Graduate Studies in Biology |
| Graduate degree programs in the Department of Biology at the University of South Dakota include the M.S. (thesis), M.A. (non-thesis), and Ph.D. General research interests of faculty encompass the areas of ecology, physiology, cell biology, and evolution. Particular strengths of the department are conservation biology, environmental stress physiology, neuroscience, and population and evolutionary biology. The Ph.D. program is held jointly with South Dakota State University, expanding the opportunities for research collaboration and coursework. The Department of Biology is one of the largest departments in the College of Arts and Science and consists of 12 full-time, tenured (or tenure-track) faculty. |
| The University of South Dakota is one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the Dakotas, having received its authorization from the first territorial legislature in 1862. About 7,000 students attend the university, which is located in the city of Vermillion. Vermillion, a community of ~10,000 people, is located within an hour of the larger cities of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Sioux City, Iowa. Within a few hours drive of USD are the fascinating ecosystems associated with the Badlands and Black Hills. |
| The longest of the remaining undammed and unchannelized portions of the Missouri River (~60 miles) can be found within a few miles of campus, and it provides numerous research and recreational opportunities. The Loess Hills (Iowa) are located within 25 miles of Vermillion and represent a unique geological formation with indigenous flora. |
| The University of South Dakota is considered the "flagship" of the state's higher education system and, along with the College of Arts and Sciences, houses the School of Medicine and School of Law, among others. The university is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools to offer master's, doctoral, and specialist degree programs. The university is also the only institution in South Dakota to be classified nationally as a Doctoral University I institution by the Carnegie Foundation. |
| The department provides a limited number of research and teaching assistantships to graduate students to support them while they carry out their research toward completion of a master's thesis or doctoral dissertation. The number of assistantships in any year varies depending on turnover of existing graduate students, faculty needs, and departmental priorities. Presently, a Graduate Teaching Assistantship provides $11,000 per year for a master's student and $13,000 per year for a doctoral student, along with a two-thirds waiver of tuition. Graduate Research Assistantships provide $17,000 and a two-thirds waiver of tuition. These assistantships are awarded on a competitive basis and students receiving teaching assistantships generally participate in the laboratory sessions for the freshman biology courses. Occasionally through a research grant or some other source, faculty may have additional funds for a Research Assistantship. Prospective students are encouraged to contact faculty with interests similar to their own to determine possible availability of such funding. |
| Students may apply for admission to the graduate program and be accepted at any time during the year. However, decisions on Teaching Assistantship availability are only made once a year in March. Thus, students should have their complete application packages submitted by March 15th to be considered for an assistantship for that fall semester. |
| Students applying for admission to the M.S. or Ph.D. programs will need to submit both General and Subject (Biology) Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores with their applications. These are not required for the M.A. (non-thesis) program. Along with the application, students need to provide three letters of recommendation and official copies of all transcripts. Students applying from outside the country also must demonstrate proficiency in English and provide a statement of financial support. All necessary forms for the application process will be provided on request from the Department of Biology or you may access them here. |
| Acceptance into the department is based on a combination of cumulative GPA and letters of recommendation, and for thesis degrees, GRE scores and the applicant's potential for carrying out independent research. Usually only applicants with a GPA of 3.0 or better are considered. |
| For additional information, interested students can contact the department directly at: |
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Department of Biology University of South Dakota 414 East Clark Street Vermillion, SD 57069 or phone: (605) 677-5211 |
| or visit our web page at http://www.usd.edu/biol/ |
| or e-mail the Director of Graduate Studies in Biology. |
| Individual faculty may reached by email at the following addresses: |
Find Biology Graduate Students from the past
Current Biology Department Ph.D. students and their dissertation titles
| NAME | TITLE | |
| Jay Carlisle | Habitat Use & Stopover Biology of Passerine Migrants in Southwestern Idaho | E-mail Jay |
| Patricia Crotwell | Developmental Patterning Mechanisms Underlying Skeletal Segmentation in the Zebrafish, Danio rerio | E-mail Tricia |
| Alf Haukenes | Assessing the Impact of Chronic Social Stress on the Responses of the Teleost and Chondrostean Fishes to Subsequent Immune Challenge | E-mail Alf |
| Jennifer Jenkins | Limits and constraints of torpor in thirteen-lined ground squirrels | E-mail Jennifer |
| Wayne Korzan | Visual and Pharmacological Experiments of the Post Orbital Eyespot During Aggressive Interactions of Anolis carolinensis | E-mail Wayne |
| Eric T. Liknes | Mechanisms of Winter Acclimatization in Three Species of Small, Temperate Resident Passerines | E-mail Eric |
| Bing Mo | Integrin-like proteins in pea embryo axes - identification,localization and the possible role in desiccation tolerance of pea seeds | E-mail Bing |
| Jodie Ramsay | Ultrastructure of pea embryo cells(Pisum sativum L. cv. Alaska) at various stages of germination and the associated loss of desiccation tolerance | E-mail Jodie |
Current Biology Department M.S students and their thesis titles
| NAME | TITLE | |
| Nathan Bird | Morphological Development of the Axial Skeleton in the Zebrafish, Danio rerio | E-mail Nathan |
| Dale Gentry | Species Richness and Nesting Success of Neotropical Migrants in Natural and Anthropogenic Woodlands | E-mail Dale |
| Joe Glasford | Conservation Genetics of the Dakota Skipper (Hesperia dacotae) | E-mail Joe |
| Sarah Helm | RAPD variation in the endangered plant Sibara filifolia (Brassicaceae) | E-mail Sarah |
| Daniel James | Seasonal Movements and Habitat Use of Feral Brown Trout Within an Urbanized Watershed | E-mail Daniel |
| Holly Miner | The synergistic effects of progesterone ad corticotropin in the central nucleus of the amygdala of the female rat brain | E-mail Holly |
| Tim Moriarty | A Study of Maize Chloroplast Protein Synthesis Elongation Factor (EF-Tu) and Thermotolerance: Heterologous Expression in E. coli Increases Viability Under Heat Stress | E-mail Tim |
| Kristie Trudeau | The Effects of Sylvatic Plague and Geographic Isolation on Genetic Variablility in Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs in Central Montana | E-mail Kristie |
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