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19 August 1997
Degrees Offered
Master of Arts
Doctor of Philosophy
Graduate degrees in the biological sciences are offered by the Division of Biological Sciences and the division's three constituent departments, botany, microbiology, and zoology. The programs in biological sciences are described below; those in biological sciences (botany) are described here; those in biological sciences (zoology), here; and those in microbiology, here.
The primary facilities for graduate instruction and research are provided in the Biological Laboratories building, the Experimental Science Building, and the J. T. Patterson Laboratories Building, and at the Marine Science Institute at Port Aransas. Additional facilities include the Life Science Library, the Brackenridge Field Laboratory, the Stengl "Lost Pines" Biological Station, the Cell Research Institute, the Genetics Institute, the Plant Resources Center, the Center for Applied Microbiology, the Central Hybridoma Facility, the Culture Collection of Algae, the Protein Sequencing Facility, the Laboratory of Radiation Biology, the Institute of Reproductive Biology, and the Animal Resources Center. Instruction and research within departmental and divisional programs are also offered at the two units of the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center: the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Hospital and the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Tumor Institute, in Houston, and the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Science Park, in Bastrop County.
Graduate study supervised by the Graduate Studies Committee for the Division of Biological Sciences is available in areas of specialization that cross the boundaries between the biological disciplines as classically defined. These interdisciplinary programs include coursework taken in two or more of the individual Departments of Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology, with appropriate concentration in the physical sciences.
Among the broad areas of specialization, guided by interdepartmental faculty groups, are behavioral biology, biological chemistry, biophysics, cellular and molecular biology, cytology and cytogenetics, developmental biology, ecology, population biology, evolution, host-parasite biology, human biology, immunobiology, genetics, molecular genetics, neurobiology, nutrition, paleontology, physiology, systematics, and virology.
The undergraduate training of students planning to enroll for graduate study in biological sciences should include a working knowledge of general biology and preparation in chemistry, mathematics, and physics. The adequacy of a student's background is considered on an individual basis.
Degree Requirements
All graduate students in biological sciences are expected to achieve breadth of training by attending the seminars and special lectures scheduled each year.
Master of Arts. Degree requirements are flexible to meet individual needs, and interdisciplinary studies are encouraged. Thirty semester hours (including Biology 698) are required. Two to three years of study are usually needed to complete the coursework and the thesis. With the approval of the Graduate Studies Committee, the student may enter the doctoral program directly, without completing the master's degree.
Doctor of Philosophy. Doctoral degrees are awarded on the basis of the candidate's demonstrated mastery of a selected area. The student's individual program, subject to the approval of the supervising committee, the Graduate Studies Committee, and the graduate dean, is designed to support the chosen area of specialization and the professional career for which the student is preparing. While there is no established core curriculum, each student must complete a minimum number of hours chosen from a broad spectrum of courses.
All students entering this degree program should be admitted to candidacy within three long-session semesters of the date of admission to the Graduate School. Exceptions require the approval of the Graduate Studies Committee. Typically, four or five years of graduate study, including original research and dissertation, are required to complete the Doctor of Philosophy with a major in biological sciences.
Campus address: T. S. Painter Hall (PAI) 1.22, Phone (512)
471-4882, Fax (512)
471-4969
Mailing address: Graduate Program in Biology, Division of Biological Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712-1187
E-mail: j.rhodes@mail.utexas.edu
URL: http://www.utexas.edu/cons/biology/
Chapter Four
Graduate Catalog
Contents
Chapter 1: Graduate Study
Chapter 2: Admission and Registration
Chapter 3: Degree Requirements
Chapter 4: Fields of Study
Chapter 5: Members of Graduate Studies Committees
Appendix: Course Abbreviations
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