Other Course Requirements
Graduate-Level Quantitative Science Course
Students must take one 5-credit graduate-level course focused on quantitative science. Suitable courses are to be selected in consultation with the Biomolecular Engineering Graduate Advising Committee, the student, and the student’s faculty mentor.
Seminars
A minimum of three seminar courses (6 credits), including at least one quarter of the 2-credit biomolecular engineering seminar (BME 280B):
BME 280B | Seminar on Bioinformatics and Bioengineering | 2 |
Because the intent of the seminar course requirement is to ensure breadth of knowledge, BME 281-series courses do not count as a seminar, since these are lab group meetings.
Transfer Limitations
Up to two graduate courses may be transferred from other graduate institutions with the approval of the faculty advisor and the graduate director. However, please note that students will still be required to complete 35 credits while in the graduate program at UC Santa Cruz, pursuant to UCSC's rules on minimum units for the master's degree.
Other Requirements
Bootcamp Activity
Entering graduate cohorts are encouraged to participate in the hands-on “bootcamp” just before the start of the fall quarter. Bootcamp activities include program orientation, laboratory safety training, teaching assistant (TA) training, fellowship advice, cohort building activities, practical advice for navigating graduate school, and a hands-on research project.
Further Study Outside the Department
No further courses are required. However, with faculty guidance students often choose to take upper-division undergraduate courses or graduate courses outside the department to make up for deficiencies in background areas of particular importance.
With consent of the graduate director, variations in the composition of the required courses may be approved.
M.S. Capstone Requirement
This is a Plan II capstone. Students must complete an individual project or a group project with a final written report submitted as part of the final evaluation. That project must be proposed by the student or student-group and be approved by BME faculty. Students will usually spend 2-3 quarters on the project and must include a BME faculty member for approval of the final written report. Group projects must describe in the written report a mechanism for evaluating the individual contributions of each member of the group.
Upon admission into the combined B.S./M.S. program, students should immediately seek out a BME faculty member to oversee their individual or group project. A faculty member must be identified by the first quarter of the M.S. phase.
Adequate Progress
Graduate students receiving two or more U (unsatisfactory) grades or grades below B- in courses relevant to the program are not making adequate progress and will be placed on academic notice for the next three quarters of registered enrollment.
Graduate students who fail (unsatisfactory or lower than B-) a relevant course while on probation may be dismissed from the program. Students may appeal their dismissal. Graduate students who fail a relevant course after being removed from probation are immediately returned to academic notice.
Graduate students experiencing circumstances that may adversely affect their academic performance should consult with their advisor and the graduate director.
Applying for Graduation
All candidates for a degree must submit an Application for Master's Degree to the Graduate Division by the date stated in the Academic and Administrative Calendar for the quarter they wish to receive the degree. The deadline for degree applications is typically in the second week of the quarter. For more information about applying for graduation, visit the Baskin Engineering Graduate Studies website.
The combined B.S./M.S. degree pathway does not make any changes to the undergraduate program nor the graduate program, except that students must pass the overlapping courses listed above for a grade of B- or better.
To apply for the combined pathway, students apply to the M.S. program through the normal graduate admission process in the fall of their senior year. If admitted into the graduate program, they are automatically included in the combined B.S./M.S. pathway.