Plants in the greenhouse complex at Guterman Lab.

SIPS Degrees & Programs

Gain critical skills to advance your knowledge and address local and global challenges.

The School of Integrative Plant Science is the largest academic unit in Cornell's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. It is composed of five sections with interrelated activities in the plant sciences: Horticulture, Plant Biology, Plant Breeding and Genetics, Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology, and Soil and Crop Sciences.

Degree programs

students at dilmun hill student farm
Undergraduate

The Cornell CALS plant sciences major prepares students for careers or further study in fundamental biology, plant breeding, pest and disease management and production of plants for food, fiber and ornamental uses.

students looking at rice plants
Graduate - M.S./Ph.D.

Graduate study in SIPS is organized into five graduate fields. Collectively these fields provide unparalleled opportunities to connect disciplines, creatively solve problems and integrate complex systems. Includes graduate fields of Horticulture, Plant Biology, Plant Breeding, Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology, and Soil and Crop Sciences.

people driving a hemp harvester in the field
Graduate - Integrative Plant Science MPS

The Master of Professional Studies (MPS) degree in Integrative Plant Science is a one-year, course-based master's degree, ideal for individuals who are interested in in-depth study of the issues and advancements in plant and soil sciences.

Continuing education

Our school is committed to lifelong learning, offering a wide range of programming and skill building for children and adults alike. See featured education programs to take advantage of these opportunities, including online courses and seminar, garden tours and more.

News from the School of Integrative Plant Science

Learn about the many ways we are addressing some of the world's most urgent challenges.

A man standing in a green house examining plants

News

Genetics, not field conditions, makes hemp ‘go hot’
Contrary to popular belief, new research shows that a hemp plant’s propensity to become too high in THC is determined by genetics and not as a stress response to growing conditions.
  • Center of Excellence in Food and Agriculture
  • Cornell AgriTech
  • School of Integrative Plant Science
A man and woman standing in a greenhouse observing corn

News

Speedy recovery: New corn performs better in cold
Each person on Earth eats an average of 70 pounds of the grain each year, and even more is grown for animal feed and biofuel. And as the global population continues to grow, increasing the amount of food produced on the same amount of land...
  • Boyce Thompson Institute
  • School of Integrative Plant Science
  • Plant Biology Section
Green crops up close with brown dirt at their base

News

Lost in translation: Organic matter cuts plant-microbe links
In a symbiotic relationship, microbes called rhizobia act like agricultural “butlers” to fetch nitrogen from the air for the legume plants. When carbon is added to the soil, it helps the soil retain nutrients, but it can repress plant-microbe...
  • School of Integrative Plant Science
  • Soil and Crop Sciences Section
  • Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Patrons in a store

News

Cornell Orchards Store to close Jan. 31
Beyond that date, a return of the public retail portion of the orchards is uncertain, as the operation has been struggling financially for many years. Administrators from the Cornell University Agricultural Experiment Station in Ithaca are...
  • Cornell University Agricultural Experiment Station
  • School of Integrative Plant Science
  • Horticulture

Land Acknowledgment

Cornell University is located on the traditional homelands of the Gayogo̱hó:nǫɁ (the Cayuga Nation). The Gayogo̱hó:nǫɁ are members of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, an alliance of six sovereign Nations with a historic and contemporary presence on this land. The Confederacy precedes the establishment of Cornell University, New York state, and the United States of America. We acknowledge the painful history of Gayogo̱hó:nǫɁ dispossession, and honor the ongoing connection of Gayogo̱hó:nǫɁ people, past and present, to these lands and waters.

This land acknowledgment has been reviewed and approved by the traditional Gayogo̱hó:nǫɁ leadership. Learn more from the American Indian and Indigenous Studies Program website.