Biology

Programs and Courses

Michael M. Shipley
Chair, Department of Biology

James Masuoka
Graduate Coordinator

Graduate Faculty:	Brown Marsden, Cook, Hansen, Liang, Machunis-Masuoka, Masuoka, Rincón-Zachary, Scales, Shao, Shipley, Vogtsberger, Watson, Willis
Emeritus Faculty:	Cate, Grimes, Horner, Stangl

The McCoy College of Science, Mathematics and Engineering offers a Master of Science degree with a major in biology and a Master of Arts degree with a major in biology (Biomedical Sciences ephasis). A minor in biology at the graduate level is also offered.

Mission Statement

The mission of the Master of Science degree program in Biology is to build on the students’ undergraduate experience and knowledge; to expose students to the most recent scientific advances in the biological sciences; and to guide the students’ growth as independent thinkers, writers, researchers, and scientists.

The mission of the Master of Arts degree program in Biology is to help students enhance their understanding of the biological disciplines required for medical school or other professional health science programs. The program builds formal skills in analysis of biomedical literature and of ethical questions that impact the medical profession.

Admission Requirements

Admission to the degree program will be determined by the Biology Admissions Committee upon receipt of a complete Application Review Packet from the Dr. Billie Doris McAda Graduate School. A complete application packet will include:

An application to the Dr. Billie Doris McAda Graduate School at Midwestern State University: https://msutexas.edu/academics/graduate-school/how-to-apply.php.
An application to the Biology Department Graduate Program: https://webforms2.msutexas.edu/TakeSurvey.aspx?SurveyID=n4KI3m44 .
Official transcripts from each institution the applicant has attended.
Three letters of recommendation.
Official scores for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test. Students applying for the Master of Arts degree may substitute official scores from the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), the Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT), or Dental Admission Test (DAT) for the GRE.
Foreign students must submit TOEFL or IETLS scores.

Unconditional Admission. An applicant to the graduate degree program in Biology must satisfy the requirements of the University’s graduate admissions policy for unconditional admission found under Admission to the Graduate School . In addition, the applicant must have the following: an undergraduate degree from a regionally accredited college or university; a GPA of at least 3.0 on the last 60 hours of undergraduate work, exclusive of hours awarded by a two-year college; 24 semester hours in biology from an approved institution, including 12 advanced semester hours (junior or senior level); one year of physics; one and one-half years of chemistry, including one semester of organic chemistry; and GRE scores of at least 156 in verbal reasoning, 155 in quantitative analysis and 3.5 in analytical writing. Applicants for the Master of Arts degree may substitute scores from the DAT, MCAT, or PCAT with equivalent percentiles.
Conditional Admission. An applicant who is not accepted unconditionally will be evaluated for conditional admission in accordance with the University’s graduate admissions policy for conditional admission found under Admission to the Graduate School . An applicant accepted conditionally due to a deficient background in biology or program requirements will be required to complete undergraduate courses to remove the deficiency.
Admission by Review. An applicant who is denied conditional admission may be evaluated for admission by review in accordance with the University’s graduate admissions policy for admission by review found under Admission to the Graduate School .

Degree Completion Requirements

Master of Science Degree

Each candidate for the M.S. degree in Biology must:

Complete a minimum of 30 semester credit hours of graduate course work including six hours of thesis (BIOL 6983 , BIOL 6993 ).
Maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on all course work.
Complete a research-based thesis and demonstrate satisfactory performance on a final oral comprehensive exam/thesis defense.

Master of Arts Degree

Each candidate for the M.A. degree in Biology (Biomedical Sciences Emphasis) must:

Complete a minimum of 30 semester credit hours of graduate course work including Scientific Literature and Research (BIOL 6113 ) in their final semester.
Maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on all course work.
Complete an in-depth current literature research report on a relevant subject in the biomedical sciences. This report will be conducted under the direct supervision of a faculty member and read by at least three graduate faculty members.

The Graduate Advisory Committee (GAC) will be appointed for each student at the completion of 9 semester hours and no later than the end of the second semester. The student must submit a thesis research proposal, as outlined in the Biology Graduate Student Handbook, for approval by the GAC.

A reading copy of the thesis, properly formatted and written in the style outlined in the Biology Graduate Student Handbook, must be submitted by the student to the GAC at least six weeks prior to the expected date of the thesis defense. The student must submit a final copy of the thesis to the biology Graduate Coordinator two weeks prior to the expected date of the thesis defense. Oral presentation and thesis defense must take place at least three weeks before the expected date of graduation. Upon successful defense of the thesis, an electronic copy of the thesis must be submitted to the Office of the Graduate School not later than two weeks prior to the end of the semester or summer term in which all work for the degree is completed. A hard copy of the approval page with signatures of the thesis committee members, thesis committee chair, and department chair will be submitted to the Office of the Graduate School at the same time the electronic thesis is submitted. Bound copies of theses may be purchased by the student through the Office of the Graduate School.

Admission to Candidacy

Students are admitted to candidacy upon acceptance of a satisfactory thesis proposal by the GAC.

Programs and Courses

Programs

Major

Graduate Minor

Biology Minor

Courses

Biology

BIOL 3113, 3344, 3434, 4021, 4023, 4444, 4463, 4524, 4684 and 4714 are undergraduate courses which may be taken for graduate credit with permission (see Undergraduate Catalog for course descriptions). For additional information, see Graduate Credit for 3000-4000 Level Courses .