Biology, M.S.

Overview

The mission of the graduate program in biology is to provide students greater depth and breadth in course work and to introduce them to the nature of creative and productive inquiry for careers in teaching, research in governmental, industrial and academic organizations, and entrance into doctoral programs. The Master of Science in Biology requires the completion of two semesters of residence and at least 30 or 36 credits of graduate-level courses for the thesis and non-thesis project options, respectively. Graduate courses at NCCU are numbered above 5000.

There are two options for obtaining the M.S. degree in Biology: thesis and non-thesis project options. The two options require a minor, the internal minor is Biomedical Sciences and there are arrays of courses that can be used to fulfill this minor. Some students choose an external minor which can be done in areas such as Pharmaceutical Sciences and Education. Masters students in Biology must successfully complete, as a graduate student, an approved graduate course in biostatistics, bioinformatics, computer science or computational science. The master’s degree also requires successful completion of a written Comprehensive Examination to include 4 areas of biology, including Genetics, Cell Biology, and two other areas elected by the student with the advice and consent of their thesis or project advisor or the graduate program committee.

Option 1: M.S. in Biology with Thesis: For this option, laboratory research and writing of a master’s thesis are required. Students must p resent a seminar on the research and pass a final oral examination in defense of the thesis. The total credits required for the master’s with thesis option is 30.

Option 2: M.S. in Biology with Non-thesis Project: This program of study is designed primarily for individuals using non-laboratory-based projects as scholarly research. Although students in this option do not perform laboratory research, they will be familiarized with laboratory activities through BIOG 5800 - Research in Biology (1-6)  and BIOG 5550 - Techniques in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (3) . Students are expected to write and defend a scholarly document describing the graduate Project. The Graduate Project can be based on review and analysis of information obtained from the various databases on bioinformatics, genomics and proteomics, and/or library research on a focused area of interest. The quality of non-thesis projects is expected to be comparable to published review articles in academic journals. The total credits required for the non-thesis project master’s program is 36.

Admission Requirements

Students seeking unconditional admission to the graduate program in Biology must present a “B” average for a minimum of 30 credits of undergraduate biology, credit for four semesters of chemistry, two semesters of physics, and mathematics through Calculus I.

Degree Requirements for the Masters of Science in Biology

1. A cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher is required. A grade of “B” or better must be earned in the required graduate core courses for both thesis and project options.
2. At least 30 credits of biology courses including the thesis for the M.S. with thesis option and at least 36 credits including a project for the M.S. with project option is required. When an approved cognate minor, e.g., pharmaceutical sciences, education etc., is selected, 9 to 12 approved graduate credits from the minor department may be included in the required total of 30 and 36 credits for the thesis and project options, respectively.
3. Successful completion of an approved graduate biostatistics, or bioinformatics or computer science course is required.
4. Successful completion of a written Comprehensive Examination to include four areas of biology, including Genetics, Cell Biology, and two other areas elected by the student’s advisor or the Graduate Committee, is required.
5. Successful completion of a three-credit thesis (BIOG 5900 ) or project (BIOG 5810 ), including passing an oral examination (thesis or project defense) for the M.S. degree.

Core Courses in the Biology Graduate Program