Graduate Programs

Graduate Advisor
Eric L. Charnov
Donald O. Natvig

Application Deadline
January 15


Degrees Offered

Nanoscience & Microsystems (NSMS) M.S. & Ph.D. Degree Program

This department participates in the interdisciplinary NSMS program; for more information, see the Graduate Interdisciplinary Studies section of this catalog.

M.S. and Ph.D. in Biology

Areas of study: arid land ecology, behavioral ecology, botany, cellular and molecular biology, community ecology, comparative immunology, comparative physiology, computational biology, conservation biology, ecology, ecosystem ecology, evolutionary genetics, evolutionary biology, genomics, microbiology, molecular genetics, parasitology, physiology, physiological ecology, population biology, systematics, vertebrate and invertebrate zoology.

Admission

Students considering applying for graduate study are encouraged to write to the Department of Biology or consult our Web site for information and application material. Each applicant’s course background is evaluated and emphasis is placed on the applicant’s scholarship and research potential. Letters of reference are particularly important. The General Graduate Record Exam test scores are required and the Subject test in biology or in another relevant major discipline is required. Each applicant must include a letter of intent stating the reasons for attending, goals and tentative academic area in which he/she hopes to work. All applicants must be sponsored by at least one member of the graduate faculty before admission to graduate study can be recommended by the Graduate Student Selection Committee.

The Department of Biology offers the Ph.D., M.S. Plan I (thesis option) and M.S. Plan II (non-thesis option). The M.S. Plan II is not a research degree and normally does not lead to work in the doctoral program. It is intended primarily for individuals who wish to supplement their baccalaureate programs with additional course work. The M.S. Plan I is a research degree with the same philosophy as the Ph.D. It is not a prerequisite for the Ph.D. but may lead to work on that degree. Students whose ultimate goal is a Ph.D. are encouraged to consult with potential advisors within the department about applying directly to the Ph.D. program. The research degree is the heart of the graduate program. The Biology Department Graduate Handbook gives additional information on all aspects of the graduate program. The Department of Biology Graduate Handbook should be consulted by all students who have been admitted to the Program.


Degree Requirements

General requirements for the Ph.D. degree in biology are presented in earlier pages of this catalog. In addition to the comprehensive and final examinations required by the Office of Graduate Studies, departmental requirements include a series of graduate core courses and a public final defense. At least one outside referee (extradepartmental) is mandatory for reviewing the dissertation and participating in the public final defense of dissertation. Formal experience in lecturing and laboratory direction under the supervision of a professor in an appropriate field is required. The candidate for the Ph.D. in certain fields of biology may carry on research for the dissertation at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute, Sandia National Laboratories or Santa Fe Institute under the terms of an agreement for cooperation between the University of New Mexico and these institutions. Certain conditions have been specified for the acceptance of students for research at these institutions; each case will be considered on an individual basis. Several researchers at all four institutions, as well as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the New Mexico Game & Fish Department, and the New Mexico Museum of Natural History, have adjunct faculty status in the Biology Department and may co-chair graduate student committees.

M.S. I. General requirements for this degree in biology are presented earlier in this catalog.

M.S. II. General requirements for this degree are presented earlier in this catalog. The program of studies will be determined in consultation with the student’s major advisor.

Non-Biological Skills. Candidates for both M.S. degrees are required to satisfy one non-biological skill, while Ph.D. candidates must satisfy two skill areas. Areas of non-biological tool skills include advanced training in mathematics and/or statistics, computer science, chemistry or biomedical instrumentation. A minimum of 6 credits per skill with a grade point average of 3.0 (B) or better can satisfy the requirement. Courses taken to meet the non-biological skill requirements cannot be counted toward semester hour credits required for graduate degrees. Tool skill requirements may also be met by demonstrating proficiency in consultation with a student’s graduate committee.


