The Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture (PSLA) directs the graduate program in Plant Science (PLSC). The program’s faculty members provide training in a wide variety of plant science related disciplines including plant functional genomics and molecular physiology, plant conservation biology and ecology, plant protection and management, and landscape resource management. The program offers graduate study leading to the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees.
For a full description of our program please visit the Graduate Catalog Plant Science's page.
General Information
The objectives of the Plant Science Graduate Program are as follows:
- Assist students in developing scholarship of plant science sufficient to allow them to make professional contributions and to be leaders in plant sciences, management and in the plant-based industries.
- Advance knowledge in plant sciences critical to improving the efficiency, profitability and sustainability of global and national agricultural and natural resources.
- Provide students with the skills in analyzing and interpreting quantitative and qualitative information; using inductive and deductive reasoning; and communicating verbally and in writing.
The Department’s aspiration is to strengthen its position as a national leader in plant science graduate training. The Plant Science Graduate Program aims to establish a program focused on plant-based sciences and management along with application of research to help solve the pressing problems in agriculture, urban and natural ecosystems and plant conservation. The program advances graduate training and research at all levels of organization from the genomic and molecular level, to the whole organism, to agricultural systems and to natural and designed ecosystems.
Facilities and Special Resources
The majority of laboratory space and offices for faculty in the PSLA Department are located at the College Park Campus in the Plant Sciences Building and the Research Greenhouse Complex. Laboratories are equipped for chemical, biochemical, molecular, genomic, and physiological research in plant science. Extensive controlled-environment facilities, a state-of-the-art greenhouse, and a series of network of commodity-oriented field research farms (Western Maryland Research and Education Center, Keedysville MD; Central Maryland Research and Education Center, Beltsville MD, Clarksville MD, and Upper Marlboro MD; Turfgrass Research and Education Center, Beltsville MD; Wye Research and Education Center, Queenstown MD; Lower Eastern Shore Research and Education Center, Salisbury MD) provide a rich array of facilities and resources to the program.
PSLA Research Areas
For more information on the faculty that teach in this program, please visit our Faculty page.
- Agriculture Production and Information Systems
- Food Safety of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
- Invasives and Weed Science
- Landscape Architecture and Studies
- Plant Ecology and Conservation Biology
- Plant Pathology and Food Security
- Plant Physiology and Development
Prospective Students
Admission Requirements for PLSC Applicants
- A baccalaureate from an accredited college or university in the United States or the equivalent in a foreign country.
- A minimum B average (3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale) for all undergraduate courses (at least 16 credit hours of prior course work in science and mathematics that includes calculus, physics, organic chemistry, biochemistry, microbiology, plant science, ecology and genetics or statistics).
- TOEFL or IELTS (for international applicants only). For latest requirements, please visit the Graduate School page.
- Full list of requirements can be found on the Graduate School's Plant Science page.
Required Documents
- Statement of Purpose (< 500 words)
- Transcript(s)
- TOEFL/IELTS (international graduate students)
- Letters of Recommendation (3)
- Graduate Record Examination (GRE) (optional)
- GRE Subject (optional)
- CV/Resume
- Writing Samples (one required, up to one more optional)
- Description of Research/Work Experience (1,000-1,500 words)
- Portfolio PDF Upload (optional)
- Faculty of Interest & Area of Interest (applicants without this information will be delayed for evaluation)
- Learn more about our faculty!
- Publications/Presentations (optional)
Application Program Description Application Deadlines Tuition
Contact us
For more information about Graduate Admissions, please contact plscgradadmissions@umd.edu.
Fee Waiver Information and Eligibility
For questions regarding graduate application fee waivers, email The Graduate School: gradschool@umd.edu or visit the Fee Waiver Information and Eligibility page.

Dr. Shirley Micallef, Professor and Chair, PLSC Graduate Admissions and Examination Review Committee
phone301-405-4369
Current Students
New Students
Welcome to UMD!
Looking forward to having you join us this upcoming semester! Just a reminder that these are some great resources for you:
- Graduate School
- Checklist for New Students - Includes information on fulfilling conditions of enrollment, Directory ID setup information for access to UMD resources, student ID, submitting immunization records, and how to register
- New student resources
- Graduate School New Student Orientation
- Graduate Student Teaching Orientation
- Graduate School Events Calendar
- Department
- We recommend that you read through the tabs on this page as well as check out our People page to familiarize yourself with our faculty, staff, and students!
- Technology
- As a UMD student, you have access to a variety of useful software programs. To download these and other resources, visit Terpware. For questions or help with other IT related issues, please contact our IT Specialist, Chris Behnke, at cbehnke@umd.edu.
