Biology (MS)
Our faculty members are well-respected leaders in their fields and publish extensively. They also attract a significant amount of external grant support which allows them to pursue research projects that are at the forefront of modern biology. Students receive individual attention as they pursue their own research and work toward their master's degree.
The MS in Biology degree program focuses on the development of experimental and intellectual skills required for vigorous research. Our program is research/thesis-based and takes most students two to three years to complete.
Students are assigned an advisor to help them develop an individualized curriculum. Once a curriculum is selected, students join the labs of their thesis directors and begin their research.
The Biology (MS) also offers an Accelerated Master's Pathway for Undergraduate students to complete their Graduate studies in a fifth year. Further details of the AMP, including the suggested sequence of courses, can be found under the Curriculum tab.
Related Programs
Curriculum
The Master of Science in Biology requires 30 hours of coursework and a formal research thesis.
Besides the traditional Master's program, the Biology (MS) is also offered as an Accelerated Master's Pathway where exceptional students can complete the program in a fifth year. A suggested sequence for the AMP can be found below.
Course Requirements
To become an official candidate for the MS degree, students must earn 30 credit hours and show satisfactory performance in course work and thesis research.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| BIOL 470 | Biostats & Exp Design Lec/Lab 1 | 4 |
| BIOL 500 | Scientific Logic 2 | 3 |
| BIOL 510 | Instructions in Teaching Biology | 1 |
| BIOL 511 | Biology Teaching Practicum 3 | 2 |
| BIOL 501 | Seminar | 1 |
| BIOL 502 | Department Seminar | 1 |
| BIOL 422 | Research | 1-6 |
Hours taken for Research vary per term. Students will earn 3-9 hours over the course of the program. | ||
| Graduate level BIOL electives | 9-15 | |
| Microbiology | ||
| Advanced Development | ||
| Advanced Genetics | ||
| Advanced Cell Biology | ||
| Advanced Immunology | ||
| Advanced Parasitology | ||
| Limnology Lec/Lab | ||
| Wetland Ecology Lec/Lab | ||
| Aquatic Insects Lecture & Laboratory | ||
| Entomology Lec/Lab | ||
| Advanced Molec Genetics | ||
| Pop Genetics | ||
| Prin Electron Microscopy Lec/Lab | ||
| Bioinformatics | ||
| Directed Reading | ||
| Special Topics | ||
| BIOL 595 | Thesis Supervision | 0 |
| Total Hours | 30 | |
- 1
BIO 470 must be completed with a grade of B or higher to demonstrate proficiency in experimental design and analysis.
- 2
BIO 500 must be completed with a grade of B or higher to demonstrate proficiency in scientific writing and reading scientific literature.
- 3
University-funded students must take BIOL 511 Biology Teaching Practicum twice (4 credit hours). Grant-funded or externally-funded students take BIOL 511 Biology Teaching Practicum once (2 credit hours).
Thesis Requirements
Research is the focus of the master's degree program at Loyola University Chicago. Faculty engage students in ongoing studies and students are well-supported when taking on new projects and challenges. Students work with their thesis advisors to develop and conduct a specialized research project. Based on this work, students write and defend a master's thesis. Students in the MS program must write and present a thesis outline to their faculty committee. The proposal outline must be approved by February 1 of the student's first year in the program. Following this approval, students will write and defend the master's thesis. The final thesis will be deposited in a publicly accessible database in accordance with Graduate School policy.
Suggested Sequence of Courses
The below sequence of courses is meant to be used as a suggested path for completing coursework. An individual student’s completion of requirements depends on course offerings in a given term as well as the start term for a major or graduate study. Students should consult their advisor for assistance with course selection.
