Freshwater and Marine Sciences Graduate Program Handbook-Navigating Policy and Resources at UW–Madison

This document provides information on policies and resources relevant to the FMS Graduate Program.

How to Use this Handbook
Graduate Program Manager
Director of Graduate Studies
Faculty Advisor
Graduate School Services

This handbook shares important information specific to your degree program. Refer to it as you become familiar with the policies, procedures, requirements, and resources of graduate education at UW-Madison.

Program Handbook
- Details program specific information, procedures and resources. May be formatted in the form of web page or linkable document. Applicable information should be linked out to appropriate sources.
Policy Library
- Single, up to date resource for all university-level policies
- policy.wisc.edu
Graduate Guide
- University catalog of all graduate credentials awarded by the University of Wisconsin–Madison. this is the official source of truth on campus for program-specific policies regarding admission, degree requiremtns, funding, prior coursework and more.
- guide.wisc.edu/graduate

Resources and information curated by the Graduate School for prospective and current students are found the Graduate School website. The Graduate Student Life website is also maintained by the Graduate School and provides useful information for new graduate students.

How to Use this Handbook

This handbook is intended for graduate students pursuing M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in the Freshwater and Marine Sciences (FMS) program. The UW-Madison Graduate School is the ultimate authority for granting graduate degrees at the University. The Graduate School’s Academic Policies and Procedures provide essential information regarding general University requirements. Program authority to set degree requirements beyond the minimum required by the Graduate School lies with FMS faculty. The policies described in this handbook have been approved by the program faculty. Degrees and course requirements may change over time; however, students must meet the degree and course requirements that are in effect when they entered the program. In addition, administrative procedures and processes can change over time. Students are required to follow the procedures and processes listed in the current handbook. The information in this handbook should also be supplemented by individual consultation with your advisor and advisory committee so that individual needs/interests and all degree requirements are met. Additional information is available via the FMS web page.

Graduate Program Manager

Each graduate program has at least one department staff person, typically called a Graduate Program Manager, who serves as a point person for program policy and procedures. Graduate Program Managers are well versed in most elements of graduate education that extend beyond academic instruction in your program and will likely be your first stop for questions related to the content in this handbook.

The Graduate Program Manager for FMS is Erin Pierce (eapierce3@wisc.edu).

Director of Graduate Studies

Each graduate program has one faculty member designated to direct its educational vision and structure.

The Director of Graduate Studies for Freshwater and Marine Sciences is Dr. Jessica Hua (jhua23@wisc.edu).

Faculty Advisor

Each student will be assigned a faculty advisor in the graduate program in which they are enrolled. Your faculty advisor(s) will be a key source of guidance for your academic development. The Graduate School: Advisor policy provides the definition for an advisor. The “Advising and Mentoring” section provides guidelines for finding, changing, and working with your advisor.

The name and contact information of your faculty advisor is listed on your Student Center on MyUW under “Academic Progress” and then “Advisors.”