Book excerpt: Graduate Programs in the Physical Sciences, Mathematics, Agricultural Sciences, the Environment & Natural Resources 2012 contains more than 2,900 graduate programs in 59 disciplines-including agriculture and food sciences, astronomy and astrophysics, chemistry, physics, mathematics, environmental sciences and management, natural resources, marine sciences, and more. This guide is part of Peterson's six-volume Annual Guides to Graduate Study, the only annually updated reference work of its kind, provides wide-ranging information on the graduate and professional programs offered by U.S.-accredited colleges and universities in the United States and throughout the world. Informative data profiles for more than 2,900 graduate programs in 59 disciplines, including facts and figures on accreditation, degree requirements, application deadlines and contact information, financial support, faculty, and student body profiles. Two-page in-depth descriptions, written by featured institutions, offer complete details on specific graduate programs, schools, or departments as well as information on faculty research and the college or university. Expert advice on the admissions process, financial support, and accrediting agencies. Comprehensive directories list programs in this volume, as well as others in the graduate series. Up-to-date appendixes list institutional changes since the last addition along with abbreviations used in the guide