Graduate Faculty

701-231- 7713

Deland Myers, Ph.D.,
Director

Charlene Wolf-Hall, Ph.D.,
Associate Director and Academic Program Coordinator

The Food Safety graduate programs are interdisciplinary and many NDSU graduate faculty participate in advising graduate students in these programs. For more information about faculty involved with these programs and their activities within the Great Plains Institute of Food Safety see www.ndsu.edu/foodsafety

 

Program Description

The lack of individuals with food safety expertise is becoming increasingly evident in government, business, and academia. This food safety expertise gap is widespread and exists in many professions. Individuals earning a Ph.D. degree through the Great Plains Institute of Food Safety will be educated as independent researchers, expanding their potential to become principal investigators of food safety research in various arenas, including business, academia, and government. The M.S. degree will prepare students for supervisory roles in the food industry, with regulatory agencies, or in public health. Students earning the Graduate Certificate will likely be professionals looking to augment their skills.

These programs are administered through the Great Plains Institute of Food Safety (GPIFS) which is composed of faculty from the Colleges of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Natural Resources; Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences; Engineering and Architecture; Human Development and Education; and Science and Mathematics. The GPIFS graduate programs report directly to the College of Graduate and Interdisciplinary Studies.

Admissions Requirements

1. A relevant baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution of recognized standing. Appropriate degrees might be in food science, food safety, meat science, cereal science, microbiology, veterinary science, economics, engineering, dietetics, nutrition, or communication.
2. A strong academic record in a pertinent area with a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.
3. The Graduate Record Examination General Test scores are required for evaluation purposes.
4. Adequate preparation and demonstrated potential for advanced studies.

Applications for summer or fall admittance should be received by March 15. Applications for spring admittance should be received by October 15.

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Requirements

The Ph.D. is awarded in recognition of satisfactory completion of advanced studies, written and oral preliminary examinations, performance of novel research in the area of food safety, and development and defense of an acceptable dissertation detailing the student's research. For each doctoral student admitted to the program, an advisory committee will be established. This committee will consist of the major adviser who will chair the committee, and two other selected graduate faculty. Additionally, the Graduate School will appoint an outside member of the committee. The student and major adviser will prepare the plan of study, which is subject to the approval of the committee, the GPIFS director, and the Graduate School dean. The plan of study, which must be filed in the Graduate School, will include not less than 90 semester credits. Fifteen of these credits must be at the 700-789 level. An overall grade point average of 3.0 must be maintained on the required course work.

The plan of study for the Ph.D. will be multidisciplinary. All plans will include sufficient course work to demonstrate a minimum proficiency in food safety. The plan of study should be signed off by the Graduate School by the end of the first semester of enrollment in the program.

Examinations

1. Preliminary Examinations
   Both written and oral preliminary examinations shall be taken no later than the end of the third year in residence after all the required course work has been completed. Successful completion of both preliminary examinations will formally admit a student to candidacy for the Ph.D. in Food Safety. At least one academic semester must elapse between admission to candidacy and the final examination.
   
2. Final Examination (defense of the dissertation)
   Under the mentorship of the major adviser and in frequent consultation with the student's graduate committee, the student will design an original research project to answer a question of food safety significance. The student will perform the project and then describe it in a public seminar and dissertation. The dissertation may be arranged in classical or manuscript style as described in the Graduate School's Guidelines for the Preparation of Disquisitions. Additionally, the student must defend this dissertation in a final oral examination given by the graduate committee.

Master's of Science (M.S.) Requirements

Students may choose a non-thesis M.S. degree or opt for the research-oriented, thesis-requiring program. The non-thesis option is available for students seeking a broad range of knowledge and skills suitable to the workplace. This degree is a terminal one and would not prepare students for careers in research. In this case, students will be required to compose a novel, comprehensive paper, which is a synthesis of the literature regarding some aspect of food safety.

The thesis-requiring degree is a research degree and, as such, can prepare the student for future study at the doctoral level. The student will perform a novel research project designed to contribute to the body of knowledge in some area pertinent to food safety, prepare a thesis on this research, and defend it in a final oral examination administered by the advisory committee.

In both cases, the advisory committee will be composed of the major adviser who will chair the examining committee, two additional graduate faculty, and a Graduate School appointee. The student and major adviser, in consultation with the committee, will design the student's plan of study. The plan of study should be signed off by the Graduate School by the end of the first semester of enrollment in the program.

1. Non-Thesis Option:
   Of the 30 graduate credits required, a minimum of 21 must be in courses approved for graduate credit (601-689 or 700-789). The paper credits must not be fewer than two hours nor more than four. The paper's topic and scope will be determined by the student in consultation with the major adviser and advisory committee.
   
