Direct admission to the dual-degree program

Incoming first-year students entering Hofstra may apply for direct admission to this dual-degree program.  Applicants must have a combined SAT score (in critical reading and mathematics) of 1240 (or an ACT score of 25) and an overall high school GPA of 3.5 (or be in the top 15 percent of their high school graduate class) in order to be considered for admission. Students admitted directly to the dual-degree program as incoming freshmen will be admitted automatically to the MS program in integrative biology at the end of their junior year provided they fulfill the following requirements:

1. A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 and a GPA of 3.0 in biology courses at the time of application to the MS program, or upon completion of 92 s.h. of course work toward their BS degree in biology.
2. Successful completion of 18 s.h. of biology courses by the end of the semester in which they apply for admission to the dual-degree program.

Admission to the dual-degree program for current Hofstra students

Qualified Hofstra students taking the BS major in biology may apply for admission to the dual-degree program prior to completing 92 s.h. of undergraduate coursework. Students applying to the dual-degree program should note that admission requires they fulfill the following requirements:

1. A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 and a GPA of 3.0 in biology courses at the time of application to the MS program or upon completion of 92 s.h. of coursework toward their BS degree in biology.
2. Successful completion of 18 s.h. of biology courses by the semester in which they apply for admission to the dual-degree program.
3. All students admitted to this program must complete a total of 145 s.h.: 30 s.h. of graduate course work and 115 s.h., toward their undergraduate degree. Three graduate courses, or 9-12 graduate-level semester hours, selected under advisement from BIOL 200, 232, 238, 239, 252, 254, 256, 258, 260, 268, 273 and/or 307 taken in the senior year, are credited to both the BS and the MS degree requirements (9-12 credits).

Students accepted into the dual-degree program who have attained senior standing may begin taking graduate courses.

Undergraduate Program Requirements

1. The complete requirements for the Bachelor of Science degree, as specified in this Bulletin .
2. The undergraduate major requirements for the BS in Biology .

Students should apply to the department as soon as possible after making the decision to major in biology. The department encourages interested students to speak with a biology adviser about this major before declaring a major. Advisers are assigned when the student applies for acceptance as a major. Grades in biology courses lower than a C- do not count toward the total number of semester hours required for the biology specialization.

Requirements for the MS in Biology - Semester Hours: 30

All students should meet with the graduate program director at least once each semester.  Dual-degree students are encouraged to meet with the graduate program director as soon as they make the decision to apply.  Candidates must complete 30 semester hours of graduate-level coursework, including two semesters of seminars (BIOL 305). Also required are BIOL 301 and 302 (Master’s Thesis). Up to 6 semester hours of graduate courses may be taken in related disciplines outside of Biology with permission of the graduate program coordinator.

Graduate students are expected to receive a grade of B or better in their biology courses.

Dual-degree students are expected to continue research related to their undergraduate research (BIOL 190-194) for their thesis research (BIOL 301, 302) and should discuss this with their research advisor as soon as they decide to apply for the program.