The School of Forest Resources, in the College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture, offers graduate study leading to a non-thesis Master of Forestry, a Master of Science in Forest Resources and a Ph.D. in Forest Resources. Several faculty in the School participate in an interdepartmental degree in Ecology and Environmental Sciences.

Students may choose from a wide range of specialties, including forest biological sciences (forest ecology and silviculture, forest genetics, soils, entomology, physiology, and pathology), forest biometrics (inventory, modeling, remote sensing, GIS and spatial analysis), forest economics and policy, forest business administration,  forest management and planning, forest operations science, wood science and technology (emphasis on wood properties, wood composites, wood preservation, and wood utilization), and forest-based park science, recreation, and tourism.

The forestry program at The University of Maine is one of the oldest in the United States and has had accredited undergraduate degrees since the early years of professional forestry accreditation. All graduate forestry degrees are offered under full University accreditation and, in addition, the Master of Forestry degree is Society of American Foresters accredited as a first degree in forestry. “SAF is recognized by the Commission on Recognition of Postsecondary Accreditation as the specialized accrediting body for forestry in the United States”. The School of Forest Resources is housed in Nutting Hall. Both basic and applied graduate research is accomplished through the use of well-equipped laboratories in Nutting Hall, greenhouse facilities on campus, and several field research stations throughout the state. Maine, the most heavily forested state in the country, sets the context for this research, though projects reach beyond state and national boundaries. Much of the research is field oriented, and there are a variety of ecosystems and socioeconomic conditions available for investigation. The College is responsible for the management of the Dwight B. Demeritt Forest, a 1,700-acre tract adjoining the campus, the 4,000-acre Penobscot Experimental Forest, and nearly 4,000 acres of other forest properties in Maine. Maine contains millions of acres of mostly private forest land that are owned by several large, diverse companies, but half of its forests are in small ownership parcels. Opportunities exist for research on biophysical and socioeconomic problems of both industrial and non-industrial private forests. Through the cooperation of forest industry, opportunities exist for on-site wood processing studies. Maine’s systems of land use regulation and forest taxation and the state’s long-standing reputation as a “vacationland” for forest recreation indicate other categories of research interest.

NASA’s designation of the Maine Image Analysis Laboratory as a Center of Excellence in Remote Sensing Applications and experience in tropical forest monitoring and landscape-level forest management have attracted international students from Central and South American, among other countries.

Forestry graduate study opportunities are strengthened by association with strong research programs within the School, College, elsewhere on the Orono campus, and in the region. The Center for Research in Sustainable Forestry was established in 2006. The Center brings together all University of Maine researchers working in the interdisciplinary areas of forest resources. The Center is a resource for the public regarding Maine forest research and the sustainability of our state’s forests. Within the College, the Cooperative Forestry Research Unit is funded by Maine landowners to conduct research on the intensive management of Maine’s forest types. A federally funded Forest Ecosystem Research Program carries on long-term research on the nearby Penobscot Experimental Forest. The United States Forest Service research program in Orono (a branch of the Northern Forest Experiment Station) employs scientists who hold appointments among the College’s graduate faculty. Cooperative relationships also are common between the School of Forest Resources and several other University of Maine departments.

Admissions

Students are admitted to the graduate programs in forestry on the basis of academic records, Graduate Record Exam scores, experience, and recommendations. All applicants requesting financial aid will be considered for the several teaching and research assistantships available each year; no additional forms are required. Several private or government funded fellowships also are available on a competitive basis. Applications for admission in the fall semester should be submitted by February 15, especially if the applicant is seeking financial aid.

Degree Requirements

In addition to meeting all of the requirements of the Graduate School, graduate students in the School of Forest Resources must select an advisory committee, develop a program of study, and prepare a thesis or project proposal as early in their programs as possible. All graduate students must enroll in at least one graduate seminar. Other course requirements are established by the student and his or her advisory committee. Master of Science students must pass a thesis defense upon completing their thesis without a dissenting vote of the advisory committee. Ph.D. students must take a mandatory comprehensive examination, consisting of both written and oral sections, usually administered after most of the student’s course work has been completed. Both this comprehensive examination, the passage of which is a prerequisite to further study, and the final examination at the end of a Ph.D. program may be passed with no more than one dissenting vote of the examining committee. 

