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Contact: Graduate Program Director
Application Deadlines:
For domestic classified status, the deadline is approximately a month before the start of classes (Definite dates are on the application itself). International students, please see the FAQs #16 for your deadline. NOTE: If you are a new graduate student and you intend to apply for a Competitive Graduate Award (CGA), the deadline for having all of your application materials turned in moves up to January 15th. If you apply for the CGA but your SIUE application is incomplete, your application for the Competitive Graduate Award will be removed from consideration.
MASTER OF ARTS
MASTER OF SCIENCE
The Department of Biological Sciences offers programs leading to the graduate degrees of Master of Arts and Master of Science and, in conjunction with the Department of Curriculum and Instruction in the School of Education, provides courses that support the Master of Science in Education degree in secondary education with a teaching field in biology.
Graduate students in biological sciences may concentrate in one of several areas such as evolution, ecology and environment, or cellular and molecular biology. Course work in genetic engineering is also available. Students interested in taxonomic studies can benefit from faculty affiliations with the Missouri Botanical Gardens in nearby St. Louis.
Numerous career and advanced training opportunities are available to persons holding a master's degree in biology. These include doctoral training in biology and in the health sciences; secondary and junior college teaching; environmental assessment; and employment in educational, industrial, and governmental laboratories and agencies.
ADMISSION
Applicants who satisfy the general admission requirements of the Graduate School will be considered for admission to the master's program in biological sciences. Applications are accepted at any time, but applicants wishing to be considered for a graduate assistantship should apply by March 15th for fall admission and October 15th for spring admission.
Applicants should submit a personal letter/statement outlining goals and interests, at least two letters of recommendation, preferably from instructors, and an optional Teaching/Research Assistantship Application. Additionally, official test scores (verbal, quantitative, analytical) from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) are required from applicants with an undergraduate GPA of less than 3.0 and strongly encouraged from other applicants whose GPA is above 3.0. All applicants must identify a faculty member who has agreed in writing to serve as a graduate mentor in order to be considered for acceptance into the program. Therefore, applicants are encouraged to contact prospective graduate mentors at the time that their application materials have all been submitted, and to contact the Biological Sciences Graduate Committee Chair for assistance in identifying faculty members who might serve as graduate mentors.
Graduate students are expected to maintain at least a B average (GPA >=3.0/4.0) in course work; therefore, applicants with less than a 3.0 GPA as undergraduate students and/or GRE combined verbal/quantitative scores lower than 1050 should present evidence that they can do graduate level course work at an acceptable level. Students accepted into the Biological Sciences graduate program are expected to have completed course work equivalent to the SIUE undergraduate biology degree requirements, or they may be expected to resolve any deficiencies by completing course work beyond that required for the graduate degree. Upon admission to the program, the student shall consult with his/her mentor and the Biological Sciences Graduate Committee to review the student’s academic record, and develop a plan of course work that will address any academic deficiencies.
PROGRAM OF STUDY
Master of Arts: The Master of Arts degree requires a minimum of 32 semester hours, of which at least 21 semester hours must be in biology. The Master of Arts also requires a reading knowledge of a foreign language. The foreign language requirement must be met at least three months prior to graduation by passing an examination offered by the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature.
Required courses: Enrollment in BIOL 595 or 596 at least twice or in combination is required and must be taken under at least two different faculty members.
Electives: Students may take up to 25 hours of electives.
Thesis: Students must complete a thesis based on the student’s original research and must enroll in at least three semester hours of BIOL 599.
Master of Science: Thesis and non-thesis plans of study, and an option in biotechnology management are available for fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Science degree. The thesis and non-thesis plans require a minimum of 32 semester hours, of which at least 21 semester hours must be in biology. The biotechnolgy management option requires 34 semester hours. There is no foreign language requirement for the Master of Science degree.
Thesis Plan
At least 9 semester hours in biology must be earned in courses numbered BIOL 415-488 or 514-586.
Required courses: Enrollment in BIOL 595 or 596 at least twice or in combination is required and must be taken under at least two different faculty members.
Electives: Students may take up to 25 hours of electives.
Thesis: Students must complete a thesis based on the student’s original research and must enroll in at least three semester hours of BIOL 599.
Non-Thesis Plan
At least 14 semester hours in biology must be earned in courses numbered BIOL 415-488 or 514-586.
Required courses: Enrollment in BIOL 595 or 596 at least twice is required and must be taken under at least two different faculty members.
Electives: Students may take from 20 to 24 hours of electives.
Research Paper: At least 4, but no more than 8 semester hours must be taken in BIOL 591 and 593, culminating in an acceptable final research paper.
Biotechnology Management
Required (13 hours): Enrollment in a total of 4 hours in BIOL 595 or 596 at least twice or in combination and taught by at least two different faculty members. Enrollment in 9 Hours of ACCT 502, CMIS 515, and a course in business selected in consultation with the Biology faculty adviser.
Electives (15 hours): Students must take a minimum of 15 hours in BIOL electives.
Internship (6 hours): Students enroll in 6 hours of BIOL 598, Internship, and produce an acceptable research paper based upon the internship.
EXIT REQUIREMENTS
For the final examination in biological sciences for either the Master of Arts or the Master of Science degree, students meet with their advisory committee for a public oral defense of the thesis or research paper.
MASTER OF SCIENCE IN EDUCATION
SECONDARY EDUCATION/BIOLOGY
The Department of Biological Sciences, in cooperation with the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, offers a biology teaching field as part of the Master of Science in Education (MSEd) degree in secondary education. A jointly advised program ordinarily including 15 hours in biology will be designed, taking into account each student's background and interests. Throughout the program, students must be advised by a member of the biology faculty before registering for any biology courses to be applied toward this degree. Upon completion of the program, students must have accumulated at least 42 semester hours in biology (graduate and undergraduate work combined). Thus, students admitted to the program with less than 27 hours of acceptable undergraduate work will be required to complete more than 15 graduate hours in biology in order to satisfy degree requirements. Students must achieve a 3.0 (A=4.0) grade point average in the biology teaching field, as well as an overall average of 3.0. For further information, see "Secondary Education" in another section of this chapter.
COMBINED PROGRAM LEADING TO BACHELOR OF SCIENCE/MASTER OF SCIENCE DEGREES IN BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES (3+2 PROGRAM)
The Department of Biological Sciences offers a five-year program leading to the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and the Master of Science (MS) degrees. Undergraduates with senior level status (at least 90 semester hours) and a grade point average of at least 3.0 (A=4.0) overall may be admitted to the combined program. They may then take 32 semester hours of graduate level courses (400- and 500-level) during their combined senior and graduate years. While completing requirements for the baccalaureate degree, an application for degree-seeking status as a graduate student must be approved by the Graduate School and the Graduate Committee in Biological Sciences following the procedures described under "Admission." A program outline must also be submitted for approval by Graduate Records and the director of the graduate program in biology prior to enrollment in any courses to be included as a part of the master's program. Official admission to the program and to status as a classified graduate student is made only after the award of the baccalaureate degree. In no case will a graduate degree be conferred before all requirements for both degrees have been completed.