Biology, Thesis Masters (Plan A M.S. or MSA)

Biology offers a research-focused Master’s degree, which we call the thesis M.S. or Plan A M.S. This program is designed for students who want to gain research experience but are not ready for or are not yet committed to the extended level of research required for a Ph.D. Biology takes relatively few thesis M.S. students into the program, but under special circumstances will do so. A key requirement is that a faculty member is interested and has a project in mind that fits the time scale of a Master’s degree (typically 2 years). Graduates of the Biology thesis Master’s program have gone on to enter Ph.D. programs either here or at other institutions, or have taken positions in government or in industry. Biology has also allowed existing MS students to upgrade to the Ph.D. program if their advisory committee believes that doing so is in their best interests. 

Admission Requirements

Offers to enter the MSA program are based on the applicant’s potential as a scientist and educator. Application review is based on (A) a current CV, (B) a Personal Statement that addresses specific questions related to the applicant’s motivation for obtaining a MSA research interests (see https://bio.as.uky.edu/GraduateAdmissions for more details), (C) three letters of recommendation which address the applicant’s potential for success in the program, and (D) minimum GPA of 2.75 in undergraduate work.

Degree Requirements

• 30 credit hours are needed to complete the Thesis Masters
• For more information please see our website at: https://bio.as.uky.edu/grad-program