Applicants to the M.Sc. program must hold a B.Sc. degree or its equivalent.
International applicants should verify International credentials and grade equivalencies.
The residence requirement for the M.Sc. degree is 3 terms of full-time study. This is the minimum duration required to complete the M.Sc. degree. The expected duration for completing the M.Sc. degree is 2 years. In some cases, 3 years may be required; students are however cautioned to avoid research projects that cannot be completed in 2 years.
Course Requirements
The following Thesis Courses are required for all M.Sc. students:
BIOL 697. Master's Thesis Research 1.
Credits: 13
Offered by: Biology (Graduate Studies)
This course is not offered this catalogue year.
Description
Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.
Most students use Visual Schedule Builder (VSB) to organize their schedules. VSB helps you plan class schedules, travel time, and more.
BIOL 698. Master's Thesis Research 2.
Credits: 13
Offered by: Biology (Graduate Studies)
This course is not offered this catalogue year.
Description
Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.
Most students use Visual Schedule Builder (VSB) to organize their schedules. VSB helps you plan class schedules, travel time, and more.
BIOL 699. Master's Thesis Research 3.
Credits: 13
Offered by: Biology (Graduate Studies)
This course is not offered this catalogue year.
Description
Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.
Most students use Visual Schedule Builder (VSB) to organize their schedules. VSB helps you plan class schedules, travel time, and more.
M.Sc. students are required to earn an additional 6 course credits during their degree.
Students joining the program in Fall 2021 or later earn 3 credits from the newly offered introductory graduate research/skills courses BIOL601 & BIOL602 or BIOL601 & BIOL603, which they are encouraged to take during their first year. The remaining 3 credits will be from complementary courses (see below).
BIOL 601. Introduction to Graduate Studies in Biology.
Credits: 1.5
Offered by: Biology (Graduate Studies)
This course is not offered this catalogue year.
Description
Foundational, cross-disciplinary skills in research and communication, including graduate student orientation, research integrity and ethics, equity, diversity and inclusion, science communication for a general audience, seminar critiques, elevator pitches, science writing for a general audience, finding/reading the literature, and peer review.
- Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor
Most students use Visual Schedule Builder (VSB) to organize their schedules. VSB helps you plan class schedules, travel time, and more.
BIOL 602. Molecular Biology Research and Professional Skills.
Credits: 1.5
Offered by: Biology (Graduate Studies)
This course is not offered this catalogue year.
Description
Core skills in reading, writing, critical thinking and experimental design/interpretation, pertaining to the molecular biology research stream. Research presentations, research proposals, and peer review, related to thesis research projects. Career opportunities and skills relating to career development.
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking BIOL 603.
Most students use Visual Schedule Builder (VSB) to organize their schedules. VSB helps you plan class schedules, travel time, and more.
BIOL 603. Organismal Biology Research and Professional Skills.
Credits: 1.5
Offered by: Biology (Graduate Studies)
This course is not offered this catalogue year.
Description
Core skills in proposal writing, peer review, oral presentation, and practical workflows for reproducibility in science, pertaining to the Organismal Biology research stream, and including stream-specific topics such as field safety and career options. Topics include: paper/pre-print discussion and written review, research presentations,research proposals, rubric-guided peer review, and experimental design in field research disciplines.
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking BIOL 602.
Most students use Visual Schedule Builder (VSB) to organize their schedules. VSB helps you plan class schedules, travel time, and more.
MSc students who joined the program prior to Fall 2021 earn all 6 credits from complementary courses.
Complementary courses
- Must be at the 500-level or above.
- Course selections must be approved by the Thesis Supervisor.
- Courses may be selected from the Biology Department, other departments or other universities in Quebec (taken through CREPUQ).
- Students must attain a passing grade of B- in all required courses. Requests to take supplemental exams should be directed to the Graduate Training Committee.
- Students may take additional courses not required for their degree (e.g. writing, language and teaching courses), as long as a minimum average of B- is maintained.
- Graduate-level courses offered by the Department of Biology are listed听here.
Seminars & Presentations
Students in the M.Sc. program are expected to regularly attend听at least one of the department's weekly seminar series. A list of these is available on the Seminars & Events page.听In addition, M.Sc. students are are expected to give at least one research seminar a year to a scientific audience outside of their lab.听Presentations should be at least 15 minutes long. First year students are exempt from this requirement.
M.Sc. Thesis
A thesis demonstrating independent and original research in a specialized field, written in accordance with McGill's Policies on Research Ethics and Intellectual Property, is the major requirement for the M.Sc. degree. Our Thesis Guidelines contain the resources relevant to the preparation and submission of a thesis.
NOTE:听The program requirements for the Specialized Options in Biology differ from the requirements of the regular Biology Graduate Programs. More...
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