Graduate Programs

• A BA/BS from an accredited institution, awarded in the past 10 years
• Minimum undergraduate 3.0 GPA
• TOEFL: required for international applicants from countries in which English is not the official language
• 3 letters of recommendation
• Official transcripts from all institutions attended
• A letter of support from your identified faculty mentor 
• NOTE: the Biology graduate programs NO LONGER require GRE scores as part of admission
• Prerequisite courses required:

1. One year of general biology (lecture and laboratory)
2. One year of any combination of chemistry, physics, or mathematics
3. One course in applied or biological statistics (through regression and ANOVA)
4. Additional prerequisite requirements may be set by individual faculty 

• A BA/BS or MS from an accredited institution awarded in the past 10 years
• Minimum undergraduate 3.0 GPA
• TOEFL: required for international applicants from countries in which English is not the official language
• 3 letters of recommendation
• Official transcripts from all attended institutions
• A letter of support from your identified faculty mentor
• NOTE: the Biology graduate programs NO LONGER require GRE scores as part of admission
• Prerequisite courses required:

1. One year of general biology is preferred; supplementary courses or reading programs may be designed to provide background information of sufficient depth for the program curriculum
2. One course in applied or biological statistics (through regression and ANOVA)
3. Additional prerequisite requirements may be set by individual faculty

The master's degree requires a minimum of 30 credits. A maximum of 12 hours of graduate-level courses may be transferred and counted toward the degree. Students must form an advisory committee and orally deliver & defend written work before this committee. This defense constitutes the final examination for the program as required by the Graduate School.

1. Writing coursework/curriculum plan*
2. Completing 30 credits including 3-6 thesis (BIOL 6950)
3. At least 2 semesters of full-time scholarship (5 coursework credits or 1 thesis/candidate credit)
4. Forming and meeting regularly with an advisory committee
5. Writing and defending research proposal*
6. Writing and defending research thesis (including 1 or more publishable units)*

*Paperwork required, see all graduate forms at the University of Colorado Graduate School. 

The PhD degree requires the completion of six phases. Students must first complete a minimum of 60 credits. Up to 30 graduate-level courses from other graduate programs may be transferred and counted toward the degree. Students must also pass the Preliminary Exam, form an Advisory Committee and an Examination Committee, meet the academic residency requirement, pass the comprehensive exam, and write and orally defend a dissertation.

1. Writing coursework/curriculum plan*
2. Completing 60 credits including 30 of dissertation (BIOL 8990)
3. Meeting minimum academic residency requirements
   • At least 4 semesters of full-time scholarship if the student holds MS degree
   • At least 6 semesters of full-time scholarship if the student does not hold MS degree
4. Passing the Preliminary Exam in the first year*
5. Forming Advisory and Examination committees
6. Writing and defending research proposal (Comprehensive Exam in second or third year)*
7. Meeting annually with Advisory committee
8. Writing and defending dissertation (including 2 or more publishable units)*

*Paperwork required, see all graduate forms at the University of Colorado Graduate School.