Traditional Master's Program
| Year One | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | |
| BIOL 500 | Scientific Logic | 3 |
| BIOL 510 | Instructions in Teaching Biology | 1 |
| Elective | 0-5 | |
| Hours | 7 | |
| Spring | ||
| Electives or Research | 0-6 | |
| BIOL 511 | Biology Teaching Practicum 1 | 2 |
| Hours | 8 | |
| Year Two | ||
| Fall | ||
| BIOL 470 | Biostats & Exp Design Lec/Lab 2 | 4 |
| BIOL 501 | Seminar | 1 |
| BIOL 502 | Department Seminar | 1 |
| Electives or Research | 0-3 | |
| Hours | 9 | |
| Spring | ||
| Electives or Research | 6-7 | |
| Hours | 6 | |
| Total Hours | 30 | |
- 1
Students on University Scholarships must take BIOL 511 Biology Teaching Practicum two times. Unsupported students, students supported through an advisor's grant, and students supported by their own grants take BIOL 511 one time.
- 2
BIOL 470 Biostats & Exp Design Lec/Lab is offered every other year and alternates with BIOL 500 Scientific Logic.
Accelerated Master's Pathway
Students can take up to 15 credit hours in the senior year with admission to the AMP. These credits are shared between the Bachelor's and Master's programs.
| Senior | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | |
| BIOL 500 or BIOL 470 |
Scientific Logic or Biostats & Exp Design Lec/Lab |
3 |
| BIOL 510 | Instructions in Teaching Biology | 1 |
| 400-Level Elective 1 | 3 | |
| Hours | 7 | |
| Spring | ||
| 400-Level Elective Courses 1 | 8 | |
| Hours | 8 | |
| Master's | ||
| Fall | ||
| BIOL 470 or BIOL 500 |
Biostats & Exp Design Lec/Lab or Scientific Logic |
4 |
| BIOL 501 | Seminar | 1 |
| BIOL 502 | Department Seminar | 1 |
| 400-Level Electives or Research | 0-3 | |
| Hours | 8 | |
| Spring | ||
| BIOL 511 | Biology Teaching Practicum | 2 |
| 400-Level Electives or Research | 5-6 | |
| Hours | 7 | |
| Total Hours | 30 | |
- 1
Electives can be chosen from the 400-Level Additional Courses listed below.
Additional Course Options
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 402 | Microbiology | 3 |
| BIOL 405 | Advanced Development | 3 |
| BIOL 413 | Advanced Immunology | 3 |
| BIOL 415 | Advanced Parasitology | 4 |
| BIOL 416 | Limnology Lec/Lab | 4 |
| BIOL 417 | Wetland Ecology Lec/Lab | 4 |
| BIOL 418 | Aquatic Insects Lecture & Laboratory | 4 |
| BIOL 426 | Entomology Lec/Lab | 4 |
| BIOL 430 | Virology | 3 |
| BIOL 450 | Advanced Bioinformatics | 2 |
| BIOL 451 | Bioinformatics Seminar | 1 |
| BIOL 458 | Developmental Neurobiology | 3 |
| BIOL 470 | Biostats & Exp Design Lec/Lab | 4 |
| BIOL 482 | Advanced Molec Genetics | 3 |
| BIOL 483 | Pop Genetics | 3 |
| BIOL 485 | Prin Electron Microscopy Lec/Lab | 4 |
| BIOL 488 | Bioinformatics | 3 |
| BIOL 493 | Directed Reading | 1-4 |
| BIOL 495 | Special Topics | 1-4 |
| BIOL 495L | Special Topics Lab | 0 |
| BIOL 500 | Scientific Logic | 3 |
Responsible Conduct of Research
All PhD students and students in thesis-based Master's degree programs must successfully complete UNIV 370 Responsible Conduct in Research and Scholarship or other approved coursework in responsible conduct of research as part of the degree requirements. It is strongly recommended that students complete this two-day training before beginning the dissertation/thesis stage of the program.
Guidelines for Accelerated Master's Pathways
In Accelerated Master’s Pathways, students share limited, authorized credits between their Undergraduate and Graduate degrees to facilitate completion of both degrees in a shorter amount of time. Shared credits are Graduate level credit hours (400-level or higher) taken during the Undergraduate career and then applied both to the Undergraduate degree and towards Graduate program requirements.
