Graduate Studies in Biomolecular Science

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Biomolecular Science

• Master of Science

Norma Burgess, Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Kent Gallaher, Academic Chair, Department of Biology; Director, Graduate Studies in Biomolecular Science

Core Faculty

The graduate faculty in biomolecular science represent the areas of molecular biology, genetics, cancer biology and the biomedical sciences.
Beth Conway, Associate Professor of Biology
Jon Lowrance, Professor of Biology
Florah Mhlanga, Professor of Biology
Bonny Millimaki, Assistant Professor of Biology
Mary Sledge, Professor of Biology
Amanda Williams, Instructor of Biology and Research Coordinator

The mission of the graduate program in biomolecular science is to prepare competent scientists whose practice is informed by faith and who are well positioned for successful careers in biomedical science, basic research, genetic testing, cancer biology, developmental biology and DNA forensics. Additionally persons may elect to pursue this graduate program to better position themselves for entry into graduate programs in medicine, dentistry and other allied health professions.

Admission Policies and Procedures

Applicants to graduate programs must submit the following:

1. Application Form. Each applicant must complete an application form. The application form is available at lipscomb.edu/admissions/graduate then click on “Apply by Program” to complete the online application.
2. Application Fee. Each application should be accompanied by a $50 nonrefundable application fee ($75 for international students).
3. Standardized exam score. Each applicant must submit scores from an appropriate exam. The program accepts scores from the Graduate Record Examination, Medical College Admissions Test, and Dental College Admissions Test. For more information on the GRE, visit www.ets.org/ and click on “GRE.” For more information on the MCAT, visit www.aamc.org. For more information on the DAT, visit www.ada.org. Students who have already earned a master’s level degree may apply to the program without submitting a standardized test score.
4. References. Two letters of reference are required: one academic reference and one character reference.
5. Official Transcript(s). Each applicant must submit an official transcript, showing degree conferral when appropriate, from all schools attended.
6. Health Form.^* Each applicant must submit a completed health form signed by a health care provider. (To print a copy of the health form, visit www.lipscomb.edu/healthcenter/forms.)
7. FERPA.^* The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act affords students certain rights of access to educational records; even if you are independent of your parents, you must submit this form prior to enrollment.
8. Resume. A resume detailing the applicant’s work and academic experience is required.
9. TOEFL. The Test of English as a Foreign Language is required for international students. (See section titled International Students  for more information.)
   All application items should be submitted to the Graduate Studies in Biomolecular Science office no later than 15 days before the beginning of the semester or term in which the student plans to enroll. Forms should be mailed to: Graduate Studies, Lipscomb University, One University Park Drive, Nashville TN 37204-3951.
   ^* These forms must be submitted after acceptance into the program.

Transfer and Waiver of Courses

Although all graduate credit hours may be transferred from another accredited institution, a maximum of 9 hours will be counted toward the M.S. in Biomolecular Science. The director or appropriate faculty member of the graduate program will evaluate the course(s) being proposed for transfer and make a determination of suitability. No course with a grade below a “B” will be considered for transfer.

Special consideration for course waiver may be given to the student who has special study and/or experience in a given subject area. The waiver will be by means of an examination that is passed with a grade of “B” or better. A $170 fee is charged for each examination taken (includes $70 for evaluating and recording and $100 per course for constructing and administering). A maximum of 6 hours may be waived by examination. Arrangements for a waiver are to be made through the Graduate Studies office. No graduate credit is awarded.

Documentation

Students are required to provide satisfactory documentation of personal identification for off-site learning experiences required in many programs of graduate study at Lipscomb University. Failure to provide proper credentials will result in failure to complete the desired course of study. For complete policy, see section entitled Required Documentation for Off-Site Learning Experiences  in the opening section of this catalog.

Student Classifications

Students are admitted to graduate courses in one of
five categories:

