Biomedical Sciences Master's Requirements

Admission Requirements

The applicant must meet the School of Graduate Studies’ current minimum general admission requirements as published in the graduate catalog. 

1. Completion of a four-year Bachelor’s degree or equivalent from a recognized college or university as described in the UND Undergraduate and Graduate Academic Catalog.Exceptions must be approved by the Dean of the School of Graduate Studies.
2. Coursework:Admission into the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program is dependent upon the applicant’s demonstration of effective academic skills and appropriate undergraduate training.Ideally, the applicant will have completed the following coursework:

• General Biology with laboratory
• General Chemistry with laboratory
• Organic Chemistry with laboratory
• Physics with laboratory
• Biochemistry or equivalent
• Calculus

• Advanced undergraduate coursework in at least one of the following areas: molecular biology, cell/developmental biology, genetics, neuroscience, biochemistry, microbiology, immunology, anatomy, or physiology.

3. Applicants must have a cumulative undergraduate GPA of at least 3.0/4.0. Applicants with previous graduate education should have a cumulative GPA of 3.5/4.0 in their graduate level course work. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is not required however good scores (> 50^th percentile) can enhance the application.

4.  International applicants must satisfy the School of Graduate Studies English Language Proficiency Requirements.

5.  A Statement of Goals must be included with the application materials.This statement will describe the student’s academic achievements, research experience and accomplishments, career goals, and objectives for applying to the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program.

6.  Three letters of recommendation addressing the student’s academic performance and research or professional experience are required to complete the application.At least two letters must be from faculty having direct knowledge of the student’s academic capabilities.

7.  Preference will be given to students who can demonstrate undergraduate research and/or a record of scholarly publication or other relevant experience.

Degree Requirements

Students seeking the Master of Science degree in the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program must satisfy all general requirements set forth by the School of Graduate Studies as well as particular requirements set forth by the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program.In addition to course work, the M.S. degree requires completion of an acceptable thesis in a program of study designed by the student with Faculty Advisory Committee approval.

1. A minimum of 30 credit hours of graduate level courses including research and thesis.

2. Completion of the following core graduate courses: 

   Course List

   Code	Title	Credits
   BIMD 501	Scientific Discovery I	6
   BIMD 510	Basic Biomedical Statistics (fulfills the scholarly tool requirement)	2
   BIMD 516	Responsible Conduct of Research	2
   BIMD 590	Research	at least 8
   BIMD 998	Thesis	4

3.   Completion of a minimum of 4 credit hours of graduate level elective courses selected from the following:

4.  A student must obtain at least a “B” in all required courses in order to remain in good standing in the graduate program. If less than a “B” is received, the student will be given the opportunity to remediate in a manner determined by the course director.If remediation is unsuccessful, the student may petition the Graduate Faculty to take the course a second time.In the event that the student is unable to raise the grade to at least a “B”, the student must petition the Graduate Faculty to be allowed to remain the program.

5.  Students must maintain a minimum 3.0 GPA in accordance with School of Graduate Studies guidelines (UND Graduate and Undergraduate Academic Catalog).

6.  In addition to course work, the Master of Science degree requires completion of a thesis-based scholarly project completed by the graduate student under the guidance of a faculty advisor.  It is expected that the results of the scholarly work will be publishable in a peer-reviewed journal.