B.S. MICROBIOLOGY / M.S. MOLECULAR BIOSCIENCES DUAL DEGREE SAMPLE SCHEDULE

B.S. MICROBIOLOGY / M.S. MOLECULAR BIOSCIENCES DUAL DEGREE SAMPLE SCHEDULE

This dual degree program allows students to obtain a B.S. in Microbiology and an M.S. in Molecular Biosciences in five years (as opposed to six). The addition of the master’s degree in Molecular Biosciences will provide students with a stronger foundation in research, giving them a competitive advantage whether they choose to pursue employment opportunities immediately following graduation or decide to continue their education in a Ph.D. or professional program.

B.S. Microbiology students will be required to apply to the program in their Junior Year. GRE requirements will be waived for internal students with a GPA > 3.0. In addition to curricular requirements for both the B.S. and M.S. degree programs, students enrolled in the joint degree program will have the following requirements:

1. Nine credits selected from Advanced Molecular Biology, Advanced Cell Biology, Bacterial Pathogenesis, Viral Pathogenesis, and Innate Immunology can count jointly towards the B.S. and the M.S. degrees.
2. Students will be encouraged to choose B.S. Microbiology capstone topic in consultation with M.S. Molecular Biosciences faculty so that the capstone research can be expanded to a Capstone Project or Master’s thesis.
3. In order to complete the dual degrees in five years, students will be strongly encouraged to utilize two summers (between 3rd and 4th year and between 4th and 5th year) to complete their Capstone/Thesis project. 
4. For M.S. Molecular Biosciences Thesis Track students, Research Rotation (Graduate) and Capstone Experience (Undergraduate) in the Fourth year of Undergraduate/First Year of Graduate study will run concurrently under one Faculty mentor.