Overview
The Agricultural Water Management program educates students in the application of engineering principles to support useful plant life, with minimum degradation of soil and water resources. The primary objective of the interdisciplinary program is to understand soil, water and plant relationships and how they can be applied to better manage natural resources in the production of food and fiber.
In addition to increasing their understanding of engineering fundamentals, students are encouraged to appreciate environmental and ecological effects of irrigated agriculture. This is important since irrigated agriculture has come under increasing criticism for being a heavy user of scarce water resources and for polluting soil and water resources.
Faculty
Courses
Each student consults with their graduate student committee to develop a specific program of study and research that is consistent with the individual’s background, interests, and goals. Many students follow programs similar to the one listed below.
Core Courses
CIVE 512 Irrigation Systems Design
- CIVE 519 Irrigation Water Management
- CIVE 549 Drainage and Wetlands Engineering
Elective Courses
CIVE 580A2 Conjunctive Ground/Surface Management
CIVE 576 Engineering Applications of GIS and GPS
CIVE 520 Physical Hydrology
CIVE 521 Hydrometry
CIVE 531 Groundwater Hydrology
CIVE 532 Wells and Pumps
CIVE 525 Water Engineering for International Development
CIVE 544 Water Resources Planning & Management
CIVE 546 Water Resources Systems Analysis
CIVE 547 Statistics for Environmental Monitoring
CIVE 571 Pipe System Engineering and Hydraulics
CIVE 577 GIS in Civil and Environmental Engineering
ENGR 520 Engineering Decision Support/Expert Systems
AGRI 500 Advanced Issues in Agriculture
CIVE 612 Open-Channel Flow
CIVE 625 Quantitative Eco-Hydrology
CIVE 631 Computational Methods in Sub-surface Systems
CIVE 681A1 Systems for Developing Groundwater Resources
NSCI 696 Group Study: The Habitable Planet: a Systems Approach to Environmental Science
SOCR 470 Soil Physics
SOCR 471 Soil Physics Laboratory
SOCR 490 Hydrus-1D Workshop
SOCR 522 Plant Canopy Meteorology
Graduate studies in Agricultural Water Management typically consider issues like the following:
- Soil-water-crop relationships
- Analysis for crop water requirements
- On-farm irrigation system design and water management
- Design of water delivery and distribution systems
- Water control and measurement in irrigation systems
- Drainage of irrigated lands
- Environmental concerns related to irrigation and drainage – salt problem, nutrient leaching, and reduction of stream flows in rivers
Graduate Admission and Program Details
Prospective students can learn more about our requirements, objectives, and program details.
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Advising and Graduate Student Resources
Current students can schedule an appointment with the graduate advisor and access tools to help plan their academic journey.