Plant Sciences Major & Minor
Drive change in a field that’s changing our world
Plant Sciences is the study of plant growth, reproduction, evolution, and adaptation, as well as the use of plants for food, fiber, and ornamental purposes.
Majoring in Plant Sciences will help you make a positive difference in the world. Plant science expertise is needed to address many of our most challenging problems:
- Producing enough food for a growing world population.
- Breeding plants to tolerate the heat- and drought-stress caused by climate change.
- Developing sustainable cropping practices to produce healthful and nutritious food.
- Investigating new methods to fight plant diseases.
- Restoring damaged ecosystems to better support those who live there.
- Conserving species, through plant collections in gardens and arboretums, for future generations.
Contact Plant Sciences Major Coordinator Leah Cynara Cook (email: lcc2 [at] cornell.edu) and Director of Undergraduate Studies Marvin Pritts (email: mpp3 [at] cornell.edu) to see if the Plant Sciences Major is a good fit for you
Careers in Plant Sciences
Plant breeder
Many of our students go on to apply the tools they've learned to creation of new varieties of plants with desired characteristics. These can be as varied as disease resistance and climate resilience in our important food crops, new traits in ornamentals, or new products that meet emerging market demands. Students can go on to do this work in small seed companies, as university researchers, at large biotech firms, or as part of international organizations focused on global food security.
Arboretum director
With our concentrations in Ecology of managed landscapes and Public garden management, together with our close relationship with Cornell Botanic Gardens, students graduate with the experience and skills to manage botanic gardens, educational garden resources, and conservatories for the benefit of conservation, research, and public education.
Biotech industry scientist
Course work and student research experiences provide our students with the opportunity to learn cutting edge skills in biotechnology as well as the leadership and collaboration skills much in demand in the private sector. While the agricultural biotech industry is a common destination for those interested in plant biotechnology, much of the skillset is readily transferable to pharmaceuticals and other biotech industries.
Grower and orchardist
Some of our students return to family agricultural operations or are interested in becoming producers themselves. Our major provides skills and internship experiences that train students in the cutting edge skills required for successful production agriculture.
Food policy administrator
Through international internships and the coursework and faculty connections focused on international agriculture, many of our student pursue work with the federal government and international agricultural research organizations conducting both research and policy work. Some graduates also work with cities and municipalities to increase access to healthy foods.
Urban agriculture start-up
Advances in technology and interest in urban farming and indoor agriculture, together with increasing markets for fresh local produce has created a relatively new employment niche. Some of our Plant Science Majors have coupled their plant/agriculture interests with leadership and business training to prepare for entrepreneurial ventures that address this new market.
Explore your opportunities
A CALS education goes beyond the classroom and gives students frequent opportunities to apply what they learn in real-world settings.
Experiential Learning
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