Lava flows ignite wildfires that threaten Pacific islands ecosystems.
NREM researches the impact of non-native species on fire behavior.
To characterize native forest structure, Dr. Litton uses a laser range finder to measure tree height during a tropical downpour at HI Volcanoes National Park.
Learn native plant conservation & wildlife management with living examples of Hawaii's unique and endemic fauna and flora. (ʻŌhiʻa, Metrosideros polymorpha)
Economic Values of Dolphin Excursions in Hawaii: A Stated Choice Analysis
W. Hu, K. Boehl (NREM MS student), L. Cox (NREM), M. Pan (Marine Res. Economics)
NREM graduate students use GPS to inventory native koa forest.
NREM grads obtain training and experience for international employment opportunities.
Graduate Studies at NREM
Aloha! E Komo Mai!
NREM offers both M.S. (Plans A, B, and C) and Ph.D. degrees.
The NREM graduate program brings together natural and social scientists to offer an integrative and multi-disciplinary program that uses a systems approach to understand and manage tropical terrestrial ecosystems. Emphasis is placed on tropical island settings and their relevance to managing landscapes in general. It incorporates the various components and scales (spatial and temporal) that determine ecosystem function and that bear upon the social and economic welfare of residents in different communities and environmental settings. Curricula and courses will emphasize the application of physical, biological, and social sciences to the sustainable management and conservation of natural, environmental, and economic resources. The program will also provide a science-based understanding of the processes that control the performance and function of terrestrial ecosystems, and the human behaviors and policies that impact, and are impacted by those processes.
Students will be expected to acquire quantitative reasoning, critical thinking, and other advanced skills that enable them to solve contemporary resource use problems and to assist in sound decision-making and policy formation. Graduates will be skilled in addressing policy issues and the competing needs of diverse clientele and communities. Students will be trained in the application of quantitative models to optimize the use and management of natural resources.
Natural resource and environmental management issues are attracting considerable national and global attention, as well as growing donor interest, especially in the Asia/Pacific and tropical and subtropical regions. Graduate training, therefore, will feature collaboration with national and international institutions to foster programs that provide students with opportunities to learn about the ways that people from other countries and cultures manage their natural, including renewable, resources and interact with their environments.
Graduating students are expected to serve as professionals in resource and environmental management and policy, academic teaching and research, or applied research and outreach in educational and resource institutions, federal and state technical assistance and policy agencies, agricultural and forestry industries, consulting firms, and private nonprofit organizations.
To underscore its integrative nature, the NREM Graduate Program features strong collaboration with other academic departments within and outside CTAHR, as well as selected collaborating institutions in and out of Hawai‘i. Cooperating and affiliate-graduate faculty with appropriate expertise will complement NREM’s faculty expertise for the benefit of graduate students.
NREM is also an active partner in offering the multidisciplinary campus-wide Graduate Resource Management Certificate.
Specialization Areas and Their Requirements
NREM is a multidisciplinary department that is uniquely positioned to offer the integrative graduate curricula that are necessary for informed decision-making and action-oriented natural resource and environmental management. As a foundation in graduate training, all NREM students are expected to acquire a common base of knowledge embodied in a core set of courses. Beyond that, students are expected to develop knowledge and skills within a chosen area of specialization. This will ensure students have the real-world skills needed to perform specific tasks, analyze resource management and policy issues, and carry out original and meaningful research.
Examples of specialization areas include but are not limited to: land resource inventory and interpretation; tropical forestry and agro-forestry; land, soil and water conservation; ecological and environmental economics; community economic development; forest ecosystem management; landscape ecology; and land and water use policy. The student’s advisor and thesis/dissertation committee will assist in choosing appropriate coursework and research or other activities to develop a specialization area.
Admission Requirements
Applicants for graduate standing in NREM come from a diversity of academic, cultural, and professional backgrounds. However, minimum qualifications include a B.A./B.S. (or M.S. degree for Ph.D. applicants) with the qualifications necessary to gain admission to the UH Manoa Graduate Division. Those cleared through the Graduate Division will then be evaluated by the department based on their previous academic record and specific departmental criteria that include: (i) general graduation requirements for a BS degree in NREM and/or undergraduate coursework documenting adequate preparation in the natural, social, and quantitative sciences (students will be required to make up any recognized deficiencies through appropriate coursework); (ii) expected minimum GRE scores of 1,100-1,200; (iii) a well-written objective statement for pursuing a degree in NREM; (iv) recommendation letters; and (v) expected minimum TOEFL score (for international applicants only) of: (a) M.S. student: 550, 213, or 80 for paper-based, computer-based, or internet-based examinations, respectively; and (b) Ph.D. student: 600, 250, or 100 for paper-based, computer-based, or internet-based examinations, respectively.
In addition to University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa Graduate Division documentation requirements, NREM requires all applicants submit the following. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Objective Statement – Describe in ~1,000-1,500 typed words what your objectives are for pursuing a graduate degree in NREM. You should include information on: (i) the degree you are applying for (Ph.D., M.S. Plan A, or M.S. Plan B; click here for information on graduate degrees offered in NREM); if you are applying for a Ph.D. or M.S. Plan A, indicate who your advisor will be (this should be based on correspondence with that person); and if applying for a M.S. Plan A degree, indicate if you would be interested in the M.S. Plan B program if not accepted into the M.S. Plan A program; (ii) your long-term career goals; (iii) how a degree in NREM will help you attain those goals; (iv) a description of research, educational, and/or professional experiences that make you a strong candidate for the NREM Graduate Program; and (v) any other information that you feel is pertinent and will aid the selection committee when reviewing your application. Note that you do not have to use the objective statement form available through the Graduate Admissions Office. Submit directly to NREM.
Recommendation Letters – Have 3 references submit recommendation letters directly to NREM.
Documentation of Prior Coursework – In addition to submitting official transcripts to the Graduate Admissions Office, NREM requires documentation of coursework in the following five areas: Statistics, Economics, Calculus, Chemistry, and Biology. Please list completed coursework (name, number, and institution) that is equivalent to or higher than NREM 310, NREM 220 (or ECON 130), NREM 203, CHEM 151, and BIOL 171+L (See UHM Course Descriptions at http://www.catalog.hawaii.edu/courses/description-index.htm). Students who do not have coursework in one or more of these areas may be accepted into the program, but will be required to make up course deficiencies within their first 1-2 semesters on campus. Submit directly to NREM.
TOEFL English Proficiency Scores (international students only) – Submit directly to the Graduate Admissions Office.
GRE Scores (no subject test required) – Submit directly to the Graduate Admissions Office.
Addresses for Submission of Application Materials:
NREM Graduate Program
c/o Lois Agena
1910 East-West Rd.
Honolulu, HI 96822
Tel: (808) 956-7530
Email: laagena@hawaii.edu
Graduate Admissions Office
Spalding 354
2540 Maile Way
Honolulu, HI 96822
Tel: (808) 956-8544
Email: admissions@grad.hawaii.edu
Advising
Admitted students will be assigned an interim advisor. The interim advisor will verify entrance and background deficiencies, prescribe remedial courses, and devise an initial course plan for the student.
Within two semesters of starting the NREM graduate program, the student should have a permanent advisor. During the second year, MS degree students should form their thesis committee. PhD degree students should form their dissertation committee by their third year.
The thesis or dissertation committee will guide the student’s program and assist with the development of a thesis/dissertation research topic that is appropriate for the chosen area of specialization, administer the required Comprehensive and Defense examinations, and oversee the completion of degree requirement.