Courses

BIOL 110. Biology Non-Majors. (3)



BIOL 112L. Biology Laboratory for Non-Majors. (1)



BIOL 123. Biology for Health Related Sciences and Non-Majors. (3)



BIOL 124L. Biology for Health Related Sciences and Non-Majors Lab. (1)



BIOL 201. Molecular and Cell Biology. (4)



BIOL 202. Genetics. (4)



BIOL 203L. Ecology and Evolution. (4)



BIOL 204L. Plant and Animal Form and Function. (4)



BIOL 237. Human Anatomy and Physiology I for the Health Sciences. (3)



BIOL 238. Human Anatomy and Physiology II for the Health Sciences. (3)



BIOL 239L. Microbiology for Health Sciences and Non-Majors. (4)



BIOL 247L. Human Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory I. (1)



BIOL 248L. Human Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory II. (1)



BIOL 249L. Human Anatomy Laboratory. (1)



BIOL 300. Evolution. (3)



BIOL 310L. Principles of Ecology. (4)



BIOL 324L. Natural History of the Southwest. (4)



BIOL **351. General Microbiology. (3)



BIOL **352L. General Microbiology Laboratory. (1)



BIOL 360L. General Botany. (4)



BIOL 365. Evolution of Human Sexuality. (3)



BIOL *371L. Invertebrate Biology. (4)



BIOL 379. Conservation Biology. (3)



BIOL 386L. General Vertebrate Zoology. (4)



BIOL 400. Senior Honors Thesis. (1-3, no limit Δ)



BIOL *401. Topics in Cell and Molecular Biology. (3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 402 / 502. Topics in Biology. (1-3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 404 / 504. Topics in Physiology. (3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 405 / 505. Ecosystem Dynamics. (3)



BIOL *406. Topics in Organismal Biology. (3)



BIOL 408L / 508L. Bosque Internship. (3 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



BIOL 409 / 509. Topics in Ecology/Evolution. (3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 410 / 510. Ecological and Evolutionary Genomics. (4)



BIOL *412. Developmental Biology. (3)



BIOL *416L. Histology. (4)



BIOL 419 / 519. Topics in Interdisciplinary Science. (3, no limit Δ)



BIOL *425. Molecular Genetics. (3)



BIOL *428. Human Heredity. (3)



BIOL *429. Molecular Cell Biology I. (3)



BIOL 430 / 530. Conservation and Indigenous Peoples. (3)



BIOL *435L. Animal Physiology. (4)



BIOL 436L / 536L. Phylogenetics. (4)



BIOL 437 / 537. Evolutionary Genetics. (3)



BIOL 444 / 544. Genomes and Genomic Analyses. (3)



BIOL 445 / 545. Biology of Toxins. (3)



BIOL 446 / 546. Laboratory Methods in Molecular Biology. (4)



BIOL *447. Prosection. (3)



BIOL *448. Microbial Evolution and Diversity. (3)



BIOL *450. General Virology. (3)



BIOL *451. Microbial Ecology. (3)



BIOL 452. Human Genetics. (3)



BIOL *455. Ethology: Animal Behavior. (3)



BIOL 456 / 556. Immunology. (3)



BIOL *460. Microbial Physiology. (3)



BIOL 461L. Introduction to Tropical Biology. (3)



BIOL *463L. Flora of New Mexico. (4)



BIOL 465 / 565. Sociobiology and Evolutionary Ecology. (3)



BIOL 466 / 566. Immunogenetics. (3)



BIOL 467 / 567. Evolutionary Plant Ecology. (3)



BIOL 470 / 570. Biology: Discovery and Innovation. (4)



BIOL 471 / 571. Plant Physiological Ecology. (3)



BIOL 475 / 575. Plant Community Ecology. (3)



BIOL 478L / 578L. Plant Physiology. (4)



BIOL 482L / 582L. Parasitology. (4)



BIOL 485L / 585L. Entomology. (4)



BIOL *486L. Ornithology. (4)



BIOL *487L. Ichthyology. (4)



