The off-campus Crop Science program enables students to strengthen their education through part-time study at various locations around the state of Illinois.  The program has a thirty-year history of providing University of Illinois course to agri-professional across Illinois as well as in neighboring states.  Students can enroll in individual courses for personal or professional advancement or can apply for admission to the master’s degree program in Crop Sciences.  To date, hundreds of students have completed individual courses, and over 135 students have received a Master’s Degree.  Students who successfully complete three qualifying OCGS courses receive a Professional Development Certificate. 98 students as of the end of 2006 have received professional development certificates. A student starting a certificate and decides to continue on for the MS degree can receive both the certificate and the degree. Courses may be taken “non-credit”, but will not count toward the certificate or the MS in Crop Sciences.  Many Certified Crop Advisors do take courses through these offerings “non-credit” to receive CEU’s toward their certification. Please see the certificate profile for specific details about the requirements for that option.

The program offers a wide range of courses from Crop Production to Plant Breeding, from Insect Pest Management to Plant Physiology, and from Herbicide Mode of Action to Crop Growth and Development.  Starting in 2006, the Crop Sciences Department has made a commitment to deliver at least one online course per spring and fall semester for those students not near a site-based location or outside Illinois that wish to participate. Some of the current site-based locations include Champaign-Urbana, Oak Brook, Springfield, and Shawnee Community College.  Each semester-long class is taught by University faculty members who travel to a site or teach online one evening a week and teach for approximately three hours.  Occasionally, instructors teach also via two-way interactive video to the site-based locations, enabling one course to be provided to students at more than one location, with instructors either originating on campus or rotating between sites.  Some classes may also be taught on Saturdays.