College of Arts and Sciences

Department of Biology

Departmental E-mail: gradbio@indiana.edu

Departmental URL:  https://biology.indiana.edu/graduate/biotechnology/index.html

Curriculum

Curriculum
Courses
Faculty

Degrees Offered

Master of Science in Biotechnology; Master of Science in Biotechnology Accelerated Program;

Master of Science in Biotechnology

Special Departmental Requirements

(See also general University Graduate School requirements.)

Admission Requirements

Undergraduate major in one of the sciences and course work in the program in which a degree is sought. A degree in a related field (e.g. chemistry, mathematics, biology) may suffice if appropriate courses were included in the student’s degree program. Students seeking admission may apply to the Biotechnology Degree Program online. Applications must include a complete entrance form, letters of recommendation, undergraduate transcripts. Scores on the Graduate Record Examination General Test are optional. The TOEFL score is required if the native language is other than English.

Grades

Students must maintain a minimum GPA of B (3.0) in order to remain in good standing in the Graduate School. Courses to be counted toward the degree must be passed with a grade of B- (2.7) or better.

Course Requirements

A total of 30 credit hours are required including a common core program consisting of the following courses: T500 (8 cr.), T501 (2 cr.), T502 (2. cr.), T508 (3 cr.), T515 (3 cr.), T540 (3 cr.), T521 (2 cr.), and T680 (1-3 cr.). Other courses can be substituted for the common core requirements pending permission from the Director of Graduate Studies.  The remaining credit hours can be selected from an approved list of graduate courses in Biotechnology, Biochemistry, Informatics, Biology, Business, Chemistry, Law, Public and Environmental Affairs, Statistics, or Medical Sciences. Students who have completed T415 and/or T440 (or equivalent) as undergraduates will not be required to take T515 or T540. Instead, they will replace the credits with elective courses from the approved list, subject to the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies for Biotechnology.

• BIOT-T 500 Project Lab in Biotechnology (1-3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 501 Biochemical Instrumentation (2-3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 502 Mammalian Tissue Culture (2 cr.)
• BIOT-T 508 Theory and Application of Biotechnology Lecture (3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 515 Theory and Application of Biotechnology Lab (3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 521 Research Design in Ethics (2 cr.)
• BIOT-T 525 Protein Expression, Purification, and Characterization Lab (3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 540 Structure and Function of Biomolecules (3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 590 Graduate Research (1-3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 680 Specialized Topics in Biotechnology (1-3 cr.)

Thesis

A thesis is optional.

Master of Science in Biotechnology Accelerated Program

The Accelerated Master's Program involves early admission of undergraduates at IU who plan to pursue a 5 year combined BA or BS with an MS degree in Biotechnology. These students should declare their intentions for a combined degree, and apply for admission to the MS program between their sophomore and junior years. Students will be given preferential admission into research laboratories to undertake independent research projects at the beginning of their third year of undergraduate studies and are expected to continue their research program for three years, and at the end of that period, submit an M.S. thesis.

Grades

For all graduate degrees, students must maintain a minimum GPA of B (3.0) in order to remain in good standing in the Graduate School. Courses to be counted toward the degree must be passed with a grade of B- (2.7) or better.

Course Requirements

A total of 30 credit hours are required including a common core program consisting of the following courses: T500 (8 cr.), T501 (2 cr.), T502 (2 cr.), T508 (3 cr.), T515 or T525 (3 cr.), T540 (3 cr.), T521 (2 cr.), T680 Biotechnology Writing (1 cr.). The remaining credit hours will encompass T590 Graduate Research. Students who have completed T415 or T425 as undergraduates will not be required to take T515 or T525. Instead, they will replace the credits with an elective course from the approved list, subject to the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies for Biotechnology. Other courses can be substituted for the common core requirements pending permission from the Director of Graduate Studies

• BIOT-T 500 Project Lab in Biotechnology (1-3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 501 Biochemical Instrumentation (2-3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 502 Mammalian Tissue Culture (2 cr.)
• BIOT-T 508 Theory and Application of Biotechnology Lecture (3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 515 Theory and Application of Biotechnology Lab (3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 521 Research Design in Ethics (2 cr.)
• BIOT-T 525 Protein Expression, Purification, and Characterization Lab (3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 540 Structure and Function of Biomolecules (3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 590 Graduate Research (1-3 cr.)
• BIOT-T 680 Specialized Topics in Biotechnology (1-3 cr.)

Thesis

A thesis is required.

Final Examination

The thesis must be orally defended before the student’s advisory committee.

Graduate Minor in Biotechnology

Students from other graduate degree programs can receive a graduate minor in Biotechnology with at least 6 credit hours with an average grade of B or above in the following courses: T501 (2 cr.), T502 (2 cr.), T508 (3 cr.), T515 (3 cr.), T521 (2 cr.), T525 (3 cr.), T540 (3 cr.), T680 (1-3 cr.). Students may not count T521 toward the minor if they use it to fulfill a degree requirement for another program. Courses not explicitly listed may be used with the approval of the DGS for Biotechnology.