Poultry Science

Department Head: Dr. Mary M. Beck
Graduate Coordinator: Dr. Christopher D. McDaniel
Hill Poultry Science Building
Box 9665
Mississippi State, MS  39762
Telephone: 662-325-3416
E-mail: cmcdaniel@poultry.msstate.edu

The Poultry Science Department offers the Master of Science degree in Agriculture with a concentration in Poultry Science and the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Agricultural Sciences with a concentration in Poultry Science. The department also offers M.S. and Ph.D. programs with concentrations in the interdisciplinary programs of genetics and animal physiology.  Admission requirements and detailed information for those interdisciplinary degree programs can be found listed separately under each of the individual programs.

Admission Criteria

Admission requirements for the M.S. in Agriculture degree with a concentration in Poultry Science are the same as those listed in the General Requirements of the Graduate School in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) except that any request for Graduate Record Examination (GRE) test scores is dependent upon the faculty member who will serve as the thesis director (major professor) but the GRE score is not a Department of Poultry Science requirement.

Admission requirements for the Ph.D. degree concentration in Poultry Science are the same as those listed in the General Requirements of the Graduate School in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) except that any request for Graduate Record Examination (GRE) test scores is dependent upon the faculty member who will serve as the dissertation director (major professor), but the GRE score is not a Department of Poultry Science requirement.

Provisional Admission

If a student does not fully meet the admission requirements of the master's program, it may be possible for that student to be provisionally admitted.  If provisionally admitted, the student must attain a 3.00 GPA on the first 9 hours of graduate courses at Mississippi State University after admission to the program.  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 GPA is not attained, the student may be dismissed from the graduate program.

If a student does not fully meet the admission requirements of the doctoral program, it may be possible for that student to be provisionally admitted.  If provisionally admitted, the student must attain a 3.00 GPA on the first 9 hours of graduate courses at Mississippi State University.  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 GPA is not attained, the student will be dismissed from the graduate program.

Academic Performance

Satisfactory academic performance standards are the same as those for CALS, except as follows: 

• The student is allowed to make no more than two C grades in courses taken for graduate credit. 
• The student will be recommended for dismissal if he/she receives a third C or any grade below a C. 
• In addition, the student’s committee reserves the right to establish a “core” course or courses whereby any grade below a B in one of those courses is not accepted.
• The student will be recommended for dismissal if he/she receives a C or any grade below a C in a core course. 
• The student must have a final GPA of 3.00 or higher to graduate.
• Doctoral students only: To be eligible for the preliminary/comprehensive examination, a graduate student must maintain an overall B average in all graduate courses attempted. 

Master of Science in Agriculture with Poultry Science Concentration - Thesis

Graduate-level coursework		12
8000-level coursework		12
PO 8000	Thesis Research/ Thesis in Poultry Sciences	6
Total Hours		30

A comprehensive examination is required. The thesis director and graduate committee will determine specific course requirements for the student’s program.  Before the end of the first semester of graduate work, the student must establish his or her graduate committee, complete the necessary paperwork, and gain the faculty members’ consent to participate on the committee. Once the student’s research plan has been established, the student is required to present his/her research plan to the faculty in the form of a departmental seminar.

Master of Science in Agriculture with Poultry Science Concentration - Non-Thesis

Graduate-level coursework		15
8000-level coursework		15
Total Hours		30

A comprehensive examination is required. The major professor and graduate committee will determine specific course requirements for the student’s program.  Before the end of the first semester of graduate work, the student must establish his/her graduate committee, complete the necessary paperwork and gain the faculty members’ consent to participate on the committee.

Completion Requirements

Requirements for completion of the M.S. in Poultry Science are the same as those for CALS except that students in Poultry Science are required to participate in a limited teaching capacity, such as a guest lecturer, in one course during work on the degree.  That limited teaching capacity will be determined by the student’s graduate committee when the student’s program of study is established. For additional information, email Dr. Chris McDaniel at cmcdaniel@poultry.msstate.edu .

Doctor of Philosophy in Agricultural Sciences with Poultry Science Concentration

The Ph.D. requires a minimum of three academic years beyond the B.S. degree with the number of hours varying as determined by the student and major professor.  A minimum of 20 hours of PO 9000 Dissertation/Research is required in addition to coursework determined by the student and major professor.

Course requirements may include:

BCH 6603	General Biochemistry	3
BCH 6613	General Biochemistry	3
ST 8114	Statistical Methods	4
ST 8214	Design and Analysis of Experiments	4

A minor is not required, but if selected an additional 12 hours of graduate credit is required. 

The preliminary examination must be attempted by the end of the fifth semester of the program.  A Graduate Program of Study should be submitted and approved by the student’s graduate committee and Graduate Coordinator by the end of the first semester of graduate study.  The graduate committee should be composed of at least five members if the student has a minor and four members if the student does not have a minor.  Committee members include the major professor, who must be a full member of the graduate faculty, at least three other members, two of whom are from the student's major field of interest, and a minor professor if the student has a minor field.  Additional committee members may be included at the discretion of the major professor.

Completion Requirements

Requirements for completion of the Ph.D. in Poultry Science are the same as those for CALS except that each student in Poultry Science is required to participate in a limited teaching capacity, such as guest lecturer, in one course during his/her graduate study.  That limited teaching capacity shall be determined by the student’s graduate committee when the student’s program of study is established.