Master of Science in Biology (Thesis)

Biology offers a research-focused Master's degree, which we call the thesis MS or Plan A MS. 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.

CV
Please submit a standard professional CV with contact information and educational and employment histories. In addition, please provide the following information as applicable:
a list of coursework or scientific training that does not appear on your transcript, but will be completed before entering the UK graduate program
a list of academic honors
a list of scientific publications or presentations
other experiences or responsibilities in science-related activities, such as outreach or volunteer work.
Personal Statement
Please provide a statement that addresses the following points, with separate subheadings for each question. How much space you devote to each subsection is up to you, but the total length should not exceed ~2-3 single-spaced pages:
Describe your motivation for pursuing a M.S. or PhD in biology. What are your career goals and how will a graduate education in Biology at the University of Kentucky help you achieve these goals?
Describe how your experiences up to this point have prepared you to engage in graduate research. This can include prior research experiences, but also any other relevant experiences that have helped you develop as a scientist (e.g., internships, volunteer work, a particular course, etc.). Given these strengths, what areas do you feel you need to improve during your graduate training?
Describe your research interests. What biological questions most interest you and what types of approaches could you use to answer them? What UK Biology research faculty are of interest to you and why?
Optional: Describe any special circumstances that are relevant to how you handle academic, professional, or personal challenges.
Three letters of recommendation
Prior to submitting this application, please review the Biology Department website for information about the Biology Graduate Program. It is important to review the research programs of our faculty for compatibility with your own interests and to consider the graduate training options offered (see, https://bio.as.uky.edu/training-programs-1). For those interested in the research degrees, we recommend you contact individual faculty members of interest as part of the application process.


The GRE is not required for admission to this program. For the Graduate School, the minimum acceptable TOEFL score is 550 (paper-based) 213 (computer-based), or 79 (internet-based). The minimum IELTS score is 6.5

An overall grade point average of 2.75 on undergraduate work and 3.00 on all graduate work is required by the Graduate School.