Microbiology and Immunology, MS

Program Description

Wright State University’s M.S. Program in Microbiology and Immunology prepares students for careers in health care professions (such as medical, dental, or veterinary school), biomedical research, or clinical laboratory work.

Areas of specialization in the program include basic and clinical immunology (innate and adaptive immune responses), immunotoxicology, immune modulation, autoimmune disease, molecular virology, viral pathogenesis, virus-cell interactions, gene therapy, viral vector technology, human gut microbiota, signal transduction in blood cells, cytokine signaling pathways, apoptosis, biosafety, vaccine development, and nanotechnology. For additional information, see Program Faculty Members.

Learning Objectives

Students enrolled in this program will learn to:

Acquire new knowledge in the fields of microbiology and Immunology.
Organize field-specific information through effective and ethical information search, retrieval, and critiquing strategies.
Interpret interdisciplinary material across multiple subjects in the life sciences and apply that information to the fields of microbiology and immunology.
Communicate and present ideas effectively, both in written and oral form, and defend a scientific thesis.
Formulate new scientific hypotheses and predict experimental outcomes through ethical reasoning and thorough integration of various perspectives and practices in the fields of microbiology and immunology.

Admission Requirements

Applicants must fulfill the general requirements for admission established by the Graduate School. In addition, program-specific requirements are as follows:

Grade Point Average (GPA): Preference is given to students with a GPA of 3.0 or better on a 4.0 scale. Students with a GPA of 2.7 to 3.0 may be considered for a conditional admission. Students with an overall GPA of 2.5 but with a 3.0 or better for the last 90 quarter hours or 60 semester hours may also be considered for a conditional admission.

Letters of Recommendation: Three different letters of recommendation are required, and emphasis is placed on the quality of the letters. The letters must be typed on official letterhead with a signature, and official contact information of the recommender must be provided for verification of authenticity. Duplicated letters signed by different people will not be accepted.

Personal Statement: A statement of interest must be provided that describes specifically the applicant’s interest in the field of microbiology and immunology and their interest in Wright State University as a whole. Any relevant work experiences should be highlighted, and any extenuating circumstances should be explained (such as a low grade in a particular course).

English Proficiency Testing:

International students, must show English proficiency on one of the following tests:

Name of Test	Minimum Score
Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)	90
International English Language Testing System (IELTS)	6.5
Pearson Test of English (PTE)	60
Duolingo	110

Note that international students arriving from a native-English-speaking country are exempt from the English testing requirement (see Countries with English as an Official Language).

Graduate Record Exam (GRE): If GRE scores are available, they will be considered but not required.

Program Learning Outcomes

As a result of their learning experience, graduates of the M.S. Program in Microbiology and Immunolgy can:

Recall, describe, and summarize fundamental principles in the fields of microbiology and Immunology.
Organize field-specific information through effective and ethical information search, retrieval, and critiquing strategies.
Interpret interdisciplinary material across multiple subjects in the life sciences and apply that information to the fields of microbiology and immunology.
Communicate and present ideas effectively, both in written and oral form, and defend a scientific thesis.
Formulate new scientific hypotheses and predict experimental outcomes through ethical reasoning and thorough integration of various perspectives and practices in the fields of microbiology and immunology.

For More Information

Program Requirements

Candidates must complete a minimum of 30 semester hours.
Candidates must maintain a 3.0 cumulative average with no more than six credit hours of C grades applied toward the degree.
A maximum of 10 credit hours of graduate courses may be transferred from other institutions.

This program generally requires two years for completion with full-time commitment. Students may attend part time but will take longer to complete the program.

Research-based Thesis Curriculum

This option requires the written submission and oral defense of a research-based thesis. Candidates are required to obtain a major advisor and an advisory committee of at least three voting faculty members. Two of the committee members must be selected from the list of Program Faculty Members and also be approved on the Graduate Faculty Member list. If the major advisor does not have Regular Graduate Faculty status, then a thesis co-director from the program will be required. Additional faculty members may serve as ex officio, non-voting members.

The advisory committee will help the student to formulate a program of study to include a minimum of 14 semester hours of required graduate didactic course work (including one microbiology and immunology seminar), 3 semester hours of approved elective course work in the life sciences, and minimum of 13 semester hours of research (including the thesis writing course).

Recommended Schedule:

Fall	Spring	Summer
*Year 1*
BMB 6001 Fundamentals of Biochemistry (3 credits) -or- BMB 7500 Molecular Biochemistry I (3 credits)	*MI 6260 Immunology (3 credits)	*MI 7000 Microbiology and Immunology Seminar (2 credits)
*MI 6750 Pathogenic Mechanisms (3 credits)	*MI 6310 Virology (3 credits)	*MI 7990 Microbiology Thesis Research (4 credits)
*Year 2*
*MI 7990 Microbiology and Immunology Thesis Research (3 credits)	*MI 7990 Microbiology and Immunology Thesis Research (4 credits)	Additional research hours if project not completed.
	*PN 7080 Thesis and Dissertation Writing (2 credits)
Life Science Elective(s) (3 credits)	Defend thesis (If ready)
Courses marked with an asterisk (*) are required.

