Natural Resources Management
School of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences
907-474-7083
www.uaf.edu/snras/
Minimum Requirements for Degree: 130 credits
Natural resources management involves making and implementing decisions to develop, maintain or protect ecosystems to meet human needs and values. The core natural resources management curriculum provides students with a broad education in the various natural resources and their related applied fields. Programs can be tailored to enhance a student's depth or breadth in a given field of interest. The program is designed for students desiring careers in resources management or in other fields requiring knowledge of resources management and students planning advanced study, as well as those wishing to be better informed citizens.
The BS degree offers three concentrations: forestry; high latitude agriculture; and humans and the environment. The forestry concentration offers students the opportunity to focus on the multi-resource management of forests and associated ecosystems for the sustained production of goods and services and to prepare for forestry-related employment. The natural resources management/forestry program is the only accredited four-year forestry program in Alaska.
The goals of UAF's forestry program are: to produce graduates who are highly competitive in obtaining professional employment, who have the knowledge to perform well on the job and who are valued for work in Alaska and the circumpolar North; to maintain close student interaction with faculty and provide opportunities for students to obtain practical professional experience as part of their education; and to prepare students for lifelong learning and responsible participation in decision-making about the use of natural resources.
The university provides students with a foundation in the biological, social and physical sciences and a blend of classroom, laboratory and field work to develop skills for a career in forestry. The program is accredited by the Society of American Foresters (SAF).
The high latitude agriculture concentration offers opportunities for scientific study and education in areas such as field and greenhouse plant production, domestication and propagation of native plants, revegetation, domestic and native animal production, and agricultural and ecological aspects of soil science.
The humans and the environment concentration focuses on human interactions with the environment and the balancing of uses, needs and values regarding natural resources. Humans and the environment students will gain a solid foundation in the physical sciences relevant to resources management, but will be distinguished by a focus on social science course work. Students have the opportunity to integrate international study into the degree option. Humans and the environment graduates will have skills needed to identify differing social values, understand policy and the legal foundations of resource management issues, and have knowledge of methods to develop management plans and implement decisions. Graduates will be well-positioned for a variety of careers in public resource management agencies, tribal organizations, private firms and non-profits.
Graduates of the program will have acquired a foundation in the biological, social and physical sciences and a blend of classroom, laboratory and fieldwork experience needed to develop skills for a career. The forestry program leads to a professional degree in forestry. The program is accredited by the Society of American Foresters.
State and federal agencies such as the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Natural Resource Conservation Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service contribute significantly to the instructional program by providing guest lecturers and internship and fieldwork opportunities for students.
Concentrations: Forestry; High Latitude Agriculture; Humans and the Environment
- Complete the general university requirements. (As part of the core curriculum requirements, complete a MATH--Calculus course.)
- Complete the BS degree requirements. (As part of the BS degree requirements, complete STAT F200X*.)
- Complete the following (major) requirements:*
BIOL F115X--Fundamentals of Biology I**--4 credits
BIOL F116X--Fundamentals of Biology II**--4 credits
BIOL F271--Principles of Ecology--4 credits
CHEM F105X--General Chemistry***--4 credits
CHEM F106X--General Chemistry***--4 credits
ECON F235--Introduction to Natural Resource Economics--3 credits
NRM F101--Natural Resources Conservation and Policy--3 credits
NRM F106--Orientation to Natural Resource Management--1 credit
NRM F304W,O--Environmental Decision Making--3 credits
NRM F380W--Soils and the Environment--3 credits
NRM F405W--Senior Thesis in Natural Resources Management I--2 credits
NRM F406W--Senior Thesis in Natural Resources Management II--2 credits - Complete one of the following concentrations:*
Forestry- Complete the following:
BIOL F239--Introduction to Plant Biology (4)
or NRM F211--Introduction to Applied Plant Science (3)--3 - 4 credits
ECON F335O--Intermediate Natural Resource Economics--3 credits
GEOS F101X--The Dynamic Earth--4 credits
NRM F204--Public Lands Law and Policy--3 credits
NRM F251--Silvics and Dendrology--4 credits
NRM F290--Resource Management Issues at High Latitudes--2 credits
NRM F338--Introduction to Geographic Information Systems--3 credits
NRM F340--Natural Resources Measurement and Inventory--3 credits
NRM F365--Principles of Outdoor Recreation Management--3 credits
NRM F370--Introduction to Watershed Management--3 credits
NRM F430--Resource Management Planning--3 credits
NRM F450--Forest Management--3 credits
NRM F440--Silviculture--3 credits
NRM F452--Forest Health and Protection--3 credits
NRM F453--Harvesting and Utilization of Forest Products--3 credits
WLF F322W--Principles and Techniques of Wildlife Management (3)
or FISH F487W,O--Fisheries Management (3)--3 credits - Complete three of the following to total at least 8 credits:****
- Complete at least one of the following non-measurements courses:
BIOL F331--Systematic Botany--4 credits
FIRE--Any course on wildland fire control/management--3 credits
GEOS F408--Photogeology--2 credits
NRM F277--Introduction to Conservation Biology--3 credits
NRM F300--Internship in Natural Resources Management†--1 - 6 credits
NRM F303X--Environmental Ethics and Actions‡--3 credits
NRM F312--Introduction to Range Management--3 credits
WLF F322W--Principles and Techniques of Wildlife Management (3)
or FISH F487W,O--Fisheries Management (3)--3 credits - Complete at least one of the following measurements courses:
CE F112--Elementary Surveying--3 credits
GEOS F422--Geoscience Applications of Remote Sensing--3 credits
NRM F435--GIS Analysis--4 credits
STAT F401--Regression and Analysis of Variance--4 credits
STAT F402--Scientific Sampling--3 credits
- Complete at least one of the following non-measurements courses:
* Students must earn a C- grade or better in each course.
