PROGRAM INFORMATION
Program Director: E. Rios
Program Coordinator: E. Kampf
Plant Breeding is an interdisciplinary and interdepartmental graduate program that provides comprehensive training to prepare well-rounded and career-ready plant breeders for academic, industry, non-profit and other sectors. Our integrated curriculum equips students with traditional and contemporary breeding methodologies, including analysis of breeding trials, breeding methods and techniques, bioinformatics, gene editing, genomic prediction and quantitative genetics.
The Plant Breeding Graduate Program offers a Doctor of Philosophy degree that provides students with a strong background in experimental design and analysis during the first semester, and plant breeding theory and methods during the second semester. Our plant breeding faculty work with 50 plant species and represent diverse disciplines including: cell biology, genomics, molecular genetics, plant pathology, quantitative genetics & biometrics. For a complete faculty listing, please see the last page of this document.
To graduate in the program, students are required to have a minimum of 40 credits of coursework toward their major. Students must take all the 7 required courses listed below for a total of 20 credits of required courses and must additionally choose a minimum of 20 additional credits from the list of elective courses.
Minimum requirements for this degree are available in the Graduate Degrees section of this catalog. Successful applicants should have a B.S. or M.S. in agricultural, horticultural, forestry, biological or chemical sciences with desirable advanced undergraduate coursework in genetics, statistics, plant breeding, and biochemistry. However, outstanding students from a broad range of science and engineering disciplines will be considered.
All doctoral students must have at least one first author publication submitted to a peer-reviewed journal in their research field before graduation. Our students are strongly encouraged to publish before graduating.
Contact program director Dr. Esteban Rios at estebanrios@ufl.edu or 352-301-2244
Contact program coordinator Eliana Kampf at elianak@ufl.edu or 352-273-4760
For more information, please visit https://programs.ifas.ufl.edu/plant-breeding/graduate-program/
PLANT Breeding COURSES
The Plant Breeding Ph.D. degree will require a minimum of 90 post-baccalaureate credit hours and will include required courses, elective courses and dissertation research. To graduate in the program, students are required to have a minimum of 40 credits of coursework toward their major. All students are required to take 20 credits of required courses and must additionally choose a minimum of 20 additional credits from the list of elective courses.
Students must take the following 20 credits of required courses toward the Plant Breeding major:
REQUIRED COURSES
Course List
| Code |
Title |
Credits |
| AGR 5266C | Field Plot Techniques | 3 |
| AGR 5321C | Genetic Improvement of Plants | 3 |
| AGR 6325L | Plant Breeding Techniques | 1 |
| |
| HOS 6932 | Special Topics | 1-4 |
| |
| PCB 6555 | Introduction to Quantitative Genetics | 3 |
| |
| STA 6093 | Introduction to Applied Statistics for Agricultural and Life Sciences | 3 |
Students must choose a minimum of 20 credits from the list of electives below:
ELECTIVE COURSES
Students admitted with an M.S. degree may be able to transfer up to 30 credits toward their elective courses requirement from a regionally accredited institution or international equivalent, subject to existing UF Graduate School policies.
The number of dissertation research credits will vary according to the student’s field of study and progression toward research and degree.
Agronomy Departmental Courses
Environmental Horticulture Departmental Courses
Course List by Depts
| Code |
Title |
Credits |
| ALS 5934 | Graduate Professional Development Seminar | 2 |
| BCH 5045 | Graduate Survey of Biochemistry | 4 |
| HOS 5117C | Horticultural Plant Morphology and Identification | 3 |
| HOS 5432 | Advanced Nutritional Management of Ornamental Crops | 3 |
