Skip to main content
NRM 230 Technique Course at Oak Lake Field Station

Department of Natural Resource Management

Welcome to the wide world of Natural Resources!

landscape

If you love the outdoors and want to learn how best to conserve and manage our natural resources, then please check us out! Our areas of scientific expertise enable us to train a diverse array of disciplines at the undergraduate and graduate level utilizing interdisciplinary approaches while preparing them for a multitude of career options. South Dakota's natural resources are a key factor in maintaining a high-quality workforce throughout our state. Moreover, the quality of life for many people is intimately tied to their enjoyment of natural areas.

Message Our Department Head

NRM Vision Statement

We advance conservation, management and restoration through interdisciplinary research, education and outreach to empower people with the knowledge to address environmental and natural resource challenges.

Mission Statements

Academic programs - We train students to be professionals of distinction who work to support natural resources and the environment.

Research and scholarly activity - We address critical environmental and natural resource challenges through rigorous investigation and scientific dissemination.

Outreach - We foster stewardship of the environment and natural resources by providing evidence-based information and assisting with implementation to benefit society.


Fast Facts (as of 2024-2025 Academic Year)

Number of Students

305

Undergraduate

60

Graduate and Postdoc

Number of Faculty

19

Number of Undergraduate Fields of Study

5

Number of Department Scholarship Recipients

59

Department of Natural Resource Management News

See All Our News

Tools for the changing environment

The nation's leading bison Extension specialist, South Dakota State University's Jeff Martin, is involved in a $7.39 million, multi-institution cooperative agreement that will aid in bison recovery efforts and will provide local producers with the adaptation tools they need to compete in a dynamic world.
NSF Logo

Two SDSU faculty members receive prestigious NSF grants

Rachel Short and Gazala Ameen, two assistant professors in South Dakota State University's College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, have each received one of the National Science Foundation's most prestigious grants for early career faculty to pursue biology research projects.

Can disease-detecting dogs help save South Dakota's bighorn sheep?

Novel research from South Dakota State University's Department of Natural Resource Management is exploring if trained dogs can help prevent bacterial outbreaks in South Dakota's bighorn sheep herds.