The Interdepartmental Plant Physiology Program at Virginia Tech



in the Departments of:
Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences
Biochemistry and Anaerobic Microbiology
Biology
Horticulture
Plant Pathology, Physiology, and Weed Science
and
Forestry

THE CURRICULUM

Virginia Tech offers graduate study in plant physiology leading to the Masters and Ph.D. degrees through the Interdepartmental Plant Physiology Program (IPPP). Faculty and students for the IPPP are located in several different academic departments but enjoy a spirit of cooperation and community in their interest in plant sciences. Areas of research specialization include crop physiology, eukaryotic and prokaryotic molecular and cell biology, growth regulation, herbicidal action and metabolism, metabolic regulation, physiological ecology, physiology of plant disease, seed physiology, stress physiology, tissue culture, and related fields in the agricultural and natural sciences. A student's program of study may be selected from plant-physiology-related courses offered by the several departments and can accommodate individual needs and interests. Research ideas and findings are shared with students and faculty at interdepartmental plant physiology seminars.

THE FACILITIES

Because of the interdepartmental, cooperative nature of the IPPP, the Program enjoys a broader range of facilities than might be available within any single department. Greenhouses, growth chambers, and orchards and field plots are available for growing experimental materials. Laboratory space and equipment provide for a great variety of work. Key items available to researchers include GC-MS, HPLC, inductively coupled plasmo-spectrographs, respirometers, infrared gas analyzers, scanning and transmission electron microscopes, portable photosynthesis-measuring devices, laminar flow hoods, tissue culture rooms, NMR, and a variety of other field and laboratory devices for measuring plant responses, monitoring the plant's environment, and performing plant molecular biology.

The University's Center for Molecular Biology of Plant Stress and the Fralin Biotechnology Center are designed specifically to bring together the personnel and equipment needed to carry out world-class biotechnological research in the plant sciences.

THE UNIVERSITY AND ITS SURROUNDINGS

Virginia Tech is a land-grant university and the largest university in Virginia with a full-time enrollment of approximately 25,000 students, including 4,000 graduate students. The campus, which occupies about 1,000 hectares, is located in Blacksburg, a town of some 30,000 permanent residents in the New River Valley of the Appalachian Mountains. Campus facilities available for student use include a million-plus-volume library, a state-of-the-art computing center, numerous computer laboratories, a large student center, a field house, and a gymnasium. The University is located on a high plain between the Blue Ridge and Alleghany Mountains in southwest Virginia. It is within an hour's drive of the city of Roanoke, the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Jefferson National Forest, and the Appalachian Trail. Washington, D.C., is only 4.5 hours away by car.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT

Research and teaching assistantships are available on a competitive basis. They provide financial support for 9 or 12 months each year. The amount of stipend may vary with department and the student's academic level.

INQUIRIES, APPLICATIONS, ADMISSIONS

For more information and application materials, please contact the Graduate School. Any of the IPPP faculty would also welcome your inquiries about specific interests. Applications for admission are received by the Graduate School and forwarded to the department of interest for consideration. Admission to the program is based on departmental and Graduate School requirements.

Plant Physiology Program
Graduate School
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, Virginia 24061
(540) 231-9570 or 6180

IPPP Faculty

IPPP Course requirements and enrollment

return to previous page