Graduate Program Overview
The Graduate Program in Animal Biotechnology & Biomedical Sciences offers research opportunities that foster creative excellence, technical mastery, intellectual independence, and recognition within the field of molecular and cellular biology. Our graduate faculty research is primarily in areas of immunology, infectious disease, developmental biology, reproductive biology and toxicology. The strong commitment of our faculty to quality graduate education is evident in the continued placement of graduates in excellent career and post-doctoral positions.
The Animal Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences graduate program is housed primarily in the Integrated Science Building - a newly built state of the art research facility that houses laboratories equipped for tissue culture, micro manipulation of cells and embryos, protein purification, genetic engineering/molecular biology, fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry.
Degrees Offered
The Animal Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences graduate program, a part of the Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences offers the following degrees:
- Master of Science (MS)
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Research Laboratories
- To prepare scientists to work in animal biotechnology and biomedicine by providing them with experience in hypothesis formulation, problem solving and experimental design.
- To provide research opportunities in areas of immunology, infectious disease, developmental biology, reproductive biology and toxicology.
- To instill in students an understanding of hypothesis driven experimental design and the desire to deepen scientific knowledge.
The core of the graduate program is the active research faculty’s deep commitment to provide a quality graduate education. The collaborative environment of our research groups strengthens the learning environment for graduate students, and the involvement of faculty within interdisciplinary programs brings a wide variety of students to our laboratories and seminars, promoting interactions across campus. The faculty attract post-doctoral fellows from around the world and their presence invigorates the research enterprise, thus students do not work in isolation but are part of both the departmental program as well as interdepartmental research communities including the Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, Neuroscience and Behavior Program, Organismic and Evolutionary Biology Program and the Collaborative Biomedical Research Program.
Research in the Animal Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences graduate program is supported by a variety of sources. Faculty hold grants from the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development as well as from private industry, foundations and the Massachusetts Agricultural Experiment Station. Our graduates are continually placed in excellent career and post-doctoral positions around the nation.
Program Requirements
See the Graduate Handbook for details on program requirements, courses, rules and milestones.
The main emphasis of the graduate program is hands on laboratory research. Students supplement lab work with a variety of coursework as well as research seminars and journal clubs. Required courses emphasise biochemistry, molecular and cellular biology, immunology and infectious diseases, as well as genetics and developmental biology. Doctoral students must pass a written and oral comprehensive qualifying exam, and both Ph.D. and M.S. students must pass a final oral defense of their thesis research. All graduate students form a thesis committee of faculty members who meet regularly with the student to assess progress and offer advice.
The fifth year Masters is for students who are undergraduates in the department and begin research in a laboratory during their junior year. During their senior year they develop their research skills and take 6 credits of coursework towards their Master degree. To complete the 5th year Masters requires 12-15 months after the B.S. degree and includes a combination of research work for independent study credit plus 6-8 additional coursework credits.
Financial Aid
Students (U.S. citizen and foreign) are eligible for research or teaching assistantships. Except for non-thesis masters students, graduate students accepted into the program are provided with financial support from individual faculty members (that is, the research supervisor). Research assistantships and teaching assistantships that are on full-time renumeration receives approximately $17,000/year as a salary stipend in addition to tuition, curriculum fees and medical insurance for a total combined value of on average ~$25,000/year. Students must pay their own program fees which range from $100-$500/year. Students admitted to the program are responsible for finding their own transportation to and from Amherst, Massachusetts. Foreign students must remain registered as full-time students during their stay to maintain visa status. There are also competitive fellowships available from the Graduate School and other bodies in addition to the R.A. and T.A. positions.
Application & Admission to the Program
Applications deadlines set by the Graduate School are February 1 for admission in September and October 1 for admission in January. However the department operates under a rolling admissions system which means that students may apply and the applications may be reviewed at any time. Students may also opt to begin their studies in the summer semester. Masters with thesis and Ph.D. students are accepted by individual faculty members directly into their laboratories, that is, students generally do not undertake laboratory rotations. Thus students are encouraged to contact individual faculty members directly about their research programs and the availability of space and financial support available in their laboratory.
Applicants must include a completed application form, two letters of recommendation and completion of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Foreign students not from an English-speaking country (i.e., one whose national language is English) must also take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and score at least 550. This includes students from non-English speaking countries even though their degrees may have been awarded in English.
Applications are available online at or can be obtained from the address below. For general information, visit the UMass Graduate School web site. Students interested in particular research labs should contact the individual faculty member.
To check on status of your application, please contact Program Coordinator:
Graduate Program Coordinator
Mary Schneider
RM. 427T ISB
University of Massachusetts
Amherst, Massachusetts 01003
email: mschneider [at] vasci [dot] umass [dot] edu
For inquiries about the program itself:
Graduate Program Director
Dr. Jesse Mager
Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences
RM. 427M ISB
University of Massachusetts
Amherst, Massachusetts 01003
email: jmager [at] vasci [dot] umass [dot] edu
Interdepartmental Graduate Programs
Students admitted through other graduate programs on campus may join the research groups in our department if the senior mentor faculty (PI) is a member of that program. Interdepartmental programs which our students may be interested in include:
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program
- Organismic and Evolutionary Biology Program