Biology, M.S.

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The  College of Arts and Sciences offers a graduate major in Biology that prepares students as professional biologists who will be prepared either to enter the job market in biotechnology, management and policy or ecology; or to continue education in the health professions or further graduate school. All students share core courses that train them in the practice of graduate-level scholarship and in the design and analysis of research; and shared selective courses emphasize applied principles and methods in fields such as toxicology, biochemistry, GIS and biotechnology.

In accordance with their interests and career plans, and in consultation with an academic advisor, students may choose one of three directed topics-Biotechnology, Management and Policy, or Ecology-each of which entails several specific required courses. Students then may further tailor their degree coursework by choosing selective courses in topics ranging from native landscaping, zoology and botany to conservation genetics and bioinformatics. Each student will complete a graduate capstone experience in accordance with the directed topic and in consultation with her/his advisor. The capstone experience may be independent research culminating in a graduate project or thesis, a professional internship or a meta-analysis project.   

Graduates may obtain employment in biological and related fields or pursue advanced degrees. A number of gradu­ates work as biologists, natural resource managers or laboratory scientists at corporations or at county, state, and national parks. Other employment opportunities include work in environmental consulting, habitat assessment or science policy. The curriculum also serves certified secondary school biology teachers who wish to develop an ecological or biotechnology focus.

Faculty research interests range widely and include topics such as microbial ecology, forest and prairie ecology, ecological restoration, rodent population dynamics, conservation genetics, development of targeted drug therapies, environmental toxicology and comparative physiology, plant physiology, ecosystem ecology, environmental policy, and curriculum development in biology education.

Admission Requirements

In addition to meeting university admissions criteria, applicants must have completed a bachelor’s degree with a G.P.A. of 3.0 or higher and maintained a G.P.A. of 3.0 or higher for any graduate work attempted.

Required Preparation

Applicants for the Biology M.S. program must complete the following course work with a grade of “C” or better in each course: eight hours of general biology with lab, eight hours of general chemistry with lab, three hours of statistical methods (STAT4219/6219), and four hours each of organic chemistry with lab, ecology with lab, microbiology with lab, and either animal or plant physiology with lab. Additional coursework in chemistry may be recommended in consultation with the graduate academic advisor.

A student may be provisionally admitted to the program in either concentration pending completion of required courses or the re-taking of courses for which the original grade was less than “C.” Students are expected to be proficient in a Windows environment with file management, word processing, spreadsheet, graphing, and Internet skills. Otherwise CPSC2005 or equivalent will be required with a grade of “C” or better.

Capstone Options

As part of this degree program, students must choose among a research thesis or project option, a professional internship or a meta-analysis project as a capstone experience.

In the thesis option, students develop a thesis proposal usually related to a faculty member’s research, carry out a formal research study under the supervision of the faculty member and a degree committee, prepare a final manuscript that includes a thorough literature review chapter followed by a traditional manuscript chapter suitable for publication consideration, and make a formal research presentation. The thesis option would be appro­priate for students who have focused research interests or who intend to pursue doctoral study.

In the project option, students develop a master’s project proposal, complete the project in conjunction with a faculty member, and prepare a final technical report, and make a formal research presentation.

The capstone internship is supervised work with a public land management or regulatory agency, a private consulting firm or biotech company.

In the meta-analysis project option, students identify a project related to one or more courses of the master’s degree, conduct an in-depth current literature search, conduct a hypothesis-driven meta-analysis, and prepare a final report with discussions including their own conclusions on future developments; students also make a formal presentation of their meta-analysis project. The minimum time for the meta-analysis project is two terms.

Admission to Candidacy

After admission as a degree-seeking student, a student also must be admitted to candidacy. To qualify for degree candidacy, an Environmental Biology student must ac­complish the following within three years of admission to the program:

1. Required Preparation: Complete the required prepara­tion course work listed above with a grade of “C” or better in each course.
2. Degree Plan: Meet during the first term of enroll­ment with the program academic advisor and faculty to complete a degree plan for the student’s course of study in Environmental Biology. The degree plan must be approved by at least three faculty, the pro­gram academic advisor, and the chair of the Science Division.
3. Research, Capstone Internship or Meta-Analysis Project Proposal: Identify a major advisor from among the full-time Biology or Chemistry faculty and prepare a formal research or capstone internship proposal. This proposal should be a comprehensive statement of the student’s intended thesis/project research or capstone internship project, and must be approved by a committee of the major advisor and a minimum of two other faculty. Approved research or capstone internship proposals must be filed with the program academic advisor at least one year before the student’s expected date of graduation. Approved meta-analysis project proposals must be filed with the program academic advisor at least two academic terms before the student’s expected date of graduation.
4. Grade Point Average: Maintain a G.P.A. of 3.0 or better to sustain candidacy.

