MA Biology

The Biology Department offers a Master of Arts in Biology which is a course-work based degree and is considered to be a terminal degree (except for students intending to attend professional school); students wishing to later pursue a Ph.D. should apply to the M.S. program. Students admitted to the MA Biology program will have a choice of culminating their degree by either an examination or project option.

Master of Arts in Biology – Examination Option

The M.A., Examination option is a coursework-based degree and is considered to be a terminal degree (except for students intending to attend professional school); students wishing to later pursue a Ph.D. should enroll in the M.S. program. The M.A. candidate will complete a wide range of relevant course work. At the end of the coursework, the candidate will be required to pass a comprehensive examination. The examination will be tailored by each candidate’s committee to emphasize the areas covered by the course work. After the candidate has completed the written portion of the examination, the candidate will meet with the committee for an oral review prior to the final approval or rejection of the written examination.

Master of Arts in Biology, Examination Option

Course Number and Title	Credits
BIOL 598 Graduate Seminar OR BIOL 561-567 “Advanced Topics in” courses	2
BIOL 579 Research in the Biological Sciences (for two semesters)	2
Electives to be chosen in consultation with advisor and committee:Electives for the M.A. may include up to a combined total of 6 credits of workshop credits, practicum/internship credits, directed research credits. A combined total of 9 credits may include approved courses taken outside the biological sciences, workshops, practicum/internship, and directed research. Workshop, directed research, and practicum/internship credits are limited to a maximum of 3 credits each.	28
BIOL 690 Master's Comprehensive Examination	1
TOTAL	33

Master of Arts in Biology – Project Option

The M.A., Project Option is an application-based degree and is considered to be a terminal degree (except for students intending to attend professional school); students wishing to later pursue a Ph.D. should enroll in the M.S. program. In addition to completing substantial course work, the M.A. candidate will complete a project that may be an application or synthesis of original research carried out by others. Examples of such projects include the development of biology-based curriculum, compilation, and analysis of studies on a range of species, review and the synthesis of a body of ideas or data, and development of a resource management plan based on relevant studies. Upon completion of the project, the candidate will meet with the committee for an oral review and discussion about the project.

Master of Arts in Biology, Project Option

Course Number and Title	Credits
BIOL 598 Graduate Seminar OR BIOL 561-567 “Advanced Topics in” courses	2
BIOL 579 Research in the Biological Sciences(for two semesters)	2
BIOL 591 Project. Students will be expected to develop a written project proposal and give an oral presentation of their project upon completion.	6
Electives to be chosen in consultation with advisor and committee:Electives for the M.A. may include up to a combined total of 6 credits of workshop credits, practicum/internship credits, directed research credits. A combined total of 9 credits may include approved courses taken outside the biological sciences, workshops, practicum/internship, and directed research. Workshop, directed research, and practicum/internship credits are limited to a maximum of 3 credits each.	23
TOTAL	33

How to Apply

Putting Your Application Together

The online application, official transcripts, and all related admission materials must be received by January 15th for a fall semester start, or by October 1^st for a spring semester start. International applicants and applicants with international transcripts are encouraged to apply by December 15^th, and by September 1^st in order to ensure materials including official transcripts are received by the program’s deadline.

Required Application Materials

The following items are required for the MA Biology application:

Contact potential faculty advisor(s) -Your acceptance into the Biology MA program requires the support of a faculty mentor, be sure to contact a potential faculty advisor before the application deadline. See the Finding a Mentor section below for more details.
Graduate College Application – Complete the Graduate College application. Once you complete the Graduate College portion of the online application and pay the application fee, the Biology MA program application requirements will be made available to you.
Application Fee – Pay the $65 Domestic or $95 International application fee in the online application system.
Transcripts – Please request official copies of all undergraduate and graduate transcripts to be sent to Boise State. Learn more about submitting transcripts to Boise State.
TOEFL or IELTS Scores – Required for international applicants only. Learn more about language score requirements.
3 Letters of Recommendation – Applicants will provide contact information for three references in the application system. Upon submission of the recommender contact information, an email will be sent to the recommender with a link to upload a letter of recommendation.
Cover Letter – See the instructions provided below.

Cover Letter Instructions

Please write a cover letter of no more than 750 total words that include:

A description of your overall academic interests and goals. Why do you seek graduate training? What are your career goals? Why are you applying to this program?
A description of your specific scientific interests. This is a great place to describe your motivation to further your training in science and research in your chosen field. Also, describe why your selected research lab is a good fit for your interests.
A summary of your previous research experience or jobs involving laboratory or fieldwork.
Please describe a challenge or obstacle you faced as a student, and how you overcame it.
If needed, please request to be considered for a graduate assistantship in your cover letter.

Finding a Mentor

Students in the Biology master’s program will work closely with a mentor throughout the course of their education. It’s important to find a mentor who is researching in an area that is interesting to you and pertinent to what you hope to do after you graduate. The faculty in this program have a wide array of backgrounds and areas of research, offering plenty of diversity for interested students to consider. Before submitting your application, it’s important to review the list of faculty researchers and select a couple of different labs you may be interested in working in. Before applying, we encourage students to reach out to faculty to meet and determine if there is a good fit.

All individuals admitted to Regular Status as a graduate student in Biology must have:

An undergraduate GPA of at least 3.00 on a 4 point system.
An undergraduate degree in Biology or a closely related field.

Provisional Status may be granted to those otherwise promising applicants who do not meet GPA requirements or who have undergraduate coursework deficiencies.

Enrollment in all masters programs is competitive, and achievement of minimum admission requirements does not guarantee admission into the program.

Graduate Assistantships

Teaching Assistantships that include a stipend, tuition, and fee waiver, and student health insurance may be available to M.S. students on a competitive basis. Additional support for master’s research projects may be available from faculty members in the form of research assistantships. Other forms of financial aid, such as loans or the College Work-Study Program, are available to graduate students. Prospective students should contact the Financial Aid Office and consult the Boise State University catalog.

Western Regional Graduate Program

The Biology Graduate Program participates in WICHE, the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education and their Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP). WRGP is a tuition-discounting program. WRGP enables students from WICHE states (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming) to enroll in more than 400 participating graduate programs and pay the enrolling institution’s resident tuition rate, instead of the nonresident rate that an out-of-state student would normally pay. At Boise State University we offer this opportunity on a competitive basis. The Biology department will recommend a small number of WGRP awards based upon merit for outstanding applicants. This recommendation goes to the Graduate College for a final decision.