Further Information

For details about specific aspects of the School of Forest Resources graduate programs, visit our web sites or contact the Graduate Coordinator, School of Forest Resources, via Cindy Paschal, Administrative Assistant, Telephone: (207) 581-2841; e-mail: paschal@umenfa.maine.edu.

Graduate Faculty

Jeffery Benjamin, Ph.D. (New Brunswick, 2006) Assistant Professor of Forest Operations. Supply chain management within forest industry, forest / stand production and final product quality, analysis of transportation systems, harvesting system selection 

Thomas B. Brann, Ph.D. (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1979), Professor of Forest Resources. Inventory methods and computer sciences.

Katherine K. Carter, Ph.D. (West Virginia, 1980), Associate Professor of Forest Resources. Forest genetics, tree improvement of Maine forest species.

John J. Daigle, Ph.D. (Massachusetts, 1997), Associate Professor of Forest Recreation Management. Recreation planning and management, social research methods for natural resource professionals, human dimensions of natural resources management.

David B. Field, Ph.D. (Purdue, 1974), Edwin L. Giddings Professor Emeritus of Forest Policy. Professor Emeritus of Forest Resources. Forest economics and policy, forest resource valuation, forest taxation, forest planning.

Douglas J. Gardner, Ph.D. (Mississippi State, 1985), Professor of Wood Science and Technology. Program Leader, Wood Science and Technology. Wood surface chemistry, phenolic-adhesive chemistry, wood anatomy, wood composites, wood adhesion.

Barry S. Goodell, Ph.D. (Oregon State, 1983). Professor of Wood Science and Technology, Forest Products Lab. Cooperating Professor of Chemical Engineering and the Advanced Engineered Wood Composites Center. Control of decay in wood, wood microbiology, wood preservation, wood biotechnology.

Michael S. Greenwood, Ph.D. (Yale, 1969), Ruth Hutchins Professor of Forest Tree Physiology and Professor of Forest Resources. Cooperating Professor of Biological Sciences. Forest tree improvement, tree regeneration, tree physiology.

Warren E. Hedstrom, Ph.D. (Colorado State, 1970), Associate Professor of Forest Resources. Soil and water engineering, forest roads and structures, housing.

Richard Jagels, Ph.D. (Illinois, 1968), Professor of Forest Resources. Cooperating Professor of Biological Sciences. Plant reactions to environmental stress.

Laura S. Kenefic, Ph.D. (Maine, 2000), Assistant Research Professor of Forest Resources. Silviculture, leaf area relationships, effects of exploitative cutting.

Alan J. Kimball, M.S. (Maine, 1978), Associate Professor of Forest Resources. Integrated management of nonindustrial forest properties, ecology and management of oak-pine forests.

Jessica Leahy, Ph.D. (Minnesota, 2005), Assistant Professor of Forest Resources. Forest recreation, parks and tourism, community perceptions of forest recreation, quantitative survey methods.

Robert J. Lilieholm,Ph.D. (UC Berkeley, 1988), Edwin L. Giddings Associate Professor of Forest Policy, forest economics, land use policy, modeling alternative growth scenarios, assessing impacts of land development on natural resources.

William H. Livingston, Ph.D. (Minnesota, 1985), Associate Professor of Forest Resources. Cold tolerance of conifers, forest pathology, forest diebacks and declines.

J. Louis Morin, M.S. (Maine, 1978), Instructor of Forest Resources. Global Positioning Systems and Geographic Information Systems as they relate to natural resource management.

Robert W. Rice, Ph.D. (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1988), Professor of Wood Science and Technology. Wood physics, wood drying, non-destructive evaluation, forest products marketing, pulp and paper marketing and management.

Steven A. Sader, Ph.D. (Idaho, 1981), Professor of Forest Resources. Graduate Coordinator. Cooperating Professor of Wildlife Ecology. Director, Maine Image Analysis Laboratory. Remote sensing of forest environments, time-series forest change, tropical forest and conservation easement monitoring, landscape ecology and metrics.

