Master of Science in Biotechnology
http://www.utdallas.edu/biotechMS/
Faculty
The
following faculty members work with and teach students in the M.S. in
Biotechnology degree program:
Professors: Larry P. Ammann (Mathematical Sciences), Ray H.
Baughman (Chemistry), Lee A. Bulla (Molecular and Cell Biology), Santosh R.
D’Mello (Molecular and Cell Biology), Rockford K. Draper (Molecular and Cell
Biology), Sam Efromovich (Mathematical Sciences), Donald M. Gray (Molecular and Cell
Biology), Donald A. Hicks (EPPS), M. Ali Hooshyar (Mathematical Sciences), Stephen D.
Levene (Molecular and Cell Biology), Betty S. Pace (Molecular and Cell
Biology), Lawrence J. Reitzer (Molecular and Cell Biology), Li Zhang (Molecular
and Cell Biology), Michael Q. Zhang (Molecular and Cell Biology)
Associate Professors: Mark C. Anderson (SOM), Gregg R. Dieckmann
(Chemistry), Gail A. Breen (Molecular and Cell Biology), John G. Burr
(Molecular and Cell Biology), Ovidiu Daescu (Computer Science), David L. Deeds
(SOM), Ernest M. Hannig (Molecular and Cell Biology), Warren J. Goux
(Chemistry), Robert L. Kieschnick (SOM), J B Lee (Electrical Engineering),
Dennis L. Miller (Molecular and Cell Biology), Paul Pantano (Chemistry),
Stephen Spiro (Molecular and Cell Biology)
Assistant Professors: Jung-Mo Anh (Chemistry), Yan Cao (Mathematical Sciences),
Pankaj K. Choudhary (Mathematical Sciences), Mieczyslaw K Dabkowski (Mathematical Sciences),
Wenchuang Hu (Electrical Engineering), Nirup M. Menon (SOM),Tianbing Xia
(Molecular and Cell Biology), Zhenyu Xuan (Molecular and Cell Biology), Hyuntae
Yoo (Molecular and Cell Biology)
Senior Lecturers: Mehmet Candas (Molecular and
Cell Biology), Robert Marsh (Molecular and Cell Biology, Joseph C. Picken
(SOM), Robert L. Robb (SOM)
Objectives
The M.S.
degree in biotechnology is intended to prepare students for careers in
biotechnology and biomedicine and to assist currently employed professionals in
enhancing their career opportunities.
Biotechnology
captures the exciting possibilities made possible by the decoding of the human
genome and by the advances in bioanalytical instrumentation, and the field is
projected for continued rapid growth. The M.S. in Biotechnology is designed so
that students may enter the program with a wide range of prior disciplinary
backgrounds, prepare for and take the four core courses, and, by choice from a
wide range of approved electives, tailor the remainder of the degree program to
their career opportunities. In this manner, students may develop areas of
additional depth in fields such as:
•
molecular and cell biology
•
chemistry
•
engineering and computer science
•
health care policy
•
management and business administration
The M.S.
in Biotechnology requires 36 hours of courses, typically twelve courses of
three semester hours each. Students may also elect to prepare and defend
a thesis; more than 36 hours may be required for such a program.
The M.S.
in Biotechnology is administered by the Department of Molecular and Cell
Biology. Students seeking further information or advisement should contact the
Molecular and Cell Biology Department office.
Core
Courses
The core
consists of four courses – BIOL 5376 Applied Bioinformatics, or CS 6325
Introduction to Bioinformatics, BIOL 5381 Genomics, BIOL 6373 Proteomics, and
BIOL 6384 Biotechnology Laboratory. Students enrolled in the M.S. in
Biotechnology program will have priority for enrollment in BIOL 6384.
Students who can demonstrate that they have acquired the material and/or skills
in a core course may petition the Committee on Biotechnology for permission to
substitute an approved elective course.
Program
Policies
The
program is open to all students who hold a bachelors degree, although those
with laboratory science, mathematics, computer science, or engineering degrees
are particularly encouraged to apply. In general, students will not be
admitted to the M.S. in Biotechnology program if they require more than two
courses in order to be ready to take the core courses.
Every
student admitted to the M.S. in Biotechnology program shall consult with the
program advisor(s) and develop a mutually agreed degree plan. All requests for
deviations from the degree program described in this catalog shall be discussed
first with a program advisor, who will forward the request to the Committee on
Biotechnology for decision.
There are
no formal prerequisites for most of the core courses, and a student, after
obtaining consent of the program advisor, may attempt one or more core courses.
However, the level of the BIOL core courses is such that most students will
want to have mastered the material in the following courses:
General Chemistry (two semesters,
with lab)
Organic Chemistry (two semesters, with lab)
BIOL 2311 Introduction to Modern Biology I (with workshop)
BIOL 3361 Biochemistry or BIOL 6352 Modern Biochemistry I
BIOL 3301 Classical and Molecular Genetics or BIOL 6V31 Molecular Genetics
BIOL 3302 Eukaryotic
Molecular and Cell Biology or BIOL 6356 Eukaryotic Molecular and Cell Biology
The four core courses
should be taken in the following order: BIOL 5376 Applied Bioinformatics,
BIOL 5381 Genomics, BIOL 6373 Proteomics, BIOL 6384 Biotechnology
Laboratory. Consent of instructor is required for core courses taken out
of this sequence.
BIOL 6384
Biotechnology Laboratory is a skills based course. Students must show that they
have adequate laboratory skills in order to enroll in BIOL 6384.
Students
who elect to prepare and defend a thesis must satisfy the M.S. thesis
procedures specified by the department of their thesis supervisor.
Electives
As a
general rule, any UTD graduate course that is approved by the advisor as being
relevant to the student's tailored degree plan may be taken as an elective for
the Biotechnology M.S. program. Students should consult the program advisor for
the current list of recommended electives.
A joint program in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology,
administered through the Mathematical Sciences Department, is also available,
and courses offered within that program are also available as electives.