The
Department of Natural Sciences offers personalized programs of graduate study
designed to meet the needs of qualified student having diverse interests, life
goals, and career objectives. Programs may be tailored to provide academic
preparation for persons seeking careers as efficient and responsible scientists
and science educators. Specifically students completing Master of Science (M.S.)
or Master of Arts in Teaching (M. Ed.) Biology (in conjunction with School of
Education, Master of Education in Biology) may pursue careers in:
- Service-oriented careers in private
enterprise and/or State or Federal Agencies;
- Research-oriented careers in private
enterprise and/or State or Federal Agencies;
- Careers in teaching at the secondary
and/or college level;
- Preparation for professional school
and/or doctoral studies in the life sciences.
The
M.S. Biology degree program requires a minimum of 34 semester hours of credits
and emphasizes the development of analytical and critical thinking skills in
problem solving and decision-making.
Admission
to the program requires a baccalaureate degree from accredited university or
college with adequate course work in biology, chemistry, natural sciences, etc.,
with overall minimum 2.5 average for all undergraduate work or minimum 2.75
average in the last 60 hours of study, which may include no more than 12 hours
of graduate study, a score of at least 800 or above (in general section) of the
Graduate Record Examination GRE taken within the last five years, and two
letters of recommendation from persons qualified to evaluate their ability to
pursue graduate study in biology. Students must be accepted by a graduate
faculty member who agreed to guide student’s program and served as major
adviser. A TOFEL score of 525 is required for
international students.
All
applicants must familiarize themselves with application procedures under
Graduate Studies for additional requirements.
The
M.S. degree in Biology serves individuals with varied interests and career
objectives by emphasizing scholarly research and coursework tailored to the
needs and interests of the individual candidate. Requirements are flexible
enough to support both general and specialized programs of study.
Master of Science in
Biology Degree Requirements: Based
on an applicant academic background, an individualized course of study will be
planned by student advisor in consultation with the student. Students’
programs of graduate study will be composed of graduate courses at the 500 and
600 level. Students with deficiencies in science background may required to take
additional undergraduate courses without credit toward the master’s degree.
The following courses are part of the inventory from which selections may be
made for a master’s degree program in biology: Both thesis and graduate
research project available. The former requires satisfactory completion of 26
credit hours of graduate work plus 6 credit hours of research/thesis, and
completion of 6 semester hours of graduate level statistics courses. The
graduate research project requires the satisfactory completion of a minimum of
36 credit hours plus 3 credit hours of research course, and completion of 3
semester hours of graduate level statistics.
Core Course
Thesis
Research Project
BIOL
620 – Graduate Seminar
(2 hrs)
(2 hrs)
BIOL
690 – Research
(6 hrs)
(3 hrs)
STAT
562/563/571
(6 hrs)
(3 hrs)
Subtotal
Core Courses
14 hrs
8 hrs
Other Major Courses
(18 hrs)
(28 hrs)
Other Requirements for the Master
of Science in Biology
Degree
candidates must:
- Complete a minimum of 32 semester
hours for thesis or 36 semester hours for graduate project including a
research/statistics/core/major courses no more than 30 % of the total hours
dual-listed (undergraduate/graduate).
- An undergraduate course in computer
science is strongly recommended or its equivalent at time of admission
- Reading knowledge foreign language
(French or German or Spanish) is required.
- File a Candidacy Form with the
Graduate Office prior to completion of 24 credit hours
- Complete six hours of approved
research and submit a written thesis or three hours of graduate project and
submit a written report.
- Pass a written comprehensive (may be
taken only two-times)
and
successful oral defense of the thesis and/or graduate project.
Candidates may "specialize" in
an area of Biology. A minimum of eighteen (18) semester hours must be completed
in the area of specialization for thesis option and twenty-eight (28) semester
hours for graduate project. Approved advanced courses in chemistry, physics, or
certain other related disciplines may be taken. A minor is optional, but if
elected, must include a minimum of 9 semester hours.
Areas
of specialization currently available within the department include: BOTANY,
CELL and MOLECULAR BIOLOGY, ECOLOGY, GENETICS, MICROBIOLOGY, PHYSIOLOGY, and
VERTEBRATE AND INVERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY.
Master of Arts in Teaching
Biology (M.Ed.) Degree Requirements By contrast, the M.Ed. degree in Biology (Secondary
Education) administered by the School of Education is primarily designed for
teachers of biology. Requirements emphasize breadth over specialization and the
development of pedagogic skills in addition to a broad understanding of biology.
All students enrolling in the program must have a class A level license in a
teaching field.
The
M. Ed. degree program consists of courses and experiences that lead to a
graduate degree with specialty in Biology. The degree is primarily for secondary
school science teachers. The 36-hour program consists of a minimum of 21 hours
in biology, 12 hours in professional education and 3-6 hours in a Product of
Learning.
Professional Core
– 12 Credits
EDUC
610 – Planning/Implementing Instruction
EDUC 641 – Advance
Human Development
EDUC
650 – Effective Practice for Teaching
EDUC 690 – Applied Research Education
Specialization –
21 Credits
Biology
Education
BIOL
650 – Communities and Ecosystem
BIOL 660 –
Evolution
BOTN
640 – Advanced Microbiology
ZOOL 610 – Advanced
Genetics
Physiology Options (select one of the following)
BIOL
640 – Comparative Physiology
BIOL 670 – Physiology
Plant Biology Options (select one of the
following)
BOTN
620 – Advanced Plant Physiology
BOTN 5XX – Population
Genetics
BOTN
630 – Advanced Plant Growth/Development
BOTN 6XX –
Mycology/Plant Pathology
Electives (select one of the following)
BICH
610 – Advanced Biochemistry
BIOL 620 –
Seminar
BIOL
630 – Topics in Biology
BIOL 680 –
Radiation Biology
ZOOL
685 - Advanced Parasitology
ZOOL 630 –Adv. Dev
Biology
Product of Learning – 3-6 Credit
EDUC
698 – Advanced Applied Product of Learning
A product of learning in Biology Education is required and consists of
three options: (1) Master’s Action Research Project, (2) Master’s Thesis or
(3) an Advanced Professional Portfolio. Students who elect to write a thesis
will earn six semester hours and those who elect to conduct action research or
develop an advanced professional portfolio will earn three semester hours.
Portfolio will earn three semester hours
*EDUC
698 Advanced
Applied Product of Learning
EDUC
690 is a prerequisite for EDUC 698.
Natural Sciences Graduate Courses
Biology
BIOL 610 – Endocrinology
BIOL 620 – Seminar
BIOL 630 – Topics in Biology
BIOL 640 – Comparative Physiology
BIOL 650 – Communities/Ecosystems
BIOL 660 – Evolution
BIOL 660 – Evolution
BIOL 670 – Physiology
BIOL 680 – Radiation Biology
BIOL 6XX – Neurobiology
BIOL 690 – Research & Thesis
BIOL 899 – Thesis Non-credit
Botany
BOTN 620 – Advance Plant Physiology
BOTN 630 – Adv. Plant Growth/Dev
BOTN 640 – Adv. Microbiology
BOTN 5XX – Plant Population Genetics
BOTN 6XX- Mycology/Plant Pathology
BOTN 6XX – Botanical Research Methods
BOTN 6XX- Pharmaceutical Botany
Biochemistry
BICM 610 – Advanced Biochemistry
BICM 6XX – Phytochemistry
Zoology
ZOOL 570 – Advanced Entomology
ZOOL 685 – Advanced Parasitology
ZOOL 610 – Advanced Genetics
ZOOL 630 – Adv. Developmental Biology
ZOOL 6XX - Protozoology
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