| HOS 5515C | Greenhouse and Nursery Operations | 3 |
| HOS 5516C | Cultivation, Extraction, and Application of Medicinal Plants and Their Bioactive Compounds | 3 |
| HOS 6070 | Plant Materials for Conservation and Restoration | 3 |
| HOS 6295 | Methods in Plant Biotechnology | 3 |
| HOS 6523 | Research and Development in Turfgrass Science | 3 |
| HOS 6905 | Problems in Horticultural Science | 1-4 |
| HOS 6910 | Supervised Research | 1-5 |
| HOS 6931 | Horticultural Science Seminar | 1 |
| HOS 6932 | Special Topics | 1-4 |
| HOS 6940 | Supervised Teaching | 1-5 |
| HOS 6941 | Practicum in Horticultural Science | 2-4 |
| HOS 6971 | Research for Master's Thesis | 1-15 |
| HOS 6991 | Fundamentals of Seed Biology | 4 |
| HOS 7979 | Advanced Research | 1-12 |
| HOS 7980 | Research for Doctoral Dissertation | 1-15 |
| ORH 5026C | Advanced Annual and Perennial Gardening | 3 |
| ORH 5086 | Advanced Golf and Sports Turf Management | 2 |
| ORH 5282 | Orchid Biology and Culture | 3 |
| ORH 5817C | Advanced Florida Native Landscaping | 3 |
| PLS 5222C | Propagation of Horticultural Crops | 3 |
| PLS 5241C | Advanced Plant Micropropagation | 4 |
Horticultural Sciences Departmental Courses
Course List by Depts
| Code |
Title |
Credits |
| ALS 5932 | Special Topics | 1-4 |
| HOS 5085C | Principles of Postharvest Horticulture | 3 |
| HOS 5242 | Genetics & Breeding of Vegetable Crops | 3 |
| HOS 5330 | Postharvest Technologies for Horticultural Crops | 2 |
| HOS 5505 | Getting Published Horticulture | 3 |
| HOS 5555 | Tropical Fruit Production and Research in Florida | 3 |
| HOS 5711 | Phytochemicals in Food & Health | 3 |
| HOS 6201 | Breeding Perennial Cultivars | 3 |
| HOS 6236 | Molecular Marker Assisted Plant Breeding | 3 |
| HOS 6307 | Horticultural Physiology | 3 |
| HOS 6331 | Postharvest Biology | 3 |
| HOS 6345 | Environmental Physiology | 4 |
| HOS 6355 | Root and Rhizosphere Ecology | 3 |
| HOS 6412 | Nutrition of Horticultural Crops | 3 |
| HOS 6545 | Advanced Citriculture I | 3 |
| HOS 6905 | Problems in Horticultural Science | 1-4 |
| HOS 6910 | Supervised Research | 1-5 |
| HOS 6931 | Horticultural Science Seminar | 1 |
| HOS 6932 | Special Topics | 1-4 |
| HOS 6934 | Professional Seminar Preparation | 1 |
| HOS 6940 | Supervised Teaching | 1-5 |
| HOS 6941 | Practicum in Horticultural Science | 2-4 |
| HOS 6971 | Research for Master's Thesis | 1-15 |
| HOS 7979 | Advanced Research | 1-12 |
| HOS 7980 | Research for Doctoral Dissertation | 1-15 |
| PCB 5065 | Advanced Genetics | 4 |
| PCB 5530 | Plant Molecular Biology and Genomics | 3 |
| PCB 6528 | Plant Cell and Developmental Biology | 3 |
| PCB 6910 | Supervised Research | 1-5 |
| PCB 6937 | Special Topics in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology | 1-4 |
| PCB 6971 | Research for Master's Thesis | 1-15 |
| PCB 7922 | Journal Colloquy in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology | 1 |
| PCB 7979 | Advanced Research | 1-12 |
| PCB 7980 | Research for Doctoral Dissertation | 1-15 |
| PLS 6635 | Weed Management for Organic and Sustainable Cropping Systems | 3 |
| PLS 7979 | Advanced Research | 1-12 |
| PLS 7980 | Research for Doctoral Dissertation | 1-15 |
School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences Departmental Courses
Course List by Depts
| Code |
Title |
Credits |
| FAS 5015 | Aquaculture I | 3 |
| FAS 5203 | Biology of Fishes | 3 |
| FAS 5203C | Biology of Fishes | 4 |
| FAS 5255 | Diseases of Warmwater Fish | 3 |
| FAS 5276C | Field Ecology of Aquatic Organisms | 4 |
| FAS 5335C | Applied Fisheries Statistics | 4 |
| FAS 5407 | Biology of Fishery and Aquaculture Invertebrates | 3 |
| FAS 5901 | Scientific Thinking in Ecology | 2 |
| FAS 6154 | Marine Adaptations: Environmental Physiology | 3 |
| FAS 6165 | Fish and Crustacean Nutrition | 3 |
| FAS 6176 | Algae Biology and Ecology | 3 |
| FAS 6238 | Environmental Physiology of Fishes | 3 |
| FAS 6256 | Fish and Aquatic Invertebrate Histology | 3 |
| FAS 6272 | Marine Ecological Processes | 3 |
| FAS 6273 | Trophic Ecology of Fishes | 3 |
| FAS 6275 | Freshwater Ecology | 3 |
| FAS 6306C | Spatial Sciences for Marine Environmental Characterization | 4 |
