Applicable only to students admitted during the 2012-2013 academic year.

Integrative Biology and Physiology

College of Letters and Science

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology offers the Master of Science (M.S.) degree in Physiological Science.

Admission

Program Name

Physiological Science

Address

122 Hershey Hall
Box 957246
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1527 

Phone

(310) 825-3891 

Email

mcarr@physci.ucla.edu  

Leading to the degree of

M.S. 

Admission Limited to

Fall, Winter, Spring 

Deadline to apply

June 30th 

GRE (General and/or Subject)

GRE: General.  The MCAT is also accepted. 

Letters of Recommendation 

3 

Other Requirements

In addition to the minimum University requirements and those listed above, all applicants are expected to submit a statement of purpose, which should include relevant background information concerning preparation for the degree and a description of the applicant's expectations, goals, and degree objective.

Applicants must also have completed a bachelor's degree in biological or physical sciences and generally are expected to have completed a year of coursework in each of the following: calculus; physics; biology; inorganic chemistry; and biochemistry.

Applicants also must include a description of their specific area of interest in physiology, their research interests, and the name of one or more departmental faculty whom they wish to consider as a potential research mentor.

Applicants are encouraged to communicate directly with the faculty, including through a personal interview. 

Master's Degree

Advising

Students are responsible for becoming acquainted with the departmental faculty and for identifying at the time of application a potential research mentor. Students form an advisory committee by the end of the first quarter of academic residence. Advisory committee membership consists of the research mentor and two or more regular series faculty, one of whom must hold an appointment within the department.

Areas of Study

Consult the department.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students are required to complete nine courses, including a second level statistics or research design course approved by the department, a four-unit graduate-level didactic course in molecular biology, and Integrative Biology and Physiology 270A-270B-270C. Prior completion of Integrative Biology and Physiology 111A-111B-111C (or equivalent) is required for enrollment in 270A-270B-270C. A minimum of six of the nine courses must be graduate level (200-series) courses, toward which two letter-graded 596 courses may be applied. Elective coursework is selected by the student and the student's research mentor, with approval by the graduate affairs committee. All coursework must be completed by the end of the second year. Integrative Biology and Physiology 598 may not be applied toward any of the course requirements for the degree. There is no limit on the number of times a master's student may enroll in course 598.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Comprehensive Examination Plan

None.

Thesis Plan

Every master's degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research.

Successful completion of the thesis plan requires completion of the required coursework, selected by the student and the student's research mentor, with approval of the student's advisory (thesis) committee and the graduate affairs committee, and a master's thesis. The student advisory (thesis) committee is formed by the end of the first quarter following matriculation and consists of the student's research mentor from the department and two or more regular series faculty, at least one of whom must hold an appointment in the department.

Students complete a master's thesis based on original laboratory research in a specific area of physiology. If students have made a good faith effort to complete a laboratory research project but are unable to do so because of circumstances beyond their control, they may petition the Graduate Affairs Committee for approval to submit a non-laboratory research thesis. Approval is granted only under exceptional circumstances. Non-laboratory theses are based on the study of the primary research literature in a current question in modern physiology. Students who are granted approval to submit a non-laboratory thesis are required to make an oral presentation of the thesis topic to the advisory (thesis) committee.

With advisory (thesis) committee approval, students may submit either a thesis or a thesis based on a manuscript that is suitable for publication.

Time-to-Degree

Normal progress from graduate admission to completion of the required coursework, is three to four quarters plus an additional one to three quarters for completion of the thesis. If preparation coursework is necessary, as much as three additional quarters may be required. Students are normally expected to complete all requirements for the master's degree within seven quarters.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

The Graduate Affairs Committee reviews the records of probationary students and may recommend termination, continuation on contract, or continuation on warning. A student may appeal a recommendation for termination to the Graduate Affairs Committee only with the support of a faculty adviser.