Conservation Social Sciences

The University of Idaho offers a Master of Science (M.S.) in Conservation Social Sciences. With this degree, you’ll be well equipped to contribute to important work in natural resource research, management and administration in government resource management agencies, private businesses and nonprofit organizations.

Depending on your level of interest in research and how you plan to apply your degree, you can choose one of two options:

• Thesis, M.S. Conservation Social Sciences: Conduct independent research and present the results of that research as a research report, publishable journal article manuscripts, or another format approved by your graduate committee. Theses will be submitted to the College of Graduate Studies.
• Nonthesis, M.S. Conservation Social Sciences: Do some research, but the majority of your curriculum is based on lecture and application-based course work. Before graduation, you’re required to produce a final report.

You also have the option to earn an Environmental Education Certificate.

You will learn tailored skills that will give you the ability to help public and private entities properly balance the desire to expand development with the need to protect and conserve our natural environment.

Through class work and team projects, you’ll explore:

• Conservation and sustainable management techniques
• Social science research methods
• Conflict resolution
• Recreation and tourism planning
• Recreation and tourism behavior

Prepare for Success

To be successful in this program and as a professional in the workforce, you should have a keen interest in understanding the multiple players involved in the development and management of natural resource recreational and tourist sites, which could include city, state and federal parks, rivers, other natural waterways, wilderness areas, open space and much more.

You must have strong writing and speaking skills, with the ability to understand multiple perspectives. You should also have an understanding of biological and ecological concepts, as well as psychology, sociology, statistics and public policy.

Your First Year

Entrance into the College of Graduate Studies program is highly competitive. Admission normally requires completion of undergraduate course work in the area of natural and social sciences. If you don’t have an undergraduate degree in one of these areas, you may be required to make up deficiencies as determined by their advisory committees.

What You Can Do

With this degree, you may become a:

• Environmental consultant
• Public or private researcher
• Park/open space manager
• Leader of wilderness conservation group
• Policy planning supervisor
• Director of tourism at the local, state or federal level

Opportunities

As the protection of wild places and the management of natural resources continue to be a top priority for citizens, business leaders, and decision makers, an advanced degree in resource recreation and tourism is in increasing demand. You’ll find a wide range of opportunities in state and federal conservation agencies, nonprofit groups and nongovernmental agencies. You may pursue a career in a variety of settings, including:

• National parks
• National forests, wilderness areas
• Protected areas, open space
• Wilderness conservation areas
• Conservation groups
• Governmental conservation planning, policy and law

Current Research

Our faculty members are engaged in numerous research projects related to wilderness, recreation, wildlife management and natural resource policy. Other projects focus on the management of natural resource uses while merging both the studies of tourism and recreation development, as well as the study of human behavior in relationship to those developments.

Activities

Society for Range Management Student Conclave
Student Organization for the People and the Environment (SOPE)
International Assocation for Society and Natural Resources

Hands-On Experience

If you are interested in the thesis option, you will be required to conduct independent research and present your results. Below are titles of past student projects:

• Segmentation of Off-Highway Vehicle Recreationists for Off-Highway Vehicle Route System Development: An Application in the Colville National Forest
• Beliefs about Bear Resistant Food Canister Use Among Backcountry Visitors in Glacier National Park
• Safety in Wildland Fire: Leadership and Employee Voice

In collaboration with your individual research endeavors, you can take advantage of the Wilderness & Protected Area Research Center (WPARC). This universitywide research facility conducts research and teaches courses on:

• Wilderness and protected area management
• Monitoring impacts
• Communicating with the public
• Nature of wilderness experiences

Facilities

The university hosts world-class research centers for remote sensing and ecological genetics. Idaho and the surrounding states also offer an outstanding outdoor classroom for natural resources issues. Some of our unique off-site facilities include the University of Idaho Experimental Forest, the McCall Field Campus and the incomparable Taylor Ranch Field Station, a wilderness research facility nestled in the heart of the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness.

Learn more about other College of Natural Resources research facilities.

Faculty Involvement

An extremely diverse group of faculty challenges students both in and out of the classroom. Lab and field facilities are used both on and off campus.

Bill McLaughlin
Dean of College of Natural Resources & Professor
» Bill McLaughlin - profile

Chuck Harris
Professor
Dr. Charles C. Harris (Chuck) has been at the University of Idaho for over 20 years, where he has taught and conducted research on a wide variety of topics, including: the human dimensions of ecosystem management and restoration ecology; the impacts of resource management activities and policies on rural communities; social impact assessment and deliberative public input processes; resource management, policy, and planning; the organizational psychology of resource management; and natural resource tourism, impacts, and market analysis.
» Chuck Harris - profile

Ed Krumpe
Professor
Dr. Ed Krumpe is a Professor of Resource Recreation and Tourism in the University of Idaho College of Forestry, Wildlife and Range Sciences. In addition to his academic responsibilities, Dr. Krumpe is the Principle Scientist of Wilderness Management of the University of Idaho Wilderness Research Center, for which he served as director for six years. He has over seventeen years experience in conducting research and teaching about recreation and tourism management, wilderness and wild and scenic river planning, natural resource communication, and public involvement and conflict resolution.
» Ed Krumpe - profile

James Fazio
Professor
Resource communication, Environmental interpretation, Conservation history, Urban and community forestry
» James Fazio - profile

Larry Young
Department Head & Associate Professor
Areas of interest: Advocacy, conservation sociology, collaborative planning
» lyoung@uidaho.edu

Nick Sanyal
Associate Professor
Areas of specialization: Directing scholarship on and learning about the wildlands, communities and institutions necessary for the use, enjoyment, understanding and conservation of our natural resources; The Academic Advising- Service Learning-Teaching interface; Conservation planning; human dimensions of fish and wildlife management.
» Nick Sanyal - profile

Patrick Wilson
Associate Professor
Patrick Wilson's research interests include natural resource policy and politics, and comparative public policy; politics of species conservation, tribal government management of natural resources, and water policy and politics.
» Patrick Wilson - profile

Sam Ham
Professor; Director of Center for International Training and Outreach
Special areas of interest: Communication theory and human behavior in parks and tourism settings, Psychology of interpretation and tourism experience, Guiding and guide training, Interpretation training and interpretive planning, Natural resource communication, Nature-based tourism and eco-tourism, Parks and protected area management
» View Sam Ham's profile

Sandra Lee Pinel
Assistant Professor
Research and teaching interests: Local and regional land use planning, indigenous and community culture in planning theory and methods; cultural landscapes, multi-jurisdictional governance; limits to participatory and collaborative planning; conflict management; community economic development; epistemologies in planning cultural resource management; ethnographic research methods, social impact and contextualized case study research.
» Sandra Lee Pinel - profile

Steven Hollenhorst
Professor
» Steven Hollenhorst - profile

Tammi Laninga
Assistant Professor
Research and teaching interests: Community-based collaborative planning, Federal land management planning processes, Sustainable land use planning. Laninga has a joint appointment within CSS and the UI Bioregional Planning and Community Design program.
» Tammi Laninga - profile

Troy Hall
Associate Professor
Areas of interest: Recreation planning and management: Developing creative ways to bring stakeholders together to solve challenges created by increasing demand and sociocultural changes. In particular: (1) understanding the nature of wilderness experiences and helping managers devise acceptable management alternatives for high-use destinations; and (2) working with multiple stakeholders and land managers to understand trends and management alternatives for dispersed and developed recreation sites. Recent research includes
» Troy Hall - profile