Develop critical research skills and learn grant-seeking strategies in these highly individualized programs.
The Master of Environmental Science and Master of Forest Science programs are designed for students wishing to conduct scientific research that contributes basic and applied knowledge. These highly individualized two-year degrees offer a deeper disciplinary focus on forest-related topics (MFS) or other environmental issues (MESc) through formalized training in the philosophy and practice of science. Training is provided through key courses in combination with extended research. Students in the MFS/MESc programs have the opportunity to develop critical research skills, pursue self-directed research, learn and practice grant-seeking strategies, and create a publication-ready master’s thesis to be presented to the broader Yale community.
Faculty research advisors play a key role in the MFS/MESc program. In addition to overseeing their scientific research, advisors collaborate with students to design and approve their unique course of study. Faculty provide guidance in selecting courses to support the design, execution, and communication of students’ master’s research and align with students’ career goals. They also serve as a resource during the process of proposing and completing the master’s thesis.
Note: Applicants should connect with potential advisors before applying to the program. When applying, applicants will be asked to submit the names of three faculty members with whom they are interested in working. Advisors will be selected from that submitted list upon admission to the program.
At YSE, education and training extend well beyond the classroom. Participate in our unique summer orientation program, MODs; travel widely for field research and internships; attend global conferences and climate talks such as the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP 26).
Working closely with some of the top experts in their fields is one of the advantages of a YSE graduate degree. Our faculty are committed to mentoring the next generation of environmental leaders to tackle the world’s most urgent problems.
In the Tibetan Plateau, Yufang Gao ’14 MESc, ’23 PhD interviews, observes, and travels with Tibetan herders and Buddhist monks. He sets up camera traps and collects scat to analyze the diet of snow leopards. And he has hiked a mountainside 15,000 feet above sea level — all in pursuit of data for his dissertation focused on the quest for harmonious coexistence between people and large carnivores. What is needed for human-wildlife coexistence is a different perspective about conflict, Gao says. “Conflict,” he has found, “is part of coexistence.”
After Rae Wynn-Grant ’10 MESc studied bears in the Nevada mountains, the National Geographic Society sent her to conduct similar work with the American Prairie Reserve in the grasslands of Montana — a region where bears are not common.
The nonprofit is seeking create a national wildlife refuge. Wynn-Grant began working with carnivores while at YSE, tracking lions in Tanzania. She has leaned on her expertise to predict which habitats will attract bears, using state and federal data and camera traps to monitor bear movements and habitats.
A researcher for the Environmental Leadership & Training Initiative, Cecilia Rogers ’22 MFS is mapping the success of ELTI’s Panama program that helps cattle ranchers incorporate sustainable practices, such as the use of forested pastureland, into their land management.
Working with fellow students, she found that the amount of sustainably managed farmland had significantly increased from 4% in 2011 to 66% in 2020.
As a public school teacher in New York City watching socially marginalized Black and Latinx students struggle with inequalities in education and health issues from an emerging lead poisoning crisis, A.J. Hudson ’19 MESc was moved to take action. He helped found a public high school and led neighborhood workshops on climate justice and political action efforts.
He also helped organize coalitions to pass New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act and helped plan the 2019 Youth Climate Summit, the nation’s largest gathering of young people of color passionate about climate change.
As the executive director of the Shan Shui Conservation Center in China, Irene Xiangying Shi ’13 MESC is helping conservation efforts in the Tibetan Plateau and southern regions. The Center focuses its work on urban ecosystems and endangered species, such as giant pandas and snow leopards.
“If we have the right incentives,” she says, “people will conserve nature in the best way." Her efforts have helped build a biodiversity conservation alliance, an information sharing platform on biodiversity, and long-term funding mechanisms to continue work on these issues.
Richard Guldin ’76 MFS, ’79 PhD has helped reinvent the U.S. Forest Service’s Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program by integrating new sampling designs, field procedures, and innovative software to create an annual inventory that has become a global model. His work earned him the Society of American Foresters’ Sir William Schlich Award.
Conduct independent research, keeping excellent notes and ensuring that you back up your data.
The MESc/MFS is a 48-credit program, with formal coursework comprising at least 24 credits. Decisions on the timing for completion of the coursework credits are made by the student and research advisor. Courses may be distributed evenly over two years, or a greater course load may be carried in Year 1 to accommodate research-related travel and fieldwork in Year 2.
MESc/MFS students are required to complete Qualitative Inquiry for the Human Sciences (ENV 551a) or Natural Science Research Methods (ENV 550a) in their first semester. Another research methods course may be substituted for ENV 551a or ENV 550a when appropriate and subject to approval of the research advisor.
Students should work with their advisors to select their remaining courses that will support the design, execution, and communication of their Master’s research and that are consistent with their career goals. These courses may be drawn from YSE, as well as from other departments or schools within Yale.
MESc/MFS students must also complete at least 12 credits of Thesis Research. Students may register for a maximum of six credits per semester of Thesis Research during their first year and up to 12 credits per semester in their second year, provided the 24-credit coursework requirement is satisfied. Thesis Research is graded as Credit/Fail and culminates with the Master’s Thesis.
The Master’s Thesis should be a coherent piece of scholarship in the form of one or more major papers suitable for publication in a peer-reviewed journal or as a chapter in an edited book. A Master’s Thesis typically includes original data or an original analysis of published data and leads to novel interpretations and new findings. The thesis should draw from research that begins and is carefully planned in Year 1. The research should be sustained through the summer and serve as a focus of student effort in Year 2.
The thesis requirements consist of a research proposal and the thesis itself. The purpose of the proposal is to demonstrate that the study has scientific merit, the research plan is tractable, the methods are appropriate, and the results will likely represent a meaningful contribution to the scientific community. The proposal serves as a formal mechanism by which students can gain feedback on their progress, learn of potential pitfalls and problems, and receive counsel on requisite modifications to the research plan. The proposal should be submitted for committee review no later than 30 September in Year 2. In some cases, advisors may require students intending to begin research over the Summer between Years 1 and 2 to have a completed proposal by the end of the second term in Year 1.
The thesis should be completed by the end of Year 2. Meeting this timeframe relies on the conscientiousness and vigilance of the students and their advisors. As an illustration, we provide scheduling guidelines for Year-2 tasks that would lead to on-time completion of the thesis and graduation in two years:
An important part of conducting research is communicating research findings to the wider scientific community. Therefore, as part of their degree requirement, second-year MESc/MFS students must present the findings of their research at the annual YSE Research Colloquium, which is held in April. Students will receive a grade of Satisfactory Completion for this effort.
Introduce yourself to the YSE master’s admissions team.
YSE's Learning Communities were created to offer robust interdisciplinary experiences and networks. Students may engage with as many learning communities as they choose, regardless of their degree program or specialization.