Graduate Handbook
ATTENTION: Please use the forms found in the "Deadlines & Plant Science Graduate Forms" tab as these are the latest versions. Thanks!
The PLSC Graduate Program Handbook was approved by the PSLA faculty. It contains important policies and useful information for students whose first semester of enrollment is spring 2016 or after. Policies specified by the previous versions of the PLSC Graduate Program Handbook are still applicable to graduate students who joined the PLSC program before spring 2016.
Topics covered in the PLSC Graduate Program Handbook are as follow:
- PLSC Graduate Program Overview
- Facilities and Special Resources
- Admission to the Plant Science Graduate Program
- Financial Aid
- Advisement and appointment of Advisory Committee
- Specific Responsibilities of the Major Professor and Advisory Committee
- Review of Student Progress and Accomplishments
- Requirements for Degree of Master of Science (thesis option) and Degree of Doctor of Philosophy
- Student Benchmarks
- Deadlines for Graduate Students
- Course Registration Policies
- PLSC Forms and General Forms from the Graduate School (see note above)
- Department Contacts
Downloadable Graduate Handbook
If you have any questions please email pslagradadvising@umd.edu.
Course Advising & Registration
Mentoring
For more information on mentoring, please see our Statement of Mutual Expectations for Mentoring document.
Advising
All of our students have a mandatory advising block.
In order for this to be lifted, please email pslagradadvising@umd.edu following the guidance given below.
Before registering for classes you must meet with your faculty advisor to confirm your progress towards completing your degree. You must provide a written confirmation from your advisor that you are cleared to register for the next semester.
Below is an example of a statement:
With this email, I confirm that I have met with my faculty advisor and/or committee, [INSERT NAME] who is included in this email. My faculty advisor has approved that I register for courses for the upcoming semester. My name is [INSERT NAME] and my UID number is [INSERT UID #].
- Always CC your faculty advisor when emailing regarding lifting advising blocks.
- Always include your UID number.
- If applicable, attached an updated Plan of Study.
- Only do so if any modifications have been made to your Plan of Study. It is of the utmost importance that your Plan of Study is updated, as these changes will be made into uachieve.umd.edu, which is used by the Graduate School at the time of your graduation.
Important
PLSC Director — Dr. Nidhi Rawat (nidhirwt@umd.edu)
Chair of the Admissions & Examination Committee — Dr. Shirley Micallef (smicall@umd.edu)
- It is recommended that you take the two required courses (PLSC608 and PLSC618) in your first year. We offer PLSC608 in the fall and PLSC618 in the spring. Please sign up for these in your first and second semester, depending on your enrollment date.
- Please remember that it is your responsibility to keep track and understand the deadlines and implications of not meeting them. There are financial implications when the deadlines are not met.
- Academic Deadlines
- Explanation of Schedule Adjustment Period
- It is important to read through this page. Modifying your schedule may result in financial penalties that become your responsibility.
- We would like to avoid you getting charged for modifying your schedule after the first day of classes. Graduate students do get a financial charge if they drop and add courses on different days and that do not equal in credit hours.
- You must drop before classes begin or make adjustments according to the policy.
- During the Schedule Adjustment substitutions must occur on the same day, and
- Substitutes must be equivalent in credits.
- For more information, please see heading Graduate Students - Refund Schedule for Drops.
- We would like to avoid you getting charged for modifying your schedule after the first day of classes. Graduate students do get a financial charge if they drop and add courses on different days and that do not equal in credit hours.
- It is important to read through this page. Modifying your schedule may result in financial penalties that become your responsibility.
Deadlines & Forms
REMINDER: It is the responsibility of the student to comply with the various deadlines. Please confirm with your advisor as well. In many cases, exceptions will not be granted.
Departmental Contacts
Signatures are required on all forms. If they are not signed by all required people they are not complete.
- PLSC Graduate Director: Dr. Nidhi Rawat, nidhirwt@umd.edu
- PLSC Chair of the Admissions and Examination Committee: Dr. Shirley Micallef, smicall@umd.edu
Departmental Deadlines & Forms
The following table summarizes student benchmarks for both PLSC M.S. and Ph.D. students. PLSC forms are internal only and do not need to be submitted to the Graduate School.
IMPORTANT: The system will ask for faculty names and UMD emails once you have submitted the initial part of the form. You must list the names in the exact order you put them initially. Suggestion: Take a screenshot each step to make sure it lines up.