1. Graduate Student: one who has satisfied all admissions requirements. (Average of 3.0 on undergraduate work, acceptable standardized exam scores.) A student with an incomplete admission file will be accepted to the program at the discretion of the program director but will be placed on an academic hold which will prevent registration for the following semester. Once the proper admissions documents have been received, the hold will be removed and the student will be allowed to register for the following semester.
2. Conditionally Admitted Student: one who has been admitted conditionally, at the discretion of the program director, without satisfying all admission requirements. Students admitted with the following criteria may be required to complete a minimum of nine hours of graduate work with a grade of “B” or above.
   1. From an unaccredited school or with a substandard GPA or standardized test score.
   2. A transfer student with a graduate GPA between 2.50 and 2.99. The transfer student must be in good standing at the previous institution attended.
   3. As a student who has not completed a bachelor’s degree program. The transfer student must be in good standing at the previous institution attended.
3. Non-Degree Student: one who has been admitted to graduate studies and has met all admission requirements except GPA or standardized exam score. The student may take up to nine semester hours for graduate credit. Those hours may be applied toward a master’s degree if the student makes a grade of “B” or better in the courses taken for credit and if all admission requirements (GPA and entrance test score) are met and the student is formally admitted to a graduate program as a degree-seeking student.
4. Visiting Student: one who is currently enrolled as a student in good standing at the post-bachelor’s level at another graduate school, wishes to take courses at Lipscomb and desires to have transcript evidence of course work done at Lipscomb provided for the school of primary enrollment.
5. Probationary Student: one who has been readmitted to a graduate program following academic suspension from the program.

Admission to a program does not imply admission to candidacy for the master’s degree. Only those students who meet the requirements for “graduate student” described above are eligible for candidacy.

Academic Policies

Course Load

A student enrolled for six hours per semester is considered a full-time student. No student will be permitted to enroll for more than 15 hours per semester without special approval from the director of the graduate program.

Academic Standing

1. Good Academic Standing: To remain in good academic standing, the M.S. in biomolecular science student must maintain a cumulative 3.00 GPA and a 3.00 GPA on the most recent 12 semester hours of work.
2. Probation: Should the student’s cumulative graduate GPA fall below 3.00, he or she will be placed on academic probation. A student on academic probation will not be allowed to enroll for more than six hours during any term the probation applies.
   The probationary student is required to achieve a 3.00 cumulative GPA by the time the student has completed the next nine hours of course work. A course(s) may be repeated to achieve the requisite GPA. If the requisite GPA is attained, the academic probation status will be removed.
3. Suspension: If the requisite GPA is not attained, the student will be suspended from graduate studies at Lipscomb for the following semester, after which the student may apply for readmission. The student may be required to appear before the graduate committee.
   Failing grades will provide no credit toward the degree but will be included in figuring scholarship level, unless replaced with a higher grade by repeating the course(s). A 3.00 GPA must be maintained to be eligible for financial assistance.
4. Appeals: Appeals to suspension decisions should be made in writing to the Vice Provost for academic development. Appeals must be received no later than 4:30 p.m. on the Monday of the week before classes begin for the term during which the student wishes to be readmitted.

Degree Completion Requirements

Residency

No period of formal residency is required for a degree in a master’s program.

Statute of Limitations

All requirements for the M.S. in biomolecular science degree must be completed within a five-year period from the time of initial matriculation.

Candidacy

Admission to a program does not imply admission to candidacy for the master’s degree. During the course of pursuing the M.S. degree, the student must be admitted to “candidacy.” For admission to candidacy the student must satisfy the following:

1. Complete all required undergraduate deficiencies if admitted on condition.
2. Complete at least twelve hours of graduate work.
3. Maintain a 3.00 GPA on all courses taken toward the requirements for the degree with no incomplete grades.
4. File a degree plan and application for candidacy in the graduate program office which meet all requirements and are approved by the administrator of the graduate program and the dean of the college. The degree plan must be filed during the second semester of graduate work in the program.

After admission to candidacy and approval of the degree plan, any changes in the degree plan must be approved by the administrator of the graduate program and the dean of the college. The application for candidacy must be filed before the beginning of the student’s last semester in the program. No student will be allowed to graduate in the same semester in which the application for candidacy is filed.

Minimum Credits

The M.S. in biomolecular science requires 30-33 semester hours, exclusive of hours accumulated to satisfy academic deficiencies.

Minimum GPA

The minimum cumulative grade-point average for all graduate education programs is 3.00 for all graduate courses taken for graduate credit while pursuing the degree. No grade below a “C” is acceptable. Such grades will not apply toward degree completion.

Graduation

Students must register for GN 999X the semester in which all course work will be completed for graduation. Students who do not file their intent to graduate form in the registrar’s office by the end of the first week of their last semester may be delayed in graduating.

Graduate students receiving degrees are hooded during the May and December commencement exercises.

Appeals

Any exceptions to the above stated requirements would require approval by the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs in collaboration with the Dean of the College and the Program Director.

Financial Information

Tuition and Fees for 2017-18*

Program of Study Requirements

(Applied behavior analysis, biomolecular science, engineering management, exercise and nutrition science, health care informatics, information security, informatics and analytics, information technology management, clinical mental health counseling, psychology, software engineering and sustainability)

• Biomolecular Science, Human Disease Track, M.S.
• Biomolecular Science, Laboratory Research Track, M.S.

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