The
mission of the Biology Department is to provide high-quality educational
and research opportunities which will promote intellectual growth,
social maturation, and professional development. The Master of Science
in Biology is designed to provide students with breadth and depth
of training in Biology beyond that provided by the baccalaureate degree.
Students will gain experience in the design, execution, and reporting
of scientific research by completing a research project. The Masters
experience is designed to enable students to achieve professional
and personal goals in the ever-changing scientific environment.
Admission Requirements
To be eligible for the Biology Masters Program, the student must have
a Bachelor's Degree and fulfill the following minimal requirements:
1. A 2.5 or higher grade point average in all undergraduate hours
attempted and a 3.0 or higher grade point average in the last 60 hours
attempted.
2. Satisfactory competion of 18 hours of Biology and 10 hours of Chemistry
including Organic Chemistry. Courses in Physics, Calculus and Statistics
are also required. A minimum grade of C is required for these courses.
3. Completion of the General Test of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE).
Minimum score is 1000 (Verbal + Quantitative), or a score sufficient
to generate an index score of 5.5 or higher using one of two formulae:
either (GRE/400 + GPA) or (GRE/400 + GPA for last 60 hours attempted).
4. Sponsorship by a Biology Faculty member willing to serve as the
advisor. It is important that you establish this sponsorship before
beginning the application process.
5. Three letters of recommendation.
6. Students with a native language other than English must submit
evidence of English language proficiency. Contact the graduate college
for admissions
information.
7. Paper or online
application for admission. This is submitted to the Graduate College.
Students in the
Master's Program may select the Field/Laboratory Thesis option or
the Literature Thesis option. Both require completion of 32 hours
of course work at the 5000 level. For the Field/Laboratory Thesis
option students take 26 hours of formal classroom work and 6 hours
of thesis; the Literature Thesis option requires 30 hours of course
work and 2 hours for the Thesis.
For a complete guide to the Biology Masters program, download a copy
of the Program Guide. You should
also check out the College
of Graduate Studies Catalog.
Contact the Graduate Committee Chairperson, Dr.
Clark Ovrebo, (405-974-5783) for more information concerning the
Master of Science in Biology degree.
