MS Biology

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Program Objectives
Definition of Terms
Admission Requirements
Degree Requirements
Placement
Graduate Assistantships
Advisement
Courses
Reasonable Progress Toward Degree
Physical Facilities
Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology
Release of Data from M.S. Thesis-Publication Policy

Program Objectives

The primary objectives of the Master of Science program in biology are to prepare individuals for leadership roles in environmental, educational, and laboratory-oriented science.

Candidates for the Master of Science degree can opt for a concentration in either biological sciences or environmental sciences. Each concentration includes a thesis and non-thesis option.

Definition of Terms

Departmental Graduate Committee
Committee which reviews all applications for admission to the M.S. in Biology program and makes recommendations to the department concerning admission of students and the existence of deficiencies.

Graduate Program Coordinator
A designated advisor in the Department of Biology who meets all new graduate students and assists them in planning their first semester program of courses and/or recommends them to major advisors when desirable.

Major Advisor
A member of the graduate faculty who accepts a student for counseling and advisement during his or her course work and research and in the presentation and defense of his or her thesis.

Graduate Research Committee
A committee of at least three members selected from the graduate faculty to aid the student in determining a course of study and to prepare, administer, and evaluate the student's thesis. The student's major advisor will chair this committee.

Admission Requirements

Applicants who have a bachelor's degree in a field within the natural sciences including 15 biology credit hours comparable to the department's freshman and sophomore core, a 3.0 overall QPA on a 4.0 scale, and a combined score of 1,000 on the Graduate Record Examination are eligible for full admission. The natural sciences are defined here as including anthropology, biology, chemistry, environmental biology, geology, geography, mathematics, molecular biology, physics, wildlife biology, and related fields. Applicants who do not meet the above requirements but have an overall QPA of 2.75 on a 4.00 scale or a combined score of 1,000 on the Graduate Record Examination may be granted provisional admission with a majority vote of the biology faculty. For full consideration, applications must be received by April 1 for fall admission and November 1 for spring admission.

Students will be assigned a biology faculty member who agrees to serve as his/her major advisor. It is strongly recommended students visit the campus and interview with potential advisors early in the application process. Any programmatic deficiencies of students admitted into the program will be identified by their graduate committee and remedied by the student through appropriate coursework.

Degree Requirements

I. M.S. in Biology: Biological Sciences Concentration

A. Thesis option:

1. Complete a total of 30 semester hours including at least 24 hours in upper-level/graduate courses and seminars and at least six hours of Research and Thesis (BIOL 700). Two Graduate Seminars (BIOL 500) must be completed, one of which must be outside of the student's research emphasis.

2. Conduct an original research project; submit and defend a thesis. Before beginning the research, the student must present and defend the proposed project in a seminar open to the university community.

B. Non-thesis option:

This option is designed for prospective medical students, elementary and high school teachers, and others who wish to further their knowledge of biology at an advanced level but do not desire careers in research.

1. Complete a total of 30 semester hours including at least 24 hours in upper-level/graduate courses. Complete at least two hours of Graduate Seminar (BIOL 500).

2. Complete an independent study project or complete and report on an internship for at least two hours credit.

II. M.S. in Biology: Environmental Science Concentration

A. Thesis option:

This option is designed for students whose career goals include research or graduate study in environmental science. This interdisciplinary option will be a cooperative effort between the Department of Biology and the Department of Anthropology, Geography and Earth Science.

1. Complete a total of 30 semester hours including at least 24 hours in courses and seminars in required areas and at least six hours of Research and Thesis (ENVR 700). Required course areas include:

Natural and Physical Sciences: complete at least 12 hours of approved courses in anthropology, biology, earth science, geography, chemistry, or physics, three hours of which must be a field experience.
Quantitative Methods: complete at least six hours of approved courses in statistics, mathematics, remote sensing, or geographic information systems.
Policy, Planning, Communication, and Social Sciences: complete at least three hours of approved courses.
Graduate Seminar (ENVR 500): complete one to two semesters for at least two hours.

B. Non-thesis option:

This option is designed for returning environmental professionals who desire advanced training to enhance their career potential, elementary and high school teachers who wish to enhance their background in content areas, and others who wish to further their knowledge of environmental science but do not anticipate a career in research.

1. Complete a total of 30 semester hours of courses, seminars, and independent study or internship. Courses must cover the required content areas prescribed for the environmental science thesis option, including at least three hours of field experience.

2. Complete an independent study or complete and report on an internship for at least two hours.

When a preliminary draft of the thesis is judged by the major advisor to be suitable, the candidate will provide each member of his or her committee with a copy of the preliminary draft. The date of the oral thesis defense must be announced to the general college faculty at least two weeks before the defense. The defense will be conducted by the graduate research committee, which will report its approval or disapproval along with recommended revisions. At least five copies of the final draft of the thesis shall be prepared by the student, who will deliver them to the major advisor who will obtain the appropriate signatures and deliver the copies to the Division of Graduate Studies. The Division of Graduate Studies will charge a binding fee to the student.

Only 400-, 500-, 600-, and 700-level courses can be taken for graduate credit. No more than six semester hours of approved 400-level courses taken for graduate credit may count toward the master's degree (see below).