** Satisfies core natural science requirement.
*** Satisfies BS degree natural science requirement.
**** Courses other than those listed must be approved by student's advisor.
† Must be forestry-related.
‡ If used to fulfill the baccalaureate core requirement for ethics/values and choices in the perspectives on the human condition, NRM F303X may not also count toward a natural resources management major. However, in this case, only two courses that total at least 5 credits are required from this list, exclusive of NRM F303X.
- Complete the following:
BIOL F331--Systematic Botany (4)
or BIOL F310--Animal Physiology (4)
or BIOL F317--Comparative Anatomy of Vertebrates (4)--4 credits
NRM F211--Introduction to Applied Plant Science--3 credits
NRM F290--Resource Management Issues at High Latitudes--2 credits
NRM F312--Range Management--3 credits
NRM F320--Animal Science--3 credits
NRM F480--Soil Management for Quality Conservation (3)
or NRM F485--Soil Biology* (3)
or NRM F466--Environmental Soil Chemistry (3)--3 credits - Complete at least 8 credits in biology, botany, physics, chemistry, geosciences and/or mathematics, in addition to the above basic courses. Courses must be approved for science majors.
- Complete at least 9 credits in natural resources management electives:
any NRM course at the F200-level or above that has not been used to meet other requirements. - Complete at least 12 credits beyond those taken to fulfill categories above in a support field which is a group of courses selected for its clear pertinence to a cohesive program. Support fields may include but are not limited to: animal science, chemistry, communications, education, engineering, forestry, geography, marketing, natural resources management, nutrition, plant science, rural development or soils. The courses must be approved by the student's academic advisor prior to attaining senior standing.
* The same course cannot be used to satisfy requirements in both sections a and c.
- Complete the following:
ECON F335--Intermediate Natural Resource Economics--3 credits
NRM F204--Public Lands Law and Policy--3 credits
NRM F365--Principles of Outdoor Recreation Management--3 credits
NRM F430--Resource Management Planning--3 credits
NRM F465--Survey Research in Natural Resources Management--3 credits - Complete at least 12 credits from the following:
FISH F487W,O--Fisheries Management--3 credits
NRM F312--Range Management--3 credits
NRM F340--Natural Resources Measurement and Inventory--3 credits
NRM F370--Introduction to Watershed Management--3 credits
NRM F410--Numerical Methods for Natural Resources Management--3 credits
NRM F450--Forest Management--3 credits
NRM F463--Wilderness Management--3 credits
NRM F480--Soil Management for Quality Conservation--3 credits
WLF F322W--Principles and Techniques of Wildlife Management--3 credits - Complete at least 2 credits from the following:
NRM F290--Resource Management Issues at High Latitudes (2)
or NRM F300--Internship in Natural Resources Management and Geography (2)--2 - 6 credits - Complete 9 credits in a skills-building single field of study:
Skills building provides depth of study in fields employed in humans and the environment-related careers. Courses to be determined by students in consultation with their advisor and approval of the department head. Examples of skills-building fields are: agriculture, art, aviation, business, computer application, curation, fire science, fisheries management, forestry, GIS/remote sensing, hazardous materials, language, law enforcement, statistics and wildlife management.--9 credits - Complete 15 credits in breadth electives:
Electives in humans and the environment provide exposure to a breadth of topic areas relevant to understanding human interaction with the natural environment. A list of approved classes for each topic area is available from the department.
9 credits must be at the F300-level or above. Students are required to complete at least 3 credits from three separate topic areas in meeting the 15 credit requirement:
Alaska and Native Alaskans
Energy and Minerals
Environmental Issues
Law and Politics
Parks and Wilderness--15 credits
- Complete the following:
- Minimum credits required--130 credits
Note: Courses required for the major may also be used to satisfy the general university and BS degree requirements as appropriate.
- Complete the following:
NRM F101--Natural Resources Conservation and Policy--3 credits
NRM electives*--15 credits - Minimum credits required--18 credits
* At least 6 credits must be upper-division. The minor program must be approved by an NRM advisor.