PSM Stories from the Environmental Sciences Graduate Program

Yinan Liu is an international student receiving his Professional Science Master’s degree in Environmental Sciences at Oregon State University with a focus on Quantitative Analysis. He grew up in Beijing, China, and his fascination with Environmental Sciences started when his neighbor got lung cancer in his high school. Gradually, Beijing was covered with a haze coupled with hot and humid conditions which may be related to soil, air, and water pollution, and which further compels his firm… more

Stephen has a B.S. in Electronics Engineering from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Prior to enrolling at Oregon State University, he worked in the semiconductor industry for several years, most recently in the analog sector in San Jose California.

This year he will earn his Professional Science Masters (PSM) degree in Environmental Science from Oregon State University, with an emphasis in water resources. His internship involved working in the stream restoration field for a… more

Casner Pernice originally decided to pursue Geology at Texas Tech University, as he was always fascinated by the sciences. When Casner discovered his passion for the environment and especially reptiles, he decided to pursue his PSM degree in Environmental Sciences. For his internship he was given the opportunity to work with the National Parks Service and Student Conservation Association at Padre Island National Seashore. During this internship he worked with the Kemp’s Ridley, Atlantic… more

Jesse Satterfield is a results-oriented technology professional passionate about integrating innovative technology with wildlife conservation and management. Following his service as a United States Reconnaissance Marine, he honed his analytical skills working at Nike, Inc. and the City of Portland before pursuing a graduate degree in Environmental Sciences. He is particularly interested in using agent-based modeling to inform nonlethal predator management strategies. The majority of his… more

Katelyn Sprofera became infatuated with the natural realm at a young age. After growing up in San Diego, she lived in Santa Cruz for 10 years where she received a B.S. in ecology and evolutionary biology and spent countless hours immersing herself in marine science.

After completing her B.S., she found work with the California Marine Sanctuary Foundation in 2014, where she provides leadership in communications for their marine protected area program by focusing on cross-… more

Junjie Tang is an international student from Tianjin, China. Junjie is completing his PSM in Environmental Sciences with a focus on wastewater treatment and biomass valorization. Before attending OSU, he earned an undergraduate degree in Environmental Science from Hohai University, China. When he was an undergraduate, he conducted research on water quality. For example, he investigated the occurrence of representative persistent pollutants in urban water sources in Jiangsu Province and… more

Beth Vanden Heuvel is a Washington resident who completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Washington's School of Forestry. She majored in Environmental Management and Resource Management and minored in Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. Following graduation, she began work with a fleet of tuna fishing vessels, aiming to improve their utilization of science within the operation in order to promote the sustainable capture of tuna. Her work with the fleet also included facilitation… more

Adrienne Wallace is a passionate environmentalist from Portland, Oregon. Adrienne completed her PSM in Environmental Sciences with a focus in natural resources. As an undergraduate at Portland State University, Adrienne became impassioned with addressing personal lifestyle choices that were unnecessarily wasteful and became excited about ethical waste and materials management. Her motivation for pursuing a PSM degree at Oregon State University came from a place of curiosity and eagerness to… more

Chelsea Walls is finishing her PSM in Environmental Sciences with a focus in Natural Resources. Before attending OSU, she graduated with a degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Colorado, where she found her passion for environmental research. During her undergrad, she took part in white-tailed deer research in the U.S. Virgin Islands and studied the devil facial tumor disease in Tasmanian Devils in Cradle Mountain National Park, Tasmania. Before attending Oregon… more

Zijie Wen was born in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China. Because of his parents' work, he has been curious about science and the natural environment since he was a child. Before university, he has achieved excellent test results in biology and chemistry. He was admitted to the University of Vermont as an undergraduate and chose the environmental science major to study environmental data analysis and risk assessment in depth. He then enrolled at Oregon State University as an environmental… more