BENCHMARK | MS DEGREE | PH.D. DEGREE | FORM |
---|---|---|---|
Selection of advisory committee
| End of 1st semester of study | End of 1st semester of study | Note: The form you will submit to the Graduate School for official appointment is the Nomination of Thesis or Dissertation Committee Form which is due at least 6 weeks before the examination and the established deadline dates. |
Approved Plan of Study | End of 1st semester of study | End of 1st semester of study | |
Approved Research Proposal or Plan | End of 2nd semester | End of 3rd semester | |
Advisory Committee Meeting | At least once per year | At least once per year |
|
Annual Progress and Accomplishment Report | Yearly, due every spring semester | Yearly, due every spring semester | |
Candidacy Examination | N/A | End of 5th semester | |
Other PLSC Internal Forms
| |||
Graduate School Checklist Please review these with your faculty advisor. |
The Graduate School Forms & Deadlines:
Graduate School Forms. When submitting forms to the Graduate School, please copy the PLSC Graduate Director, Dr. Nidhi Rawat, your graduate advisor, and pslagradadvising@umd.edu. Graduate School forms include: Fellowship and Financial Forms, Petitions, Requests, and Waivers, Thesis and Dissertation Forms, Approved Program Forms (M.S. only), Graduation Forms, General Forms (GA, TA, and RA Statement of Mutual Expectations), Faculty and Staff Forms, and others. To access these, please visit the Forms page.
Graduate School Deadlines. Deadlines for admissions, class registration, fellowship and award, thesis, dissertation and graduation can be found on the following page: Deadlines | The Graduate School (umd.edu).
Registration Deadlines. University academic deadlines (drop/add, credit level changes, withdrawal, etc.) can be found on the Office of the Registrar's Calendars page.
Please remember that it is your responsibility to keep track and understand the deadlines and implications of not meeting them. There are financial implications when the deadlines are not met.
Schedule Adjustment Period for Graduate Students
Calendars:
Check out the main university calendar as well as other university calendars below:
Instruction Section Numbers
The instructional section numbers will be required when you register for the following classes:
- PLSC399 Special Problems in Plant Science
- PLSC799 Master's Thesis Research
- PLSC898 Pre-Candidacy Research
- PLSC899 Doctoral Dissertation Research
Instructor Name | Spring and Fall Terms | Summer I Terms | Summer II Terms |
Carroll, Mark J. | 0401 | 0104 | 0204 |
Cochran, Diana | 0501 | 0105 | 0205 |
Coleman, Gary D. | 1001 | 0110 | 0210 |
Culver, James N. | 6401 | 0164 | 0264 |
Ellis, Christopher | 3801 | 0138 | 0238 |
Erwin, John | 1701 | 0117 | 0217 |
Everts, Kathryne L. | 1801 | 0118 | 0218 |
Farcuh, Macarena | 2101 | 0121 | 0221 |
Fiorellino, Nicole | 1901 | 0119 | 0219 |
Hu, Mengjun | 3301 | 0133 | 0233 |
Kweon, Byoung-Suk | 5801 | 0158 | 0258 |
Lea-Cox, John D. | 2801 | 0128 | 0228 |
Liu, Zhongchi | 7301 | 0173 | 0273 |
Micallef, Shirley A. | 7001 | 0170 | 0270 |
Murphy, Angus | 7401 | 0174 | 0274 |
Myers, David | 3401 | 0134 | 0234 |
Neel, Maile C. | 3601 | 0136 | 0236 |
Peer, Wendy A. | 7501 | 0175 | 0275 |
Qi, Yiping | 7101 | 0171 | 0271 |
Rawat, Nidhi | 3901 | 0139 | 0239 |
Rodriguez Leal, Daniel | 4301 | 0143 | 0243 |
Ruggeri, Deni | 7701 | 0177 | 0277 |
Sachs, Naomi | 7801 | 0178 | 0278 |
Silvert, Colby | 7901 | 0179 | 0279 |
Sullivan, Joseph H. | 4601 | 0146 | 0246 |
Tiwari, Vijay | 4701 | 0147 | 0247 |
Tully, Katherine L. | 7201 | 0172 | 0272 |
Welsh, Melissa | 5501 | 0155 | 0255 |
Xiao, Shunyuan | 6601 | 0166 | 0266 |
Support Services
If you have questions or concerns, we encourage you, especially those in their first year in the program, to set up a meeting with our PLSC Director, Dr. Nidhi Rawat, and the Chair of the Admissions & Examination Committee, Dr. Shirley Micallef, to check-in. If you have any questions or concerns we want to let you know that we are here to provide support and be an outlet for students. You may also want to meet with our Department Chair, Dr. John Erwin. Other support you have in the department and on campus include:
- Plant Science & Landscape Architecture Graduate Student Association
- Graduate School Support Services: Ombuds Office
- Did you know? You should meet with your major professor to fill the Statement of Mutual Expectations form at least once a year.