Biological Sciences - MS

The Biology department office is housed in the Bioscience Research Building along with about 92,500 square feet of research, office and conference space. The Biology building is composed of about 48,000 square feet of teaching and research facilities. The Department of Biological Sciences faculty is comprised of 15 Full Professors, 13 Associate Professors, 9 Assistant Professors, 1 Research Professor, 1 Research Associate Professor, 4 Research Assistant Professors, and 6 Lecturers.The Department offers a Master of Science degree in Biological Sciences. Basic requirements include a minimum of 30 semester hours and include 6 semester hours of Thesis, a minimum of 21 semester hours of graduate level work (including Thesis), a minimum of 3 semester hours of Seminar (BIOL 5130) or equivalent Special Topics Seminar courses, a maximum of 9 semester hours of approved upper-division undergraduate work, and a maximum of 6 semester hours of BIOL 5302 or BIOL 5502 (Research in the Biological Sciences) to count toward the degree.

A thesis based on original work is required and must be defended orally. The student should decide on an area of specialization and select a supervising professor within the first semester or 12 hours of admission. The supervising professor will act as chairperson of the thesis committee, which will be comprised of a minimum of three graduate faculty members, including one outside of the Department of Biological Sciences.