Robert S. Seymour, Ph.D. (Yale, 1980), Curtis Hutchins Professor of Forest Resources (Quantitative Silviculture). Cooperating Professor in Forest Management. Silviculture; growth and yield; ecosystem management.

Stephen M. Shaler, Ph.D. (Pennsylvania State, 1986). Professor of Wood Science and Technology. Cooperating Professor of Chemical Engineering and Assistant Director, Advanced Engineered Wood Composites Center. Wood composites and mechanical properties.

Robert K. Shepard, Jr., Ph.D. (Michigan, 1970), Professor Emeritus of Forest Resources. Wood properties, sludge and wood ash application to forest lands.

Robert G. Wagner, Ph.D. (Oregon State, 1989), Henry W. Saunders Distinguished Professor in Forestry, Professor of Forest Resources. Director of Cooperative Forestry Research Unit. Silviculture, forest ecology and regeneration, vegetation ecology and management.

Alan S. White, Ph.D. (Minnesota, 1981), Professor of Forest Ecology. Forest ecology, silviculture, plant competition, regeneration, old-growth stand development, disturbance ecology.

G. Bruce Wiersma, Ph.D. (SUNY, 1968), Professor of Forest Resources. Director, Center for Research in Sustainable Forestry. Pollutant transport and monitoring, environmental science.

Jeremy S. Wilson, Ph.D. (Washington, 1988). Irving Chair for Forest Ecosystem Management, Associate Professor of Forest Resources. Silviculture; integration of GIS technology, growth and yield models, stand and landscape visualization, and analysis tools to evaluate future landscape conditions under a variety of management scenarios, forest development patterns.

External Graduate Faculty

John C. Brissette, Ph.D. (Louisiana, 1990), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. U.S. Forest Service. Silviculture of northern conifer ecosystems, ecophysiology of conifer regeneration.

Charles V. Cogbill, Ph.D. (Toronto, 1982), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Historical ecology, old-growth forests, reserve design, and land management.

Andrew F. Egan, Ph.D. (Pennsylvania State, 1993), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Forest operations, timber harvesting, effects of exurbanization and parcelization on stumpage availability, development of timber harvesting operability factors using remote sensing.

Katherine J. Elliott, Ph.D. (Maine, 1991), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Forest ecology, fire ecology, stand dynamics, biodiversity.

David R. Foster, Ph.D. (Minnesota, 1983), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Land-use history, paleoecology, and forest dynamics.

Lloyd C. Irland, Ph.D. (Yale, 1973), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources, Principal, The Irland Group (Forestry Consultants). Forest economics.

Wilbur F. LaPage, Ph.D. (Syracuse, 1975), External Graduate Faculty in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism. Public park policy, environmental interpretation, tourism, and non-economic benefits of public lands.

Jack Lutz, Ph.D. (New Hampshire, 1998), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Timberland investment and economic development.

Donald McKay, PhD. (Minnesota), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Economics, policy and administration, marketing.

Laurence Mott, Ph.D. (Maine, 1995), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Wood composites.

Lech Muszynski, Ph.D. (University of Poznan, 1997). External Graduate Faculty in Wood Science and Technology. Hygro-mechanical behavior of wood; advanced hybrid wood-FRP composites, coatings, and multifunctional barriers; durability of wooden and composite structural elements; application of digital image analysis to measurement of deformation; modeling drying stresses in wood.

Ralph D. Nyland, Ph.D. (Michigan State, 1966), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Silviculture of northern hardwoods, uneven-aged silvicultural systems.

Timothy Rials, Ph.D. (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1986), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Interfacial structure and properties of wood-polymer composites; surface characteristics of mechanical pulp fibers; applications of near infrared spectroscopy to wood quality and process monitoring.

Walter C. Shortle, Ph.D. (North Carolina State, 1974), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Forest pathology, wood biochemistry, dendrochemistry, biogeochemistry.

Melvin T. Tyree, Ph.D. (Cambridge, 1972), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources. Hydraulic architecture of trees.

Bret P. Vicary, Ph.D. (Maine, 1986), External Graduate Faculty in Forest Resources, James Sewall Co., Consultants. Forest economics, financial analysis, forest appraisal.