TCD Certificate and Concentration
Concentration Requirements for MALAS Students
The TCD concentration comprises 15 credit hours of the
33 total hours required for completion of the Master of Arts in Latin American
Studies (MALAS) degree. The 15 credits in the concentration must include
the three interdisciplinary core courses and one course each in tropical
ecology and social science. Consult the curriculum
list for details. MALAS students must also write a thesis on a topic
that fits within the context of biodiversity conservation and/or rural development
in the tropics. One member of the student's supervisory committee must be
a TCD affiliate faculty member.
The remaining 15 credits required for the MALAS degree must be selected
from outside of the TCD concentration. Selection of these hours should be
made in consultation with the student's faculty advisor and the Center's
Graduate Coordinator.
Certificate and Concentration Requirements for Affiliate Department Students
Master's students from affiliate
departments (other than Latin American Studies) earn a TCD certificate
by completing 12 credit hours of approved coursework: two of the interdisciplinary
core courses, one course each in tropical ecology, and one course in social
science.
Ph.D. students from affiliate
departments earn a TCD certificate by completing 15 credit hours of
approved coursework: the three interdisciplinary core courses, one course
in tropical ecology, and one course in social science.
Students from natural science departments must take the social science hours
outside of their major department. Otherwise, courses from the student's
major can count toward program certificate requirements. Consult the curriculum
list for details.
To earn a TCD concentration, affiliate department students must fulfill
the course requirements for the certificate (as explained in the preceding
paragraphs) and they must complete a thesis, dissertation or final project
that fits within the context of biodiversity conservation and/or rural development
in the tropics. One member of the student's supervisory committee must be
a TCD affiliate faculty member from outside the student's major department.
Affiliate students can enroll in the TCD certificate or concentration program
by meeting with TCD's Associate Director, Marianne Schmink, after they are enrolled at UF.