The cell, developmental and microbiology program employs molecular and cellular approaches to study biological function. The cell group examines intracellular and intercellular mechanisms in a wide variety of cells. The developmental group studies the mechanisms underlying the establishment and maintenance of multicellular complexity over time. The microbiology group addresses questions concerning the role of microorganisms in environmental processes and in disease and immune responses.
Biological Sciences Graduate Degrees
Biological Sciences Graduate Degrees
The Biological Sciences graduate program is both flexible and supportive, stressing individualized training in a diverse research environment. We provide a rich intellectual environment as well as the necessary technical resources students need to succeed.
Graduate faculty come from both the Biological Sciences Department in the College of Arts and Sciences and the Biomedical Sciences Department in the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. While two departments participate in the Biological Sciences graduate program, but your degree will come from Biological Sciences.
Faculty and graduate students conduct research on a wide array of biological topics spanning molecules to ecosystems, and from basic to applied research. Faculty and students develop collaborative networks both within and outside the department as they conduct their research.
Within ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ, the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology, the Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, The Infectious and Tropical Disease Institute (ITDI), and the Ohio Center for Ecology and Evolutionary Studies (OCEES) bring together researchers with common research interests from across diverse departments.
Biology Ph.D. and M.S. Degrees
-
Biological Sciences Ph.D.The Biological Sciences Department at ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ offers a graduate program that includes faculty from both Biological Sciences and Biomedical Sciences (ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine).
-
Biological Sciences M.S.Faculty and graduate students conduct research on a wide array of biological topics spanning from molecules to ecosystems, and from basic to applied research.
-
Molecular and Cellular Biology Ph.D.ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ offers interdisciplinary graduate study in Molecular & Cellular Biology in conjunction with the Biological Sciences Department Ph.D. program.
Choose an Area of Concentration
Our faculty expertise spans a broad range of biological disciplines across multiple hierarchical levels including molecular biology, microbiology, animal physiology, comparative anatomy, ecology, and evolution.
-
Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyÂ
The ecology and evolutionary biology program integrates research in functional and evolutionary morphology, biomechanics, animal behavior, phylogenetics, population genetics, conservation biology, population ecology, and community ecology to understand the causes and consequences of biological diversity. Faculty use lab and field based research on model organisms and natural populations to study ecological and evolutionary patterns, processes, and mechanisms.
-
Physiology and NeuroscienceÂ
The physiology and neuroscience program includes research in metabolic and comparative physiology, the physiology of thermo-tolerance, environmental toxicology, computational biology, developmental neurobiology, trophic interactions in the development of sensory systems, control of movement, auditory neurobiology, neuronal cytoskeleton and axonal transport, heavy metals and neurodegeneration, neuroendocrine control of development, cellular basis of neuronal communication, and neural and neuroendocrine control of the autonomic nervous system.
How to Choose a Graduate Adviser in Biological Sciences
Familiarize yourself with the graduate programs, including concentrations, and decide which specific program of study interests you.
Look through the faculty lists in your program of interest at Faculty Research Groups and find folks who do something that interests you.
Review faculty bio pages of faculty who interest you. You will be required to name three potential advisers on your application. Review each faculty, comparing them as you answer the following questions.
- Do they have recent publications demonstrating an activity research program? By recent, we mean in the last two to three years. Has their research program been consistent in terms of productivity? This is the sign of a stable lab environment.
- Do they attend national and international conferences? This is important as this will ultimately be a way for you to network and get your foot in the door as you move along in your career.
- How many students have they had and how many have not finished successfully? Be aware that a few unsuccessful students may not mean that the person is not a good adviser. On the flip side, only a handful of successful students over a career also does not mean the faculty member is not a good adviser. There is limited funding for graduate students in such a big department, so the majority of faculty can only take one student at a time, if they get a student that year at all. Therefore, most faculty will have gaps in their graduate training record for this reason. Also keep in mind that newer faculty members may not have had time to establish a publication or student track record yet.
Make contact with potential advisers over email notifying them of your intention to apply to the program and your interest in their lab. Establishing contact is important — you need to develop some sort of relationship to know whether it will even be worth your time applying. The faculty member may simply not be interested in having students depending on their own situation.
Email students who are currently in the potential adviser's lab. (See Graduate Student Directory.) Ask them about the faculty member's advising style, the consistency in feedback and encouragement, and the general workplace environment in the lab. Be aware, that some graduate students are disgruntled and this has nothing to do with the adviser. If someone is overly negative, be sure to talk to someone else for an additional point of view.
Try to visit before you even apply. It is always good to do this as early in the process as possible and will strengthen your application. When you visit, ask to meet with a group of graduate students in the program as well as other faculty.
For specific questions about program logistics, contact the Graduate Program Chair, Dr. Ronan Carroll. If you are interested in a faculty member whose home department is in the Department of Biomedical Sciences, contact Dr. Larry Whitmer at witmerl@ohio.edu.
Once you have applied, continue contact with the faculty member, but do not hound them for information on your application. The process takes time and they may not know what stage it is at.
Contact Us
Dr. Ronan Carroll is the Biological Sciences Department Graduate Director. Ask about admissions, degree requirements, and research areas in history graduate programs by emailing gradbios@ohio.edu.
Resources & Forms
BIO Specific Dissertation and Thesis Forms
- Dissertation Advisor form [PDF](BIOS#1 form)
- Dissertation Proposal Exam form [PDF] (BIOS#2 form)
- Thesis Advisor form [PDF] (BIOS#1 form)
- Thesis Committee form [PDF] (BIOS#12 form)
- Thesis Proposal Exam [PDF] (BIOS#2 form)
CAS Graduate Student Forms
- Dissertation Committee and Faculty Representative Information (CAS#5) (Policy)
- PhD Comprehensive Exam form [PDF] (CAS#4 form)Advance to Candidacy form (CAS#6)
- Arrangements for Oral Thesis/Dissertation Examination form (CAS#7)
- Report on Oral Thesis Examination/Thesis form (CAS#8)
Links
- International Student and Scholar Services, includes information on orientation, living in the Athens community, and visas
- updated every two years
- Graduate College at ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ, information on electronic theses and dissertations
- Graduate Student Senate, a good resource for travel and research funds. The site also provides information on initiatives and developments of interest to graduate students.