Admission and Matriculation
Accelerated Master's Pathways are designed to enhance opportunities for advanced training for Loyola’s Undergraduates. Admission to these programs is competitive and will depend upon a positive review of credentials by the Graduate program. Accordingly, the admission requirements for these programs may be higher than those required if the Master’s degree were pursued entirely after the receipt of a Bachelor’s degree.
Students enrolled in an Accelerated Master's Pathway who choose not to continue to the Master’s degree program upon completion of the Bachelor’s degree will face no consequences.
Ideally, a student will apply for admission to an AMP program as they approach 90 credit hours in their Undergraduate career.
Students will not officially matriculate into the Master’s degree program and be labeled as a Graduate student by the university, with accompanying changes to tuition and Financial Aid (see below), until the Undergraduate degree has been awarded. Once admitted to the Graduate program, students must meet the academic standing requirements of their Graduate program as they complete the program curriculum.
Advising and Registration
Students in their final Undergraduate year will work with Advising in the home School of their Bachelor's program(s), as well as the Graduate Program Director of the Master’s program. Any 400-level or higher courses that the student plans to enroll in should be reviewed by both advisors to ensure that these courses will complete requirements for both degrees.
Registration in Graduate level courses during the Undergraduate year may require assistance from the Graduate Program Director and/or the student’s current academic advisor to enroll.
Shared Credits
Only courses taken at the 400-level or higher will count toward the Graduate program. At the Undergraduate level, students are restricted to enrolling in and sharing up to the number of Graduate level credits explicitly indicated in the catalog for their selected AMP program.
In general, Graduate level coursework should not be taken prior to admission into the Accelerated Master's Pathway. Exceptions may be granted for professional programs where curriculum for the Accelerated Master's Pathway is designed to begin earlier. On the recommendation of the program’s Graduate Program Director, students may take one of their Graduate level courses before they are admitted to the Accelerated Master’s Pathway if they have advanced abilities in their discipline and course offerings warrant such an exception.
Degree Requirements and Conferral
Undergraduate degree requirements are in no way impacted by admission to an Accelerated Master’s Pathway. Students should not, for example, attempt to negotiate themselves out of a writing intensive requirement on the basis of admission to a Graduate program.
The program’s Graduate Program Director will designate credit hours to be shared through the advising form and Master’s degree conferral review process. Graduate credit hours taken during the Undergraduate career will not be included in the Graduate GPA calculation.
If students wish to transfer credits from another university to Loyola University Chicago, the program’s Graduate Program Director will review the relevant syllabus or syllabi to determine whether it meets the criteria for a 400-level course or higher.
Programs with specialized accreditation requirements that allow programs to offer Graduate curriculum to Undergraduate students will conform to those specialized accreditation requirements.
Degrees are awarded sequentially. All details of Undergraduate commencement are handled in the ordinary way as for all students in the School/College/Institute. Once matriculated in the Graduate program, students abide by the graduation deadlines set forth by the Graduate program. Students in these programs must be continuously enrolled from Undergraduate to Graduate degree program unless given explicit permission by their program for a gap year or approved leave of absence. In offering the option of an Accelerated Master’s Pathway, the university is making possible the acceleration of a student’s Graduate degree completion. It should be understood that students may not request deferral of their matriculation into the Master’s degree program. If students would like to delay their Graduate studies after earning the Undergraduate degree, they may apply for admission to the traditional Master’s degree program. Any application of Graduate credit earned while in the Undergraduate program is subject to the policies of the Graduate degree granting school.
Graduate & Professional Standards and Regulations
Students in graduate and professional programs can find their Academic Policies in Graduate and Professional Academic Standards and Regulations under their school. Any additional University Policies supersede school policies.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the MS in Biology, students will be able to demonstrate:
- Proficiency in experimental design and analysis.
- Proficiency in scientific writing and reading scientific literature.
- Communication skills in both teaching and presenting research.
- The ability to critically think, analyze data and write scientifically.
- The ability to interact as an independent researcher.