Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
Department Head: Dr. Alex Thomasson
Graduate Coordinator: Dr. Steve Elder
150 Agricultural Engineering Building
Box 9632
Mississippi State, MS 39762
Telephone: 662-325-3282
E-mail: abe_head@abe.msstate.edu
Graduate study is offered in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering leading to the degree of Master of Science in Agriculture with a concentration in Engineering Technology or a Doctor of Philosophy in Agricultural Sciences with a concentration in Engineering Technology. A Precision Agriculture Certificate is also offered.
Precision Agriculture Certificate
There is a need to train students in the broad array of precision agriculture technologies. This certificate program complements majors taught across College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) departments. This certificate features emerging technologies in decision-based agricultural planning and implementation. The certificate requires a minimum of 16 hours with at least 10 credit hours specific to Precision Agriculture coursework and 6 additional hours of electives or optional courses. Graduate requirements: PSS/ABE 2543 may be required as a leveling course and graduates may need a combination of Option 1 and Option 3 (below) to meet graduate credit requirements.
| To obtain a Precision Agriculture Certificate, students are required to complete the following 16 hours. | ||
| PSS 2543 | Precision Agriculture I | 3 |
| or ABE 2543 | Precision Agriculture I | |
| PSS 4543 | Precision Agriculture II (or PSS 6543 or ABE 4543/6543) | 3 |
| ECE 4411 | Remote Sensing Seminar (or ECE 6411 or FO 4411/6411 or GR 4411/6411 or PSS 4411/6411) | 1 |
| ABE 4000 | Directed Individual Study in Agricultural and Biological Engineering (or ABE 7000 or PSS 4000/7000) | 3 |
| Option 1: Choose from the following. | 6-8 | |
| Introduction to Remote Sensing Technologies | ||
| Introduction to Remote Sensing Technologies | ||
| Introduction to Remote Sensing Technologies | ||
| The Global Positional System and Geographic Information Systems in Agriculture and Engineering | ||
FO 4471/6471 | (and GIS for Natural Resource Management) | |
FO 4472/6472 | ||
| Geospatial Agronomic Management | ||
| Principles of GIS | ||
| Survey of Geospatial Technologies | ||
| Option 2 (Community/Junior College AGT courses) : Any TWO transfer courses from the following in a Precision Agriculture Technology Concentration with the Postsecondary Agriculture Business and Management Technology program | 6-8 | |
AGT 1163 Introduction to Spatial Information Systems | ||
AGT 2154 Geographic Information Systems I | ||
AGT 1254 GPS Data Collection | ||
AGT 2164 Variable Rate Technology | ||
AGT 1354 Remote Sensing | ||
AGT 2474 Site Specific Pest Management | ||
| OR Completion of the UAV Training Program courseork at Hinds Community College | ||
| Option 3: Discipline Specific Electives | 6-8 | |
| Bioinstrumentation I | ||
| Agricultural and Off-Road Machinery Management | ||
or ABE 6163 | Machinery Management for Agro-Ecosystems | |
| Soil and Water Management | ||
ABE 4844/6844 | ||
| Measurement and Control in Biological Systems | ||
| Introduction to Food Marketing | ||
| Economics of Food and Fiber Production | ||
| Agribusiness Firm Management | ||
| Analysis of Food Markets and Prices | ||
| Advanced Farm Management | ||
| General Plant Physiology | ||
| Forest Pest Management | ||
| Plant Disease Management | ||
| Diseases of Crops | ||
| Field Crop Insects | ||
| Principles of Insect Pest Management | ||
| Financial Management | ||
| Soils Laboratory | ||
| Soils | ||
| Introduction to Weed Science | ||
| Agricultural Crop Physiology | ||
| Soil Fertility and Fertilizers | ||
| Soil Conservation and Land Use | ||
| Controlled Environment Agriculture | ||
| Herbicide Technology | ||
| Turfgrass Weed Management | ||
Admission Criteria
Prerequisites for admission into the graduate program include all the general requirements of the Graduate School and identification of a departmental professor who is willing to serve as research director for the master’s or Ph.D. project. International students must obtain a TOEFL score of 550 PBT (79 iBT) or an IELTS (International English Language Testing Systems) score of 6.5 or higher. Exceptions to these requirements are considered on a case-by-case basis and require approval of the Department Chair.
Provisional Admission
An applicant who has not fully met the GPA requirement stipulated by the University may be admitted on a provisional basis. The provisionally-admitted student is eligible for a change to regular status after receiving a 3.00 GPA on the first 9 hours of graduate courses at Mississippi State University (with no grade lower than a C). The first 9 hours of graduate courses must be within the student's program of study. Courses with an S grade, transfer credits, or credits earned while in Unclassified status cannot be used to satisfy this requirement. If a 3.00 is not attained, the provisional student shall be dismissed from the graduate program. Academic departments may set higher standards for students to fulfill provisional requirements; a student admitted with provisional status should contact the graduate coordinator for the program’s specific requirements. While in the provisional status, a student is not eligible to hold a graduate assistantship.
Academic Performance
Unsatisfactory performance in the graduate program in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering is defined as any of the following:
- Failure to maintain a 3.00 average GPA in attempted graduate courses after admission to the program
- A grade of U, D, I, or F in any one course
- More than two courses not exceeding 8 credit hours with a grade of C
- Failure of the research defense
- Unsatisfactory evaluation of a thesis
- Or failure of a required component of the program of study
Any one of these, or a combination of these, will constitute the basis for review for possible dismissal. The graduate coordinator will review the record, along with the student’s graduate committee, and take a final course of action which will be immediate dismissal or the establishment of a probationary period in which corrective action must take place. Appeal of dismissal can be made by submitting a written appeal statement to the department head. If the dismissal is upheld by the department upon the student’s appeal, the student can then submit a written appeal to the dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
The Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering also offers the Master of Science degree in Biosystems Engineering and Doctor of Philosophy degree in Engineering; both programs are housed in the College of Engineering. See program information in the James Worth Bagley College of Engineering section of this publication.
Accelerated Program
The goal of the accelerated B.S./M.S. Program in the Department of Agricultural & Biosystems Engineering (ABE) is to enable highly qualified students to earn up to 12 hours of graduate course credit during their final year of undergraduate studies. Students will complete graduate level courses (6000-level) and receive dual credit for the equivalent undergraduate course (4000-level). Students must apply and be admitted to an accelerated program prior to enrolling in the graduate level classes. Interested students must consult with the Graduate Coordinator to ensure graduate credit could be applied to a program of study for the graduate degree.
For admission, the student must:
1.) Be enrolled at Mississippi State University in Biological or Biomedical Engineering.
2.) Have completed a minimum of 90 credit hours of undergraduate coursework
3.) Have an overall GPA of 3.5 or higher for all undergraduate work
Students interested in applying to the Accelerated Program should contact their academic advisors or undergraduate coordinator.