The Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences (ADS) in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences recently received approval from the UW Board of Regents to launch master’s and PhD graduate programs in animal and dairy sciences. The new programs merge the separate animal sciences and dairy science programs previously offered. The first group of students will begin the combined program in fall 2025.
The Department of Animal Sciences and the Department of Dairy Science merged into the Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences in 2020. The new programs mirror the departmental merger and are some of the most comprehensive animal and dairy science graduate programs in the country. They will streamline the application process for both students and administration, allow students more flexibility, and increase the marketability of graduates.
“The new programs will not only help students find careers after graduation, but they will also allow more connections to be made across the department,” says Hasan Khatib, professor and interim chair of ADS. “By combining these programs, we can better support students and their varied interests.”
The livestock sector continues to transform with increased farm sizes, changes in technology, increased specialization and tighter coordination between stages of production. There will be an increased need for employees with advanced degrees earned through comprehensive and multi-dimensional study such as the training offered by these programs.
The graduate programs are integral to ADS’s focus on five main areas that include land and water stewardship, precision livestock farming, food safety, biomedical advancements, and animal health and welfare. Department faculty are leaders in these areas and will provide forward-looking, innovative research opportunities to students.
“Our faculty are at the forefront of their fields and conduct pioneering research in these critical areas,” says Khatib. “We can bring this expertise to students in the graduate programs and help them find their path in this increasingly important and complex field.”
Students currently enrolled in the separate animal sciences or dairy science programs will have time to complete them and earn their degrees. The master’s programs will be suspended as of fall 2026 and discontinued as of fall 2029. PhD programs will be suspended as of fall 2026 and discontinued as of fall 2032.
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