APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

We suggest that you apply by mid-February for fall semester admission, and by mid-August for spring semester admission, even though the official deadlines are later:

Fall semester application deadline:  April 1

Spring semester application deadline: September 1

Applications, including recommendation letters and unofficial transcript copies, must be submitted online.  We will evaluate your application as a package:

• grade point average (GPA)
• courses completed (from transcripts)
• GRE scores (desired scores: 150 verbal, 153 quantitative, 3.5 writing)
• 3 recommendation letters
• personal goals statement
• resume, and
• TOEFL or IELTS score (international applicants)  For the TOEFL, the required scores are a total of 90 or more, and at least 20 in each of the 4 subscores.For the IELTS, the minimum score needed is 6.5.

Additionally, please consider:

• Many of our graduate students were not undergraduates in food science, and were likely to have another major such as biology, chemistry, animal science, or human nutrition.  We expect you to have background courses in biology, general microbiology, organic chemistry, physics, biochemistry, and statistics. 
• Applicants who do not have a degree (or minor) in food science will need to complete the following courses as a graduate student: 1) Food Chemistry, 2) Food Microbiology and 3) either Food Processing or Food Safety & Quality Assurance.
• Applicants for the doctoral program should have a master’s degree, or will likely be expected to earn a master’s degree prior to their doctoral program.
• Most of our research efforts are in aquaculture, education and extension, enology and brewing science, food and flavor chemistry, food engineering, food processing and packaging, food safety and microbiology, functional foods for health, and sensory science.

CONTACTS

Terry Rakestraw, Graduate Program Coordinator

rakestra@vt.edu ph: 540-231-6806

Joseph Eifert, Graduate Program Director
jeifert@vt.edu     ph: 540-231-3658

Department Website

www.fst.vt.edu

ASSISTANTSHIP AVAILABILITY

Nearly all students who are offered admission will receive a 9-month assistantship each year.  Assistantships include a waiver of in-state or out-of-state tuition, a monthly stipend of $1850 – $2000, and an expectation to work for 20 hours per week.  Summer stipends are negotiable.  A separate application for an assistantship is not required.  Other scholarships or financial assistance may be available through the university.

CURRENT GRADUATE STUDENTS
 

https://www.fst.vt.edu/graduate/ourstudents.html

FACULTY that can serve as the Major Advisor for Graduate Students:

Boyer, Renee R.  Ph.D., Virginia Tech (2006).  Professor, HABB1 Room 401A, Food Science and Technology, 231-4330.  Safety of minimally processed fresh fruits and vegetables, attachment characteristics and removal of foodborne pathogenic bacteria to various fresh produce surfaces. Consumer food safety extension. (Food Safety and Microbiology).

Duncan, Susan E.  Ph.D., University of Tennessee (1989).  Professor, HABB1 Room 202B, Food Science and Technology, 231-8675.  Sensory and dairy food products and processing.  (Food Chemistry and Sensory; Functional Foods for Health; Food Processing and Packaging).

Eifert, Joseph D.  Ph.D., Virginia Tech (1994).  Professor, HABB1 Room 401B, Food Science and Technology, 231-3658.  Food safety, food laws and regulations, microbiological and chemical analysis of food, poultry processing. (Food Safety and Microbiology).

Fernández-Fraguas, Cristina, Ph.D. University Complutense of Madrid, Spain (2008). Assistant Professor, HABB1 Room TBA, Food Science and Technology. Specializes in designing food emulsions for healthy eating. (Carbohydrate Chemistry). 

Huang, Haibo, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2013). Assistant Professor, HABB1 Room 402J, Food Science and Technology, 231-0729. Engineering solutions to improve fermentation, food byproduct valorization, process development and simulation (Food Processing, Food Fermentation)

Kuhn, David D. Ph.D., Virginia Tech (2008). Associate Professor, HABB1 Room 402E, Food Science and Technology, 231-8643. Seafood quality, seafood safety, aquaculture research and outreach. (Aquaculture; Food Processing; Food Safety and Microbiology).

Lahne, Jacob, Ph.D., University of Vermont (2014). Assistant Professor, HABB1 Room 402F, 231-7428. Sensory evaluations and consumer perceptions, craft and artisan food production, and flavor profiling. (Sensory evaluation, Enology and Brewing Science, Product development).

Marcy, Joseph E. Ph.D., N.C. State University (1980).  Professor and Department Head, FST Room 22A, Food Science and Technology, 231-7850.  Interaction between Food Packaging and its Contents (Food Packaging and Processing).

Neilson, Andrew P.  Ph.D., Purdue University (2009). Associate Professor, Integrated Life Science, Room 1013, 231-8391.  Chemical and biochemical functionality and food quality and human health related to obesity and chronic diseases (Functional Foods for Health; Food Chemistry; Food Fermentation and Functional Foods for Health).

O’Keefe, Sean F.  Ph.D., Iowa State University (1988). Professor, HABB1 Room 402A, Food Science and Technology, 231-2075. Food chemistry, lipid and flavor chemistry. (Food Chemistry; Food Fermentations and Functional Foods for Health).

Ovissipour, Mahmoudreza (Reza) Ph.D. Washington State University (2017) and Tarbiat Modares University, Iran (2010).  Assistant Professor, Virginia Seafood Agricultural Research and Extension Center, Hampton, VA (Seafood Safety and Quality)

Ponder, Monica A.  Ph.D., Michigan State University (2005).  Associate Professor. HABB1 Room 401D, 231-5031.  Microbial ecology of food commodities.  Pathogen detection and characterization of activity using molecular methods.  Host-pathogen interaction. (Food Safety and Microbiology; Food Fermentations and Functional Foods for Health).

Stewart, Amanda C.  Ph.D., Purdue University (2013).  Assistant Professor.  HABB1 Room 401F, Food Science and Technology, 231-0868.  Enology and fermentation of grapes and other food systems (Food Fermentations and Functional Foods for Health).

Strawn, Laura K. Ph.D. Cornell University (2014). Assistant Professor.  Eastern Shore Agriculture Research and Extension Center. Fresh Produce Food Safety (Food Safety and Microbiology).

Williams, Robert C.  Ph.D.  University of Tennessee (2001).  Associate Professor and Extension Project Leader, HABB1 Room 401C, Food Science and Technology, 231-4106.  Detection and control of pathogenic bacteria.  Food safety education for Virginia industry.  (Food Safety and Microbiology).

FACULTY that can serve as co-chairs or members of a Graduate Advisory Committee:

Chase, Melissa W.  Ph.D., Virginia Tech (2004).  Consumer Food Safety Program Manager, HABB1 Room 401E, 231-9749.  Consumer food safety (Food Safety and Microbiology).

Sumner, Susan S.  Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison (1987).  Associate Dean, Academic Programs, Director, CALS Resident Instruction, Room 1070, Litton Reaves, 231-5290.  Food safety, dairy and fruit and vegetable safety.  (Food Safety and Microbiology).  

Yin, Yun  Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana (2017).  Research Assistant Professor, HABB1 Room 401J, 231-2029.  Aroma and flavor compounds in food systems, flavor analysis and sensory evaluation.