Guidance for Prospective Students
The recommendations below are meant as guidance for prospective students to increase their chances of being admitted into the graduate program in the Department of Plant Pathology and Crop Physiology. Funding is a limiting factor for admitting students into the program and there are two avenues to address funding for assistantships and research: 1) grant-funded assistantship and research support (typically awarded directly to faculty) or 2) self-funding. If you are self-funded, be sure you meet the requirements for admission by the graduate school and submit your application by the deadline. Be sure to note on your application that you are self-funded. You may still wish to review the guidelines below and seek faculty support prior to applying.
However, if you are not self-funded and are seeking an assistantship in the department, you will either need to seek grant funding independently or find a faculty member willing to support your research assistantship to improve your chances of being admitted into the graduate program. Below is a list of steps for prospective students to apply to the graduate program in this department.
1. Review the list of faculty on the departmental website (https://www.lsu.edu/agriculture/plant/about/faculty-staff/index.php) and determine which faculty have research programs that interest you. It is strongly recommended that you read some of the publications by those faculty members you are considering to be your advisor(s) to gain more insight into their area of research.
2. Contact the faculty member that you are interested in working with to determine if they are interested in bringing on a graduate student at this time and if they have funding to support an assistantship. Setup a meeting with the faculty member if possible. Be sure to note any correspondence with the faculty member so you can note that on your application.
3. Complete your application online. Once the application is complete and has been submitted to the Graduate School, notify the faculty member that you intend on working with so they can review your application and notify the admission committee that it is ready for review. You will then be notified once the application has been reviewed by the admissions committee.
It is not required to have secured faculty support for an assistantship prior to applying to the program, however students are not admitted into the program if they do not have financial support. There is the possibility that a faculty member will see your application and reach out to you to offer an assistantship, but this approach does not afford you the best chance of being admitted into the program and applications without financial support will not be reviewed by the departmental admissions committee.