Students may choose between BMB 6001 or BMB 7500 in year 1, depending on their background.

Required Courses:

BMB 6001 - Fundamentals of Biochemistry Credit Hour(s): 3
BMB 7500 - Molecular Biochemistry I Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 6750 - Pathogenic Mechanisms Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 6260 - Immunology Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 6310 - Virology Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 7000 - Microbiology and Immunology Seminar Credit Hour(s): 2
MI 7990 - Microbiology and Immunology Thesis Research Credit Hour(s): 1 to 12
PN 7080 - Thesis and Dissertation Writing Credit Hour(s): 2

Course-based Curriculum

For the course-based option, the Program Director will help the student to select 15 semester hours of required graduate didactic course work (including two writing intensive courses and one microbiology and immunology seminar). The writing courses provide the experiential component of this track. The first writing course focuses on the literature-based research and writing of a review paper on a specialized topic in the fields of microbiology and immunology. The second writing course focuses on the design of a novel research proposal based on the review paper from the first course. The Program Director will also help the student to select a minimum of 15 semester hours of approved elective course work in the life sciences.

Recommended Schedule:

Fall	Spring	Summer
*Year 1*
BMB 6001 Fundamentals of Biochemistry (3 credits) -or- BMB 7500 Molecular Biochemistry I (3 credits)	*MI 6260 Immunology (3 credits)	*MI 7000 Microbiology and Immunology Seminar (2 credits)
*MI 6750 Pathogenic Mechanisms (3 credits)	*MI 6310 Virology (3 credits)	Life Science Elective(s) (4 credits)
*Year 2*
*ANT 6030 Biomedical Review Writing (2 credits)	*ANT 6040 Biomedical Experimental Design (2 credits)	Optional additional Life Science Electives
Life Science Elective(s) (4 credits)	Life Science Elective(s) (4 credits)	Optional additional Life Science Electives
Courses marked with an asterisk (*) are required.

Students may choose between BMB 6001 or BMB 7500 in year 1, depending on their background.

Required Courses:

BMB 6001 - Fundamentals of Biochemistry Credit Hour(s): 3
BMB 7500 - Molecular Biochemistry I Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 6750 - Pathogenic Mechanisms Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 6260 - Immunology Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 6310 - Virology Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 7000 - Microbiology and Immunology Seminar Credit Hour(s): 2
ANT 6030 - Biomedical Review Article Credit Hour(s): 2
ANT 6040 - Biomedical Experimental Design Credit Hour(s): 2

Life Science Electives

Students may choose from the lists below. Other life science courses may be approved by the program director. Some of these electives have prerequisites as indicated in the academic catalog, so students must plan accordingly.

Microbiology and Immunology Electives

MI 6200 - Neuronal-Immune System Cross-Talk in Homeostasis Credit Hour(s): 3
M&I 6340 - Biological Safety Credit Hour(s): 2
MI 6990 - Special Problems Microbiology and Immunology Credit Hour(s): 2 to 5
MI 7000 - Microbiology and Immunology Seminar Credit Hour(s): 2
MI 7770 - Gene Therapy Credit Hour(s): 3
MI 7890 - Research in Microbiology and Immunology Credit Hour(s): 1 to 5

Biological Sciences Electives

BIO 6460 - Advanced Cell Biology Credit Hour(s): 3

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Electives

BMB 7500 - Molecular Biochemistry I Credit Hour(s): 3
BMB 7520 - Molecular Biochemistry II Credit Hour(s): 3
BMB 7530 - Molecular Signalling - Molecular Cell Biology Credit Hour(s): 3
BMB 7600 - Molecular Biology of the Nucleus Credit Hour(s): 3

Physiology and Neuroscience Electives

PN 6300 - Medical Cell Biology and Physiology Credit Hour(s): 3
PN 7050 - Human Physiology Credit Hour(s): 4
PN 7760 - Intercellular Communication Credit Hour(s): 3

Population and Public Health Electives

PPH 7010 - Biostatistics for Health Professionals Credit Hour(s): 3
PPH 7020 - Public Health Epidemiology Credit Hour(s): 3

Pharmacology and Toxicology Electives

PTX 6002 - Introduction to Cell Biology Credit Hour(s): 3
PTX 8070 - Cell Culture Training Credit Hour(s): 1
PTX 8130 - NanoMedicine Credit Hour(s): 3
PTX 8004 - Medical Chemical, Radiological and Nuclear Defense Credit Hour(s): 3
PTX 8005 - Medical Biological Defense Credit Hour(s): 3
PTX 8006 - Case Studies for CBRN Defense Credit Hour(s): 3
Take all three above (PTX 8004/8005/8006) and earn a Certificate in Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Defense