More detailed candidacy information is available through the division office or from the student’s advisor.

Degree Requirements

Students must meet all university requirements for a master’s degree.

Required Core Courses (10 Hours)

• BIOL - 7110 Graduate Seminar (1-4) * register for 4 credit hours
• BIOL - 7400 Introduction to Biological Research (2)
• STAT - 8820 Experimental Design for the Natural Sciences (4)

Required Directed Courses (6-10 Hours)

Select one of the following directed topics:

Biotechnology

• BIOL - 6530 Biotechnology (2)
• BIOL - 6531 Biotechnology Laboratory (1-2)
• CHEM - 6333 Analytical Biochemistry (2) *
• CHEM - 6334 Analytical Biochemistry Lab (1) *

• * CHEM - 4331 Biochemistry Lecture (3) and CHEM - 4332 Biochemistry Laboratory (1) are prerequisites.

Environmental Management and Policy

• BIOL - 6210 Natural Resource Management (3)
• BIOL - 6211 Natural Resource Management Laboratory (1)
• BIOL - 6220 Contemporary Issues in Environmental Law and Policy (3)
• BIOL - 6230 Cultural Ecology and Environmental Policy (3)

Ecology

• BIOL - 6657 Ecological Methods: Populations (2)
• BIOL - 6660 Ecological Methods: Communities (2)
• BIOL - 8860 Ecosystem Ecology (2)

Capstone Experience Options (3 - 7 Hours)

Select one of the following options:

Research Thesis Option

• BIOL - 8990 Graduate Thesis/Project (1 - 6) * register for 6 credit hours
• BIOL - 8998 Research Presentation (1)

Research Project Option

• BIOL - 8990 Graduate Thesis/Project (1 - 6) * register for 2 credit hours
• BIOL - 8998 Research Presentation (1)

Meta-Analysis Project Option

• BIOL - 8990 Graduate Thesis/Project (1 - 6)

• * register for 2 credit hours

• BIOL - 8998 Research Presentation (1)

Professional Internship Option

• BIOL - 8970 Capstone Internship (1-4) * register for 4 credit hours
• BIOL - 8995 Internship Presentation (1)

Selectives (9-16 Hours)

• BIOL - 6310 Sustainable Buildings (3)
• BIOL - 6320 Land Use Planning (3)
• BIOL - 6330 Native Landscaping (3)
• BIOL - 6522 Ornithology (2)
• BIOL - 6523 Ornithology Laboratory (1)
• BIOL - 6530 Biotechnology (2) * required course in Biotechnology directed topic
• BIOL - 6531 Biotechnology Laboratory (1-2) * required course in Biotechnology directed topic
• BIOL - 6536 Environmental Hydrology (2)
• BIOL - 6537 Environmental Hydrology Laboratory (1)
• BIOL - 6555 Mammalogy (2)
• BIOL - 6556 Mammalogy Laboratory (1)
• BIOL - 6560 Plant Systematics (2)
• BIOL - 6561 Plant Systematics Laboratory (1)
• BIOL - 6570 Immunology (3)
• BIOL - 6585 Ecological Restoration (3)
• BIOL - 6590 Aquatic Ecology (2)
• BIOL - 6591 Aquatic Ecology Laboratory (1)
• BIOL - 6615 Geographical Information Systems (3)
• BIOL - 6641 Toxicology (3)
• BIOL - 6700 Conservation Genetics (2)
• BIOL - 6701 Conservation Genetics Lab (1)
• BIOL - 8840 Microbial Ecology (2)
• BIOL - 8841 Microbial Ecology Laboratory (1)
• CHEM - 6145 Environmental Chemistry (3)
• CHEM - 6146 Environmental Chemistry Laboratory (1)

• Students may select other graduate-level science courses a approved by the academic advisor.

Total Credit Hours with Research Thesis Capstone: 32 Hours

Total Credit Hours with Research Project Capstone: 35 Hours

Total Credit Hours with Meta-Analysis Project Capstone: 35 Hours

Total Credit Hours with Professional Internship Capstone: 35 Hours