Two programs are available to graduate students at the Appalachian Laboratory: the Marine Estuarine Environmental Sciences (MEES) program through University of Maryland, College Park and the programs of the Biology Department of Frostburg State University. The MEES program grants both M.S. and Ph.D. degrees, while FSU grants M.S. degrees.
To enter graduate programs, prospective students must first find an AL faculty member who is available and able to function as the student's advisor, and who is able to arrange research assistantships, teaching assistantships, and research support, if needed. Prospective students are encouraged to learn about interests of their potential advisor using the faculty profile pages. Prospective students can directly contact faculty members whose interests and research programs appear best suited to the student's interests.
Student admission and support
Admission to either the MEES program or the FSU graduate program is competitive from two points of view. First, applicants are judged on their academic merits. Second, before academically eligible students are admitted, they must be accepted by a faculty advisor. Prospective students interested in working with AL faculty advisors should correspond directly with AL faculty members having similar research interests about potential research projects and assistantships.
Most AL graduate students are supported by research assistantships based on faculty grants or contracts. In addition, there are a limited number of competitively awarded teaching assistantships available. Outstanding applicants may also be nominated by the MEES Program for highly competitive University of Maryland, College Park Graduate School Fellowships or the UMCES President's Graduate Fellowship.
Depending on the program of study and type of degree, AL students within the MEES program can either reside in Frostburg throughout their program by taking both onsite classes and classes through the Interactive Video Network, a customized distance learning laboratory, or they may need to maintain residence in College Park for one to two years before moving on to full-time research at AL. Students enrolled in FSU M.S. programs generally reside in Frostburg throughout their degree program.