, and environmental policy. Students can earn MS (thesis or non-thesis) and PhD degrees in Ecology and Environmental Sciences using an integrated interdisciplinary approach to the analysis of ecological and environmental problems.The EES graduate program includes faculty members across 14 academic departments who collectively represent a broad spectrum of expertise in the analysis of physical, chemical, biological, ecological, societal, environmental policy, and paleoecological aspects of terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems.

The thesis-based masters program in EES is designed to provide students with the background necessary to conduct or to evaluate research. Students who might want to continue for a Ph.D. should pursue the thesis option. Graduate research and teaching assistantships may be available to students accepted for the thesis option.

EES provides a non-thesis option for students who need advanced coursework in ecology and environmental sciences to meet their career goals and who want to work in a less research-oriented capacity. This option is considered a terminal degree.