Graduate Program

NOTE: there have been recent revisions of these pages. Please review what is current as of Aug 20, 2007

This document contains general information about our graduate program, the application process, and admissions criteria. Additional information can be obtained from the Graduate School of the University of Florida.

Description of Department

The Department of Zoology offers graduate programs leading to the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees, with research specializations that include ecology, evolution, behavior, development, comparative and environmental physiology, genetics, and phylogenetics. We work in a variety of terrestrial and aquatic environments, in diverse geographic regions (tropics through subpolar), and on a range of organisms (including plants). Furthermore our program involves laboratory and field based studies as well as theoretical work in our areas of expertise.

Our faculty and students value integrative research (e.g., by crossing levels of organization from gene expression to species interactions), linking theory with data (through use of statistical and mathematical tools), using natural history to guide the development and testing of rigorous conceptual frameworks. Many of our faculty also are interested in the application and testing of basic science in applied contexts (e.g., conservation biology, ecotoxicology, human health). Our approach is highlighted through our first year graduate course, Integrative Principles. See the main Zoology web page for general information about our program and for a list of faculty research interests and publications for information about faculty and their research areas. Also see the list of graduate courses that are offered in Zoology.

The Department is housed in Bartram and Carr Halls, adjacent to the Florida Museum of Natural History, which houses extensive systematic and fossil collections. Supporting facilities include the Marston Science Library, the Health Science Center Library, the Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research, the Center for Structural Biology, the University of Florida Sea Horse Key Marine Laboratory (near Cedar Key on the Gulf of Mexico), the C.V. Whitney Marine Laboratory on the Atlantic Ocean near St. Augustine, and the Archie Carr Sea Turtle Center (Click here for more information on Centers within Zoology).

A variety of other departments and programs also add to opportunities available to our students (e.g., the Departments of Botany, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, Entomology and Nematology, the School of Natural Resources and the Environment, the College of Veterinary Medicine, the Health Science Center, the McKnight Brain Institute, the UF Genetics Institute, the Institute for Emerging Pathogens, the Center for Latin American Studies and its Tropical Conservation and Development (TCD) Program, Land Use and Environmental Change Institute.

We accept students in four capacities:

1. PhD program I -- Students who already have a MS in Zoology (or related areas) are admitted directly into the PhD program and will be expected to conduct original research culminating in a dissertation. We expect student to complete the PhD in 5 years.

2. PhD program II -- Students admitted to this program do not have a MS in hand, but have a record indicative of likely success in the PhD program (i.e., timely completion of original research leading to the defense of a dissertation). We expect these students to complete the PhD within 6 years.

3. MS -- Students admitted to this program, complete a MS by conducting original research. We expect students to complete this program in 2 years. These students must re-apply to the PhD program if they want to continue in our program.

4. MST -- We also offer a Masters in Science Teaching (a joint program with the College of Education) for students interested in teaching science in public schools.

Admissions Standards(GPA; GRE)

The Graduate School requires a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university and a grade point average (GPA) for the last 2 years of undergraduate studies of B (3.0/4.0) or higher for admission to the University of Florida. In addition, applicants must obtain a combined score of >1000 on the verbal and quantitative sections of the general Graduate Record Exam (GRE). Exceptions to the above requirements require recommendation by the department and approval by the Dean of the Graduate School.

The standards for admission to the Department of Zoology are higher, but vary from year to year depending on the level of competition and upon other aspects of an applicant’s record (GRE and GPA are not more important than other aspects of your application). As a general guide, successful applicants usually have combined verbal and quantitative GRE scores of >1200 and GPA of >3.5 (although exceptions are not uncommon).

Please arrange to take the GRE, so that we can be assured of having your scores no later than early January. The GRE subject test in Biology is not required for application to our program. If you are not a U.S. citizen or do not hold a U.S. Permanent Resident Visa you must apply as an international student for admission to the graduate program. Additional information can be obtained from the International Center.

Course Requirements

Our program is designed to give students great flexibility in designing programs well suited to their own professional goals. Entering graduate students are expected to have at least basic training in biology, physical sciences, and mathematics sufficient to support graduate-level course work and research. The minimum requirements that must be met before the end of any degree (and thus can be met with coursework during the course of study here if not met prior to joining our program) include a course in at least 3 of the following 5 areas (Genetics; Physiology; Ecology or Behavior; Evolution or Morphology; and Cell Biology or Development). Also, 1 year of physical sciences or mathematics is required. Each applicant's course work and research experience will be evaluated in light of the interests and plans described by the applicant in his/her Research Statement. This evaluation is a major part of the admissions decision process.

All entering students are expected to take the Graduate Orientation Seminar (1 credit) their first semester. In addition all PhD students are required, and MS students (and PhD students admitted through other programs but supervised by Zoology faculty) are recommended, to take Integrative Principles (Part I the first term and Part II the second term; 4 credits and 2 credits, respectively) during their first year.

The Orientation Seminar is a course designed to enhance graduate education in our department by providing incoming students with a series of professional tools, start students thinking about issues that will be important throughout their career, and to introduce the incoming students to our faculty.

The goal of the Integrative Principles course is to introduce incoming students to the fundamental principles of ecology, evolution, and comparative biology, as reflected in the research interests in this department. The course is designed to promote integrative approaches to biology, by emphasizing commonalities and differences among processes and systems and by concentrating on biological principles, concepts, approaches, and ways of thinking that can span a variety of taxa, regions, or specific phenomena. The course is team taught by many of the faculty in our department.

With the exception of these courses, there are no department-wide specific course requirements for the M.S. or Ph.D. degrees in Zoology. Each graduate student will follow an individual program of courses and requirements developed in consultation with his/her major professor and supervisory committee.

Financial Support

The Department of Zoology will provide teaching assistantships to all students who do not receive fellowship support or research assistantships for the expected duration of the program, assuming the student continues to make timely and satisfactory progress in the program. Currently, stipend levels for 1/3 - 1/2 time assistantships over the 9 month academic year range between ~$12,000 and $17,000 and include a tuition waiver and health insurance. There is the possibility of summer teaching assistantships, although these are not guaranteed.

Prospective advisors should be contacted to determine the availability of research assistantships from grant funds. The University of Florida offers graduate fellowships (Alumni Fellowships and Grinter Fellowships for doctoral students; Graduate Minority Fellowships for master's and doctoral students; see also UF Graduate Fellowship Initiative). The Lucy Dickinson Graduate Fellowship in Vertebrate Paleontology is offered through the Florida Museum of Natural History. McKnight Doctoral Fellowships are provided to African-American students by the Florida Education Fund (for further information and application forms, contact the FEF, 201 E. Kennedy Blvd., Suite 1525, Tampa FL 33602, (813) 272-2772; application deadline January 15).

Applicants are encouraged to apply for fellowships from other sources, such as the National Science Foundation and EPA before application to the University of Florida (additional listings).

The Department expects that MS students will be supported for 2 years and that PhD students will be supported for 5 (if they come with a MS degree) or 6 years. Additional support is available on an ad-hoc basis, but cannot be guaranteed. To date, no student has gone without support within this timeframe. All appointments are contingent on satisfactory progress in the program.