Integrative Plant Science
Field Description
The MPS degree program at Cornell CALS is ideal for career-focused students interested in the thorough study of issues and advancements in the fields of life, social, and environmental sciences and agriculture.
Though similar to a Master of Science (MS) degree in its academic rigor, the MPS degree differs from a traditional MS degree in its structure and focus. An MS is research-based, with students building a thesis over the course of two or three years. In contrast, the MPS degree is a one-year, course-based program where students study the intricacies and in-depth questions of their field of study. Instead of a thesis or research project, MPS students complete a capstone project during their final semester. To understand this difference in greater detail, please visit our FAQ page.
At Cornell CALS, our MPS program spans multiple fields of study within the realm of agriculture and life sciences, including animal science, food science, global development, horticulture, plant and soil science, biological and environmental engineering, and more.
The Master of Professional Studies program has two main components:
- Coursework: Students work with a faculty advisor to map out their individualized course of study based on their areas of interest. The majority of courses (20 credits) will be within CALS; however, students have the opportunity to take courses across Cornell.
- Capstone project: With the guidance of a faculty advisor, students work on solving a real-world problem.
While students have the opportunity to customize their own course of study with their faculty advisor, the field offers several areas of specialization for MPS degree candidates. Each of these areas includes a suggested curriculum of core and elective courses that fulfill the requirements of the MPS in Agriculture and Life Sciences degree while placing a particular emphasis on an area of specialization. See below for the list of specializations.
Contact Information
Website: https://cals.cornell.edu/school-integrative-plant-science/degrees-programs/mps-degreeEmail: sips-mps@cornell.edu
Phone: 607 255-2131
124 Plant Science Building
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853
Subject and Degrees
Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science)
Concentrations by Subject
Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science)
- agronomy
- climate change and agriculture (minor)
- controlled environment agriculture (minor)
- field crop sciences
- geospatial applications (minor)
- hemp science (minor)
- plant biotechnology (minor)
- plant breeding
- plant protection (minor)
- plant systems (minor)
- public garden leadership (minor)
- soil science
- viticulture (minor)
Faculty
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): climate change and agriculture
- Research Interests: Root dynamics and environmental stress physiology, soil science
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant biotechnology
- Research Interests: floriculture breeding; plant tissue culture; plant propagation; herbaceous ornamental plants; cut flowers; breeding plants
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): hemp science; plant protection; plant systems
- Research Interests: Hemp Science
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): soil science
- Research Interests: Soil microbiology
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection; plant systems
- Research Interests: Plant-microbe interactions, plant protection, plant pathology
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; field crop sciences
- Research Interests: Forages, perennial grasses, biofuels
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection
- Research Interests: orchard fungal ecology; extension pathology; pesticide management; fruit pathology
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant biotechnology
- Research Interests: paleobotany; systematics and evolution of angiosperms; evolutionary history of floral structure and angiosperm pollination mechanisms
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; field crop sciences; plant protection
- Research Interests: weed ecology; biological control; integrated weed management
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant biotechnology; plant breeding
- Research Interests: Molecular mechanisms of senescence; postharvest physiology
Maria Alejandra Gandolfo Nixon
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant breeding; plant systems
- Research Interests: Plant Evolution, Plant Structure and Anatomy, Paleobotany
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): climate change and agriculture; plant breeding
- Research Interests: Breeding for nutritional quality
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): hemp science; plant protection; plant systems
- Research Interests: Hemp Science
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): soil science
- Research Interests: Natural resources and the environment, Soil hyperspectral reflectance, Watershed education
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; field crop sciences
- Research Interests: Soil and Crop Science
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection; plant systems
- Research Interests: Mycology
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant biotechnology; plant protection; plant systems
- Research Interests: Molecular biology of plant stress
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): geospatial applications
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection; plant systems
- Research Interests: Integrated pest management in landscapes and greenhouses
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): geospatial applications; soil science
- Research Interests: soil fertility management; soil biogeochemistry
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): viticulture
- Research Interests: Research on the genetics and physiology of abiotic stress resistance in cultivated and wild grapevine with special emphasis on cold hardiness and drought resistance. Specific areas of study include genomics, population genetics, and plant physiology.
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; field crop sciences; geospatial applications; plant protection
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection
- Research Interests: Insect ecology and plant interactions
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): soil science
- Research Interests: Environmental and soil chemistry
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): controlled environment agriculture
- Research Interests: floriculture; plant physiology; mineral nutrition; crop modeling
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; field crop sciences; geospatial applications
- Research Interests: international cropping systems, sustainability
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): controlled environment agriculture
- Research Interests: Physiology and management of greenhouse crops
Ashley Louise Miller Helmholdt
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant systems; public garden leadership
- Research Interests: Relationships between people and plants
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant biotechnology; plant systems
- Research Interests: Molecular biology and gene function
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; plant breeding; plant systems
- Research Interests: Plant breeding, cover crops, sustainable agriculture
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection
- Research Interests: genetics of quantitative disease resistance; international agriculture; current focus on two diseases of maize that are important both in the United States and in Africa: northern corn leaf blight and gray leaf spot
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection; plant systems
- Research Interests: Mycology and microbiomes of fungi
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant systems
- Research Interests: Orchard management, soil science
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy
- Research Interests: cultural practices and physiology of berry crops
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): public garden leadership
- Research Interests: public-garden management
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy
- Research Interests: Adaptive research and extension program focuses on advancing reduced, minimum and no-till strategies in vegetable crops grown in the upper Northeast. Research has included developing new equipment and strategies to optimize these systems in both conventional and organic agriculture systems.
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy
- Research Interests: vegetable crop production
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): viticulture
- Research Interests: grapevine breeding and genetics
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant biotechnology; plant systems
- Research Interests: Plant Biotechnology, Plant Physiology
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant systems
- Research Interests: Turfgrass management, plant protection
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): geospatial applications
- Research Interests: Spatial modelling and analysis of soil resources.
Jonathan Matthew Russell-Anelli
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): soil science
- Research Interests: soil and crop sciences
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; field crop sciences
- Research Interests: sustainable cropping systems; cover crops; integrated pest management; weed science
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; field crop sciences
- Research Interests: crop physiology; environmental stress responses; drought; elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide; hormonal signaling systems
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): geospatial applications
- Research Interests: geospatial sciences with focus on geographic information science (GIScience) and cartographic communication.
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): public garden leadership
- Research Interests: urban horticulture
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant breeding
- Research Interests: breeding, genomics and physiology of shrub willow as a bioenergy crop; yield trials and variety selection; characterization of gene expression important to biomass production
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection
- Research Interests: biology and management of vegetable diseases; host-pathogen interactions
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): plant protection; plant systems
- Research Interests: Plant disease diagnosis
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): geospatial applications
- Research Interests: geospatial sciences
- Campus: Ithaca - (Divisional Member)
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): soil science
- Research Interests: Soil microbiology
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): geospatial applications; soil science
- Research Interests: soil and water management; precision agriculture; soil quality; nitrogen dynamics
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): geospatial applications; viticulture
- Research Interests: viticulture; culture and physiology of optimizing fruit aroma and flavor composition
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): agronomy; field crop sciences; geospatial applications
- Campus: Ithaca
- Concentrations: Agriculture and Life Sciences (Integrative Plant Science): geospatial applications; soil science
- Research Interests: soil carbon modeling, soil carbon sequestration, microbial dynamics of soil carbon, climate-change mitigation, biochar and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage.