Biology, Agriculture & Natural Resources Concentration Non-Thesis (MS)

260101

Non-Thesis Track Guidelines

A combined MAXIMUM of 6 total credit hours for Internship and/or Special Problems courses may be applied:  Agricultural Science Special Problems (AGSC 530), Forestry Special Problems (FOR 530), Biological Sciences Special Problems (BISC 530), Biological Sciences Internship (BISC 540 or BISC 541).

Members of the student’s Graduate Advisory Committee will prepare an oral comprehensive examination, which may cover foundational natural resources topics that are not necessarily based upon the contents of courses on the student’s Plan of Study. Non-thesis students are encouraged to consult in advance with the members of their graduate Advisory Committee to discuss their comprehensive examination, so they are familiar with each faculty member’s expectations.

Unanimous agreement by the Graduate Advisory Committee is required regarding the student’s acceptable performance on the comprehensive exam. Consistent with University policy, a student who does not successfully pass the comprehensive examination is entitled to only one repeat examination. It is the student’s responsibility, in conjunction with the chair of the Graduate Advisory Committee, to schedule the comprehensive examination. Students should plan for the examination well in advance to ensure all Graduate Advisory Committee members are available.

A student must select a Graduate Advisory Committee that is comprised of a Chair and a minimum of two and no more than four additional committee members. The committee must include at least one faculty member from the School of Agricultural Sciences & Forestry and at least one faculty member from the School of Biological Sciences.

Comprehensive Exam Format

• The student must be registered for BISC 585 to be able to take the exam in the quarter in which they wish to graduate.
• The student must contact each member of their Graduate Committee no later than the start of the quarter they wish to graduate to notify their committee that they will need to complete the exam that quarter.
• Once a timeline is established between the Committee and the student, on a selected date, at least 4 weeks before the end of the quarter, each member of the Committee will send the student a question. Each question will require the student to explain the fundamentals of biology, demonstrate critical thinking and experimental design skills, and prepare a clear presentation of the response.
• The Committee will establish a date for the oral presentation of these questions at which point the Committee members will each evaluate the answer to their own questions.