Specialization Areas
Areas of study include Botany, Microbiology, Genetics and Molecular Biology, Physiology, Conservation Biology, Systematics, Wildlife Management, and Zoology.
Program Admission
Regular Admission
Minimum cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale);
or
Minimum GPA of 3.0 in the last 60 hours of coursework;
or
minimum formula score of GPA (either cumulative or last 60 hours) x GRE (Q + V) = 825
The program will consider using other standardized examinations (MCAT, DAT, etc) to calculate a formula score on a case-by-case basis.
International student applicants must meet Graduate School requirements for English proficiency.
Conditional Admission
Minimum cumulative undergraduate GPA of 2.75 (on a 4.0 scale);
or
Minimum GPA of 2.75 in the last 60 hours of coursework;
or
minimum formula score of GPA (either cumulative or last 60 hours) x GRE (Q+V) = 750
Provisional Admission: Provisional admission will be granted to qualified applicants awaiting graduation, official transcripts, or GRE scores, according to the Graduate School policy for provisional status.
Non-Thesis Option: Applicants meeting the minimum admissions requirements will be automatically accepted into the non-thesis option.
Thesis Option: Student must have a faculty sponsor to be admitted into the thesis option. The faculty member must notify the graduate coordinator in writing that he/she will sponsor the thesis option student.
Graduate Assistantships: To be considered for a graduate assistantship, a student must be admitted to the Biology Graduate Program in regular or conditional status, provide three (3) letters of recommendation forms, and have a minimum GRE score of 300 (V+Q).
Sponsor/Major Advisor
Once the application materials have been received by the Graduate Coordinator in the Department of Biology, potential students will be contacted to determine if they have a sponsor/major advisor. This person is a full member of the Graduate Faculty that serves as the student’s advisor for their graduate career. Potential graduate students may request assistance in finding a sponsor/major advisor from the Department’s Graduate Coordinator, but it is ultimately the student’s responsibility to secure a sponsor. A student WILL NOT be admitted without a sponsor/faculty advisor.
Non-Thesis Option
Upon recommendation of the Biology Committee on Graduate Studies, applicants may enroll in a non-thesis option in the Master of Science Biology degree program. Students admitted to the Biology M.S. Non-Thesis option are generally not considered to be eligible for assistantships.
Program Requirements
Non Thesis Option
Download the Degree Plan for the 22/23 Catalog Year
Thesis Option
Download the Degree Plan for the 22/23 Catalog Year
Undergraduate requirements include a B.S. or B.A. in a biological sciences discipline or a bachelor’s degree with sufficient science background. Selected undergraduate biology classes may be identified as deficiencies by the student’s graduate advisory committee.
A candidate for the Master of Science degree pursuing the thesis option must complete a minimum of 33 semester hours of biology and related courses, including six semester hours of BIOL 5099 .
A candidate for the Master of Science pursuing the non-thesis option must complete a minimum of 33 semester hours of biology and related courses. Non-thesis candidates must enroll in Research Methods (BIOL 5005 & BIOL 5006 ) and at least one additional lab-based course (4000-level or 5000-level) during their degree program. No more than six credit hours of coursework from outside the Biology curriculum will be accepted toward the non-thesis degree. BIOL 5099 credit hours are not applicable to the degree plan of non-thesis candidates.
A graduate student may only transfer nine semester hours from the M.S. Thesis option to the M.S. Non-Thesis option.
NOTE: The following is required of ALL Biology graduate students (both Thesis and Non-Thesis)
- At least half of the total course work in the major area and one-half the total course work must be composed of 5000-level courses; and
- No more than three credit hours of BIOL 5091 or MNSC 5091 can count toward the degree; and
- Successful completion of two hours of BIOL 5007 (Seminar); and
- Successful completion of two Biology courses at the 5000-level (minimum of six hours) beyond the required courses – not including BIOL 5091 or MNSC 5091 ; and
- Successful completion of written comprehensive exams.
Graduate Courses
Note: To receive graduate credit for a 4000-level course designated “For Undergraduate and Graduates,” a student must be in graduate admission status at the time credit is earned in the course. Credit earned in undergraduate admission status cannot be changed to graduate credit.
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