Miss.-Mississippi State students now have the opportunity to conduct graduate study in the biological sciences on the other side of the world. A newly signed agreement between the university's College of Forest Resources and the Malaysia University of Science is creating a research assistantship, complete with logistical support. The first student soon will be selected to study tropical stream ecology in the Southeast Asian nation of nearly 22 million people. Logging and mining are major industries in Malaysia and the problems they cause are similar to those faced in some areas of Mississippi. Jackson, a professor of fisheries, said the MSU student, in addition to experiencing a very distinct culture, will be exposed to a different type of higher education system.
Graduate students conduct specialized research rather than taking courses in the classroom.
As part of the MSU-MUS agreement, a Malaysian student will come to Starkville to enroll in the master's degree program of wildlife and fisheries. The first participant is expected in January for the spring semester. Jackson said the selected Mississippi State student would spend 18 months to two years completing a master's in biological sciences from the Malaysian institution. Applications currently are being accepted from December and May graduates in the areas of natural resources or biological sciences, he added. This is not the first student exchange between the two schools.