Graduate Students
Master of Science in Agriculture
Specializations
MS Agriculture, Specialization in Crop Science. For students with undergraduate preparation in plant agriculture and/or plant science. Current research is focused primarily in applied fruit crop physiology, vegetable breeding and physiology, sustainable fruit and vegetable production, viticulture, plant pathology, integrated pest management, and post harvest technology, including sustainable packaging and packaging safety. Thesis required.
Coordinator: Dr. Benjamin Hoover (bkhoover@calpoly.edu)
MS Agriculture, Specialization in Environmental Horticultural Science. For students with undergraduate preparation in horticulture and/or plant science. Current research is focused primarily in applied plant physiology, nursery and potted plant production, sustainable landscape development and maintenance, and integrated pest management. Thesis required.
Coordinator: Dr. Benjamin Hoover (bkhoover@calpoly.edu)
MS Agriculture, Specialization in Plant Protection Science. For students with undergraduate preparation in plant agriculture, plant science, biological sciences, and/or ecology. Current research is focused on pest biology, tritrophic interactions, invasive species, biological control and plant disease management. Projects provide the opportunity to conduct field and/or laboratory experiments with corporate stakeholders for career enhancement. Curriculum and research allows students to develop more diverse or specialized skill sets for post-graduate employment and/or opportunity to obtain required coursework for state licensing. Thesis required.
Coordinator: Dr. Benjamin Hoover (bkhoover@calpoly.edu)
Note: Applicants from outside Cal Poly are now required to submit GRE scores when applying for these specializations.
Links to Graduate Information
- Academic Year 2025-2026 Application Information
- How to Apply
- Graduate School: Steps to Graduation
- Graduate School Policies and Guidelines
PLSC Graduate Faculty
| Name | Specialization(s) | Research Topics/Affiliation | Role | Contact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mohammad Aghaee, Ph.D. | PPSC | Entomology/Strawberry Center | de facto Advisor | maghaee@calpoly.edu |
| Federico Casassa, Ph.D. | EHS, CRSC | Enology/Wine & Viticulture | Advisor | lcasassa@calpoly.edu |
| Charlotte Decock, Ph.D. | CRSC | Soil science, Organic soil fertility/NRES | Advisor | cdecock@calpoly.edu |
| Shunping Ding, Ph.D. | CRSC, PPSC | Plant pathology, grape diseases/Wine & Viticulture | Advisor | sding01@calpoly.edu |
| Lauren Garner, Ph.D. | CRSC, EHS | Fruit science | Advisor | lgarner@calpoly.edu |
| Matthew Grieshop, Ph.D. | CRSC | Organic production/Organic Center | de facto Advisor | mgriesho@calpoly.edu |
| Shashika Hewavitharana, Ph.D. | PPSC | Strawberry pathology/Strawberry Center | Advisor | shewavit@calpoly.edu |
| Gerald Holmes, Ph.D. | PPSC | Strawberry pathology/Strawberry Center | Advisor | gjholmes@calpoly.edu |
| Benjamin Hoover, Ph.D. | EHS, PPSC | Nursery production, plant propagation | Advisor | bkhoover@calpoly.edu |
| Suraj Kar, Ph.D. | CRSC | Viticulture/Wine & Viticulture | Advisor | surajkar@calpoly.edu |
| Miguel Pedroza, Ph.D | EHS, CRSC | Enology/Wine & Viticulture | Advisor | miguelp@calpoly.edu |
| Ryan Perry, Ph.D. | PPSC | Entomology | Advisor | rkperry@calpoly.edu |
| Scott Steinmaus, Ph.D. | CRSC, PPSC | Weed ecology | Advisor | ssteinma@calpoly.edu |
| Ashraf Tubeileh, Ph.D. | CRSC | Organic crop production | Advisor | atubeile@calpoly.edu |
| Nicole Waterland, Ph.D. | EHS, CRSC | Controlled environment plant production | Advisor | nwaterla@calpoly.edu |
| Jeffrey Wong, Ph.D. | CRSC | Plant breeding | Advisor | jcwong@calpoly.edu |
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