Placement

A great need for good professional biologists exists at the present, and should continue into the near future. Projections by both industry and federal government sources indicate that the need for life scientists and health workers should increase. The need for individuals with additional or more specialized training than required for a B.A. or B.S. degree is increasing. Placement of past graduates of the program has been excellent in teaching and research; federal, state, and local government; private industry; medical technology; dentistry; optometry; and doctoral and specialist programs.

Graduate Assistantships

A limited number of graduate assistantships and/or research assistantships are available. Departmental graduate assistants are assigned to assist in laboratory supervision in the undergraduate program in biology. Research assistants generally work on a grant-funded project directed by a faculty member. Graduate assistants must have full-admission status.

All applicants for graduate assistantships must first complete the regular admission procedure and submit the application for a graduate assistantship to the Department of Biology. Applicants for graduate assistantships must request their referees include in their three letters of recommendation a statement concerning the student's potential as a laboratory assistant.

All new applicants for graduate assistantships will be required to complete an interview before appointment. Graduate assistantships are usually renewable for two years if the student has made reasonable progress toward the degree (see below).

New applicants for graduate assistantships must submit completed applications no later than April 15; appointments are usually made by May 1 of each year. Continuing students must submit an assistantship application packet by April 1.

Advisement

Before course work begins, the admitted student should meet with the graduate program coordinator or assigned major advisor for orientation and assistance in planning the first semester program. The student should initiate the selection of a major advisor and a graduate committee during the first semester at Clarion. The student and the graduate committee shall develop an academic research program leading to the M.S. degree. The student will be responsible for scheduling a Graduate Committee meeting once per semester to evaluate progress toward the completion of the program. Minutes of the graduate meetings will be recorded by the major advisor and will become a part of the student's permanent file.

A minimum of nine credits per semester is considered a full load for graduate students. Twelve semester hours (three credits per session) is a maximum load during summer sessions. Exceptions may be authorized by the dean of Graduate Studies upon recommendation by the Department of Biology acting upon a written petition by the student.

It is the candidate's responsibility to file, with the aid of his or her major advisor, an Application for Graduation before the published deadline during the semester before he or she intends to graduate.

Courses

Courses may be taken from any curriculum in the Graduate Catalog. Students are encouraged to go outside the Department of Biology for courses if their program goals and career interests will benefit as determined by their graduate research committee.

While students can, and frequently do, take undergraduate courses at all levels of instruction, only 400-, 500-, 600-, and 700-level courses can be taken for graduate credit. No more than six semester hours of 400-level courses may count toward the master's degree. The 400-level courses that may count toward the master's degree are BIOL 410, 460, 464, 470, 471, CHEM 453, and 463. Please note that 400-level courses taken for undergraduate credit cannot be repeated for graduate credit.

Reasonable Progress Toward Degree

It is the expectation of the Biology Department that the first priority of all full-time graduate students is the completion of the requirements of the master of science degree in a timely manner. The student's major advisor and graduate research committee will determine reasonable progress toward completion of the degree. At a minimum, reasonable progress will include:

Thesis options:

(1) a public presentation of the student's proposed research project in a seminar open to the university community;

(2) submission and tentative approval of the research prospectus by the student's major advisor and graduate research committee by the end of the second semester in residence; and

(3) holding graduate research committee meetings once per semester;

Thesis and non-thesis options:

(1) maintaining a minimum QPA of 3.0 in all course work attempted.

Students who are applying for a second year of support as a departmental graduate assistant must submit evidence of relevant degree progress to the departmental graduate committee that includes documentation of the criteria listed above in addition to evidence that professional duties associated with the current year's assistantship have been completed in a satisfactory manner.

Physical Facilities

The Department of Biology is located in the Science and Technology Center, a three-story teaching and research building which opened in 2009. This facility is well supplied with sophisticated equipment and instrumentation necessary for studying the many facets of biology. In addition, the department also maintains continually expanding herbarium and vertebrate biology collections, animal and aquarium rooms, and a cell culture laboratory. New molecular biology/biotechnology and ecology laboratories provide research support for students in these growth areas. Field work is conducted on land owned by the university adjacent to the campus or on the huge expanse of state, federal, or privately owned land/waters in close proximity to the university. Ecologically interesting areas within a 100-mile radius of the campus include the Jennings Nature Preserve, Allegheny National Forest, Cook Forest State Park, Tionesta Scenic Area, Heart's Content Scenic Area, Presque Isle State Park, Power Mill Nature Reserve, and the Pymatuning region.

Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology

Because of a unique cooperative program with the University of Pittsburgh, Clarion University is able to offer an outstanding program of studies in ecology. Courses are taken at Clarion Campus during the academic year. In the summer, courses in field biology are offered at the Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology. Classes are taught and research is directed by faculty from several institutions. The laboratory is located approximately 1.5 hours northwest of Clarion on the shores of the Pymatuning Reservoir.

The teaching and research facilities of the field laboratory are on a site within a wildlife sanctuary and propagation area managed by the Pennsylvania Game Commission. A hatchery of the Pennsylvania Fish Commission is adjacent to these facilities. The housing and dining area for the laboratory is located three miles away, on the public portion of the Pymatuning Reservoir. A waterfront area is available for recreational use by students and staff.

Release of Data from M.S. Thesis–Publication Policy

Publications resulting from research done at Clarion University shall give credit to people involved in the research, to Clarion University, and to any granting agencies that supported the research.