Accelerated Bachelor’s to Master’s in Sustainable Food Systems

The Environmental Science and Management ABM Sustainable Food Systems option (the SFS ABM) offers qualified students in the Aquaculture and Fisheries Science (AFS), the Animal Science and Technology, and the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems (SAFS) B.S. programs the opportunity to complete the requirements for their B.S. and the Masters in Environmental Science and Management (M.E.S.M) non-thesis professional degree in five years.

M.E.S.M. is an interdisciplinary, interdepartmental masters degree program within URI’s College of the Environment and Life Sciences (CELS) that is focused on building expertise for working professionals. Students who want to further their careers with private sector firms, governmental agencies, or non-profit organizations should consider this degree. 

Degree Requirements

The B.S. degree requirements for students in the SFS ABM are the same as for the students completing the B.S. degree over four years. The M.E.S.M. degree requirements are the same as for students completing the M.E.S.M. degree over two years. The students accepted into the SFS ABM will be able to double count credits towards both degrees up to one-third (12 credits) of the total credits required for the M.E.S.M. degree (36 credits total). Only AFS/AVS/SAF 400-level and 500 level courses allowable for graduate credit are eligible to be double-counted in the SFS ABM. All credits counted towards the M.E.S.M. portion of the SFS ABM must be earned at URI. 

Students must complete all degree requirements for the SFS ABM within two years after enrollment and coding as SFS ABM students. As outlined in the Graduate School Manual, one additional year may be allowed, with the permission of the Graduate School, for programs that exceed 30 credits.  Failure to complete the ABM in the allotted time effectively ends the ABM, and the students will not be able to double count credits. 

Admission Requirements

Students apply for the SFS ABM through the URI Graduate School admission system and are eligible to apply once they have earned at least 75 credits in their B.S. with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0. Students will be enrolled in the SFS ABM after they have met all Graduate School admission requirements and after completion of their B.S. degree requirements (typically at the end of the Spring semester of their senior year).  

Your application will include a personal statement and two letters of support, a resume and unofficial URI transcripts. One of the letters of support for admission needs to be from your undergraduate advisor or the M.E.S.M director or coordinator. Students will be admitted to the M.E.S.M. degree program contingent on meeting all the admission requirements for the URI Graduate School. The GRE is not required for the M.E.S.M. program.

Contact

Professor

Animal/Veterinary Science

401.874.2811
dave_townson@uri.edu

Research Associate IV

Aquaculture/Fisheries

401.874.9360
lskrobe@uri.edu