BIOL *488L. Herpetology. (4)



BIOL *489L. Mammalogy. (4)



BIOL *490. Biology of Infectious Organisms. (3)



BIOL 491 / 591. Population Genetics. (3)



BIOL 492 / 592. Introductory Mathematical Biology. (3)



BIOL *494. Biogeography. (3)



BIOL *495. Limnology. (3)



BIOL *496L. Limnology Laboratory. (1)



BIOL 497 / 597. Principles of Gene Expression. (3)



BIOL 499. Undergraduate Problems. (1-3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 500. New Graduate Student Seminar. (1)



BIOL 502 / 402. Topics in Biology. (1-3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 503. Seminar in Interdisciplinary Biological and Biomedical Sciences. (3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 504 / 404. Topics in Physiology. (3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 505 / 405. Ecosystem Dynamics. (3)



BIOL 508L / 408L. Bosque Internship. (3 to a maximum of 9 Δ)



BIOL 509 / 409. Topics in Ecology/Evolution. (3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 510 / 410. Ecological and Evolutionary Genomics. (4)



BIOL 511. Community Ecology. (3)



BIOL 513. Physiological and Behavioral Ecology. (5)



BIOL 514. Ecosystem Studies. (3)



BIOL 515. Research in Field Biology. (3)



BIOL 516. Basic Graduate Ecology. (4)



BIOL 517. Basic Graduate Evolution. (4)



BIOL 518. Ecological Genomics. (3)



BIOL 519 / 419. Topics in Interdisciplinary Science. (3, no limit Δ)



BIOL 520. Topics in Interdisciplinary Biological and Biomedical Sciences. (3, unlimited Δ)



BIOL 521. Advanced Behavioral Ecology. (3)



BIOL 524. Collaborative Interdiciplinary Teaching. (3)



BIOL 530 / 430. Conservation and Indigenous Peoples. (3)



BIOL 535. Freshwater Ecosystems. (3)



BIOL 536L / 436L. Phylogenetics. (4)



BIOL 537 / 437. Evolutionary Genetics. (3)



BIOL 540. The Soil Ecosystem. (3)



BIOL 544 / 444. Genomes and Genomic Analyses. (3)



BIOL 545 / 445. Biology of Toxins. (3)



BIOL 546 / 446. Laboratory Methods in Molecular Biology. (4)



BIOL 547. Advanced Techniques in Light Microscopy. (4)



BIOL 551. Research Problems. (1-12, no limit Δ)



BIOL 556 / 456. Immunology. (3)



BIOL 558. Geomicrobiology. (3)



BIOL 561. Tropical Biology. (3)



BIOL 565 / 465. Sociobiology and Evolutionary Ecology. (3)



BIOL 566 / 466. Immunogenetics. (3)



BIOL 567 / 467. Evolutionary Plant Ecology. (3)



BIOL 570 / 470. Biology: Discovery and Innovation. (4)



BIOL 571 / 471. Plant Physiological Ecology. (3)



BIOL 575 / 475. Plant Community Ecology. (3)



BIOL 576. Landscape Ecology and Macroscopic Dynamics. (4)



BIOL 578L / 478L. Plant Physiology. (4)



BIOL 581. Advanced Molecular Biology. (4)



BIOL 582. Advanced Cell Biology. (4)



BIOL 582L / 482L. Parasitology. (4)



BIOL 585L / 485L. Entomology. (4)



BIOL 591 / 491. Population Genetics. (3)



BIOL 592 / 492. Introductory Mathematical Biology. (3)



BIOL 597 / 497. Principles of Gene Expression. (3)



BIOL 599. Master’s Thesis. (1-6, no limit Δ)



BIOL 651. Advanced Field Biology. (4-8)



BIOL 699. Dissertation. (3-12, no limit Δ)



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Office of the Registrar

MSC 11 6325
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131

Phone: (505) 277-8900
Fax: (505) 277-6809