Master of Soil Science Requirements
The Master of Soil Science is a non-thesis professional program that is available as both an online, distance education program and an on-campus program. This is considered a terminal degree and is well suited to professionals requiring further education in soils for their careers.
For more information take a look at our Master of Soil Science FAQ page.
Requirements for the degree and graduation are:
- Core requirements completed
- Completion of a minimum of 30 credit hours
- Complete 3 credits of SSC 675 – Project in Soil Science
- At least one credit of SSC 601 – Seminar, and you may take up to two credits
- No more than six credit hours of 400-level undergraduate courses may be used in the 30 hour requirement and those courses must be from outside soil science
- At least 21 credit hours must be letter grade courses (i.e., A, B, C, etc) at the 500 and 700 level earned while the student is in the graduate program – these must be NC State courses or inter-institutional courses
- Complete all requirements within six calendar years after the student first enrolls in a graduate course applicable to the program
We do not require the GRE Exam for admission to the program.
Core Requirements for the Master of Soil Science Degree
The table below shows the core requirements for all Soil Science graduate students. All Master of Soil Science students are required to demonstrate competence in four of the five core courses and to complete at least 1 credit of SSC 601 Seminar. The required competencies can be achieved using relevant course work from a previous graduate degree program and/or completing these courses at NC State. In rare cases, relevant professional experience may be considered. When a students Advisory Committee agrees that prior coursework, or in rare cases relevant professional experience, satisfies one or more competencies, a written request must be submitted to the Director of Soil Science Graduate Programs for approval.
| Course | Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| SSC 511 | Soil Physics | 4 |
| SSC 521 | Soil Chemistry | 3 |
| SSC 532 | Soil Microbiology | 4 |
| SSC 541 | Soil Fertility | 3 |
| SSC 551 | Soil Morphology, Genesis and Classification | 3 |
| SSC 592 | Soil Mapping – concurrent with 551 | 1 |
| SSC 601/801 | Seminar | 1 |
Elective Courses
The following are examples of courses that can be used in your program. Other courses may work as well, so consult with your advisor. Note that not all of these are available as online courses and would require you to attend face to face. A Statistics course is highly recommended.
| Course | Course Title | Credits | Available Online? |
|---|---|---|---|
| SSC 535 | Root and Rhizosphere Processes for Plant Nutrition | 3 | No |
| SSC 540 | Geographic Information Systems in Soil Science and Agriculture | 3 | No |
| SSC 562 | Environmental Applications Of Soil Science | 3 | Yes |
| SSC 570 | Wetland Soils | 3 | Yes |
| SSC 590 | Special Problems | 1-6 (arranged with a faculty member) | Yes |
| BAE 578 | Agricultural Waste Management | 3 | Yes |
| CS 528 | Advanced Regulatory Science in Agriculture | 3 | Yes |
| GIS XXX | Many available | 3 | Yes |
| ST 511 | Statistical Methods For Researchers I | 3 | Yes |