The Warnell School promotes the development of scientists and professional resource managers capable of solving natural resource problems through understanding and application of biological, economic, environmental, social, and analytical principles.  Graduate students in Warnell are expected to be creative scholars and to develop the ability to fill positions of leadership in research, education, and management. 

To prepare leaders in the conservation and sustainable management of forests and other natural resources; to discover ways to restore and better use the earth’s natural resources; and to put into practice forestry and natural resources knowledge.

The MS degree is a research degree designed for students who want to specialize in particular academic or scientific areas. This degree is for students who plan an academic, research, or staff specialist career, and for those students who plan to pursue a PhD. The MS requires a thesis and minimum of 30 semester hours of graduate level course work, 12 hours of which must be in courses open to graduate students only, and three hours of which must be in FORS 7300 (thesis).