Program Details

• Major Name: Horticulture
• Degree Program: Agriculture
• Degree Designation: AS
• College / School: Applied Sciences

The Horticulture Associate of Science (AS) degree program is specifically designed for transfer to baccalaureate degree programs at WVU but generally involves the undergraduate course work essential to degree programs at other four-year institutions. The degree encourages students to:

• explore, discover and develop their special aptitudes and interests and to reach beyond their own perceived limitations;
• acquire the knowledge, critical thinking, problem solving, communication, teamwork, ethical and social skills needed to support their immediate educational goals, as well as life-long learning in a world characterized by change;
• nurture social responsibility and receptive attitudes compatible with citizenship within a global society.

Career Outcomes

The AS degree in Horticulture provides a variety of options. As a stand-alone associate’s degree, the graduate will be qualified to enter the workforce as an entry level technician, farm worker, sales associate or entrepreneur. As a 2+2 associate’s degree, the two years of study at Potomac State College will transfer directly to the Morgantown campus for any degree offered by the Davis College Division of Plant and Soil Sciences. Within the division, students may further their education in agroecology, horticulture, environmental management and applied and environmental microbiology.

The national society offers a test to certify horticulturists at various levels as described on their website (http://www.ashs.org/).

American Society of Horticultural Science Certified Horticulturists (CH) are practicing horticulturists who are skilled and knowledgeable in all areas of horticulture. Those with the ASHS CH certification are required to pass a rigorous four-hour exam based on the following areas of horticulture:

• Landscape Design and Maintenance
• Production of Fruits, Vegetables, Turf and Ornamental Plants
• Shipping and Handling of Final Product
• Propagation
• Monitoring and Testing,
• Diagnosing and Managing Plant Problems
• Business Practices

The ASHS Certified Horticulturist Board requires candidates to have a minimum of:

• three years of paid full-time experience in horticulture, or
• a two-year degree in Horticulture and two years of paid practical experience or
• a four-year degree in Horticulture or a related field and one year of paid practical experience.