Veterinary Medical Sciences- Veterinary Clinical Sciences, M.S.

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(SVMCS)

The School of Veterinary Medicine offers the M.S. and Ph.D. in veterinary medical sciences with emphasis in clinical sciences. The graduate program of study and research are directed and evaluated by the student’s graduate committee. This committee is composed of at least three members of the graduate faculty. Master’s graduate students must complete a minimum of 30 credit hours of graduate courses, a final examination, and a thesis.

Course requirements:

A minimum of 12 hours of graduate work must be at the 7000-level or higher.
A minimum of 10 hours of course credit must be from VCS courses.
A minimum of 6 hours of research/thesis credit must be completed (only 6 hours counted towards degree).
A maximum of 4 hours of seminar (VCS 7001 ) may be applied toward the M.S. degree.
A maximum 8 hours of special topics (VCS 7003 ) may be applied toward the M.S. degree.
A minimum of 8 hours of non-VCS courses.

The preparation of a thesis is an important element in the program leading to the master’s degree. The master’s thesis should demonstrate capacity for research, originality of thought, and facility in organizing materials. Final acceptance of the master’s thesis rests with a student’s graduate committee.

The thesis must be successfully defended in a final defense and examination. A request for the final examination must be submitted to the Graduate School by the student’s department chair at least three weeks prior to the proposed examination date and by the current semester deadline, if the student is a candidate for a degree (see the academic calendar for all pertinent dates). The examining committee, must have copies of the thesis at least two weeks prior to the final examination. Typically, the final examination is an oral examination following the thesis defense. The thesis defense takes the form of a seminar, open to attendance by any interested parties. Following the seminar, the graduate student and the examination committee will convene and discuss the thesis, asking questions of the graduate student.