In addition to the minimum requirements stated elsewhere in the Graduate Calendar, admission to the graduate program is dependent on the availability of an advisor, space and funding.

Students entering the MSc program will be expected to have taken, or be familiar with the content of, introductory courses in atmospheric science, soil science, earth science and land resource management, either through appropriate courses or a program of self study.

All students in the MSc by thesis program are required to enroll in the two-course sequence Research Issues I and II. The objectives of these courses are to enhance the skills needed for a research career (including cross-disciplinary research); foster the development of superior communication skills; increase the student's awareness of major issues related to land resources, and current research; and provide an environmental, social and economic context for this research. It is recommended that students enroll in the courses during their first year. Candidates for the thesis-based MSc degree must successfully complete a prescribed series of courses, conduct a research project, prepare a thesis based on their results and defend this in a final examination. The number of course credits required in this option will be decided by the student's advisory committee in consultation with the student, and may exceed the minimum 1.5 credits required by the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

Candidates for the MSc degree by course work and research project must complete a minimum of 4.0 credits, including one credit of research project and at least two credits from courses in one of the four fields (below). Of these courses, one will be the Land Resource Science Research Project, LRS*6500 (two semesters, 1.0 credit). The research project will be a detailed, critical review of an area of study related to the specialization chosen by the student including analyses and interpretations of relevant data. The student may or may not be involved in collecting the data. The content of the research project will be presented to the department as a seminar.

The remaining credit may be from another field, or from the courses designated as Policy or Data Analysis below. A maximum of one approved senior-level undergraduate course can be included in the list of prescribed courses.

At the beginning of the program, the student and student's advisory committee will design the course-work MSc according to the program guidelines and the aspirations and background of the student. MSc by course work and major paper degree will require a minimum of three semesters of full-time study (or the equivalent).