| FAS 6337C | Fish Population Dynamics | 4 |
| FAS 6339C | Advanced Quantitative Fisheries Assessment | 4 |
| FAS 6355C | Fisheries Management | 4 |
| FAS 6356 | Fisheries Enhancement | 2 |
| FAS 6356 | Fisheries Enhancement | 2 |
| FAS 6357 | Marine Protected Areas | 3 |
| FAS 6360 | Invasion Ecology of Aquatic Animals | 3 |
| FAS 6408 | Aquaculture II | 3 |
| FAS 6416 | Spatial Ecology and Modeling of Fish Populations | 2 |
| FAS 6705 | Fisheries and aquaculture: An economics perspective | 3 |
| FAS 6905 | Individual Study | 1-6 |
| FAS 6910 | Supervised Research | 1-5 |
| FAS 6932 | Special Topics in Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences | 1-4 |
| FAS 6933 | Graduate Symposium | 1 |
| FAS 6935 | Contemporary Problems in Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences | 2 |
| FAS 6940 | Supervised Teaching | 1-5 |
| FAS 6971 | Research for Master's Thesis | 1-15 |
| FAS 7979 | Advanced Research | 1-12 |
| FAS 7980 | Research for Doctoral Dissertation | 1-15 |
| FNR 5072C | Environmental Education Program Development | 3 |
| FNR 5608 | Research Planning | 3 |
| FNR 5625 | Managing Public Lands and Waters | 3 |
| FNR 6061 | Conflict and Collaboration in Natural Resources | 3 |
| FNR 6560 | Intro to Bayesian Statistics for Life Sciences | 3 |
| FNR 6564 | Ecohydrology | 3 |
| FNR 6628 | Watershed Management and Restoration | 3 |
| FNR 6668 | Natural Resources in a Changing Climate | 3 |
| FNR 6669 | Policy and Economics of Natural Resources | 3 |
| FOR 5157 | Ecosystem Restoration Principles and Practice | 3 |
| FOR 5159 | Ecology and Restoration of Longleaf Pine Ecosystems | 3 |
| FOR 5435 | Forest Information Systems | 3 |
| FOR 5626 | Forest Resource Manag | 3 |
| FOR 6005 | Conservation Behavior | 3 |
| FOR 6045 | Science Communication & Public Education | 3 |
| FOR 6151 | Forest Ecosystem Health | 3 |
| FOR 6154 | Analysis of Forest Ecosystems | 3 |
| FOR 6155 | Forest Ecosystem Resilience | 3 |
| FOR 6156 | Simulation Analysis of Forest Ecosystems | 3 |
| FOR 6158 | Management and Restoration of Invaded Ecosystems | 3 |
| FOR 6164 | Silviculture: Concepts and Application | 3 |
| FOR 6170 | Tropical Forestry | 3 |
| FOR 6215 | Fire Paradigms | 3 |
| FOR 6340 | Physiology of Forest Trees | 3 |
| FOR 6436C | Visualization of Ecological Data | 3 |
| FOR 6543 | Natural Resource Economics and Valuation | 3 |
| FOR 6625 | Issues in Southeastern Forest Health | 3 |
| FOR 6628 | Community Forest Management | 3 |
| FOR 6665 | Landscape Planning for Ecotourism | 3 |
| FOR 6670C | Urban Forestry | 3 |
| FOR 6905 | Research Problems in Forest Resources and Conservation | 1-6 |
| FOR 6910 | Supervised Research | 1-5 |
| FOR 6933 | Seminar | 1 |
| FOR 6934 | Topics in Forest Resources and Conservation | 1-4 |
| FOR 6940 | Supervised Teaching | 1-5 |
| FOR 6971 | Research for Master's Thesis | 1-15 |
| FOR 7979 | Advanced Research | 1-12 |
| FOR 7980 | Research for Doctoral Dissertation | 1-15 |
| GIS 6103 | GIS Programming and Customization | 3 |
| GIS 6116 | Geographic Information Systems Analysis | 3 |
| GIS 6116 | Geographic Information Systems Analysis | 3 |
| PCB 5530 | Plant Molecular Biology and Genomics | 3 |
| PCB 6528 | Plant Cell and Developmental Biology | 3 |
| PCB 6555 | Introduction to Quantitative Genetics | 3 |
| SUR 5365 | Digital Mapping | 3 |
| SUR 5385 | Remote Sensing Applications | 3 |
| SUR 5386 | Image Processing for Remote Sensing | 3 |
| SUR 5525 | Least Squares Adjustment Computations | 3 |
| SUR 6346 | Marine Geomatics | 3 |
| SUR 6355 | Analytical Photogrammetry | 3 |
| SUR 6377 | Geospatial Application of UASs | 3 |
| SUR 6395 | Topics in Geographic Information Systems | 3 |
| SUR 6502C | Foundations of UAS Mapping | 3 |
| SUR 6535 | GPS-INS Integration | 3 |
| SUR 6536 | Geodesy and Geodetic Positioning | 3 |
| SUR 6905 | Special Problems in Geomatics | 1-6 |
| SUR 6934 | Topics in Geomatics | 1-4 |
| SUR 6940C | Practicum in UAS Mapping | 3 |
Research Credits
Course List
| Code |
Title |
Credits |
| PLS 7979 | Advanced Research | 1-12 |
| PLS 7980 | Research for Doctoral Dissertation | 1-15 |