2. Thesis Option:
   Of the 30 graduate credits required, a minimum of 16 credits must be approved for graduate credit (see above), and thesis credits must not be fewer than 6 nor more than 10 credits. In this case, the student, under the guidance of a major adviser and with the approval of the graduate committee, will perform a novel research project designed to contribute to the body of knowledge in some area pertinent to food safety, prepare a thesis on this research, and defend it in a final oral examination administered by the examining committee.

Graduate Certificate in Food Protection Requirements

To be admitted to this program, students must demonstrate that they have a baccalaureate degree in an area pertinent to food safety from an accredited educational institution of recognized standing.

To obtain a Graduate Certificate in Food Protection, students must successfully complete the 9 semester credits of core curriculum. The student must receive a grade of B or better in each course to obtain the certificate.

The Food Safety core courses are offered every semester, including summer. They are a set of nine, one-credit, online modules which include:

SAFE 401/601 Food Safety Information & Flow of Food

An orientation to food safety. How to find, evaluate and report credible food safety information, and comprehension of the complexity of food systems.

SAFE 402/602 Foodborne Hazards

This course will lead students into the comprehension of the vast variety of chemical, physical and biological foodborne hazards.

SAFE 403/603 Food Safety Risk Assessment

This course will enforce the concept that no food is 100% safe, and will lead students to understand how to assess the likelihood of foodborne illness events.

SAFE 404/604 Epidemiology of Foodborne Illness

This course will lead students to understand foodborne disease outbreaks, comprehend and apply epidemiologic models of disease causation and causal inference, and apply disease outbreak investigation steps.

SAFE 405/605 Costs of Food Safety

This course will lead students to comprehend and analyze the economic and societal costs of foodborne illness outbreaks.

SAFE 406/606 Food Safety Crisis Communication

This course will lead students to understand the best ways to disseminate food safety information during or following a foodborne illness outbreak.

SAFE 407/607 Food Safety Risk Management

This course will lead students to understand strategies and costs of reducing risk of foodborne illness.

SAFE 408/608 Food Safety Regulatory Issues

This course will lead students to understand the food safety regulatory structure.

SAFE 409/609 Food Safety Risk Commun. & Education

This course will lead students to understand the importance of worker training and consumer education in food safety.

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Other Courses Offered

 

SAFE 652 Food Laws and Regulations  3

Regulations, laws, and dynamics governing development of food policy. Cross-listed with AGEC. S

SAFE 674 Epidemiology  3

The study of the distribution and dynamics of disease in populations. Prereq: Stat 330 Cross-listed with MICR. S

SAFE 684 Food Safety Practicum  1-3

Supervised experience to give students hands-on practice at addressing food safety problems. Placement with industry, government or academic settings will be arranged. Program permission required for registration. Offered all semesters.

SAFE 720 Food Safety Costs and Benefits Analysis  3

Theoretical and empirical impacts of food safety costs and benefits. Prereq: SAFE Core, AgEc 741, or permission of instructor. Cross-listed with AGEC.

SAFE 725 Food Policy  3

Provides quantitative tools and models used to analyze general food safety policies. Prereq: SAFE Core or permission of instructor. Cross-listed with AGEC.

SAFE 750 Advanced Topics in Epidemiology  3

Distribution and dynamics of disease in populations and factors contributing to the costs of foodborne illness and its prevention. Prereq: SAFE 474/674 or equivalent, MICR 460 recommended. Cross-listed with MICR. F of even years

SAFE 752 Advanced Food Microbiology  3

State-of-the-art techniques in isolation, detection, and characterization of food-borne pathogens. Prereq: MICR 653 or permission of instructor. Cross-listed with CFS and MICR.

SAFE 753 Food Toxicology 2

Discussions on the properties of toxic substances found both naturally and as contaminants in foods, the hazards they present to humans and their food supplies, and ways to reduce risks. Prereq: BIOC 460 or equivalent. S (even years)

SAFE 762 Advanced Pathogenic Bacteriology  3

Biophysical and biochemical mechanisms by which microorganisms cause infectious disease and host reactions to the disease. Prereq: MICR 460, 460L. Cross-listed with MICR.

SAFE 785 Advanced Crisis Communication  3

Long-term and short-term issues for managing communication related to organizational crises are discussed in the stages of pre-crisis, crisis, and post-crisis. Prereq: permission of instructor. Cross-listed with COMM.

SAFE 786 Risk Communication  3

Explores the relationship between communication strategies and risk perception, assessment, and management. Prereq: permission of instructor. Cross-listed with COMM.