Graduate Studies

Master of Science in Biology

Current Graduate Students

The graduate program in biology provides flexibility to students seeking advanced study in such areas as biology, botany, conservation biology, ecology, fisheries biology, physiology, rangeland biology, systematics, wildlife biology, and zoology. Graduate curricula are not specified as such; rather programs are designed and approved by the student's committee, according to the needs and career objectives of the individual student.

Graduate programs are available both for those seeking a terminal M.S. degree and for those who may seek acceptance into a doctoral program at another university. All graduate programs designed for research professions or doctoral programs require a thesis. Students wishing to pursue a thesis option require a major professor to supervise their thesis research.

Degree options and other details are covered in the Graduate Student Guidelines for students starting in Fall 2009 or later. Students who started before Fall 2009 may follow the current guidelines or the previous guidelines. Other information may be obtained from the Graduate School.

Students preparing for a secondary teaching career or desiring a "general" M.S. degree may select the non-thesis option, which requires additional coursework and a research paper in lieu of a thesis. For information on a summer-only program for secondary teachers, contact the department chair.

The Graduate School currently provides Biology with 8 Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTAs) of $7,000 per 9 months on a competitive basis. GTAs also receive a full tuition waiver on 6-9 credit hours, but GTAs must pay other fees assessed per credit hour (e.g., student health fee, student activity fee), which vary each year (usually about $15-25 per credit hour). Other Graduate Assistantships are available from the Sternberg Museum or through external research funds, but these assistantships do not carry a tuition waiver (they might include a higher salary to compensate for the cost of tuition). The Fleharty Fellowship (a partially endowed research assistantship with a full tuition waiver on 6-9 credit hours) also is available. In addition, graduate and undergraduate students may apply for student honoraria to help cover the costs of participating in professional meetings.

Applications for admission to graduate school and for graduate assistantships are due in the Graduate School by 15 March. The application deadline for the Fleharty fellowship is 12 February (Charles Darwin's birthday).