Research Strengths
The biology graduate faculty has a proven track record in scientific achievement, and continues to excel in competition for extramural research funding. Our programs are funded by the state, through the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station, and by direct grants to our faculty members from the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, American Heart Association, and the American Cancer Society. Areas of strength, which provide research opportunities for our graduate students, can be illustrated by collaborative research funding in such areas as:
Long-Term Ecological Research
The National Science Foundation has continued to support research on the Konza Prairie since 1980. The study is designed to investigate gradual and subtle changes that influence plant and animal populations on the tall grass prairie, the impact of human activities on ecosystem productivity, and variations in ecological processes caused by burning and grazing.
Kansas IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (K-INBRE)
This NIH-funded program's goal is to involve undergraduate in research. The program funds undergraduate training at 9 colleges and universities in the State of Kansas and one in Langston, Okahoma to encourage their participation and possible career choice of biomedical research. At Kansas State University, undergraduate students participate by performing cutting-edge level research with faculty in their research labs. They receive a scholarship to commit 450 hrs. each year toward research. This hands-on opportunity provides a significant edge to students interested in pursuing Ph.D. degrees in biomedical fields.
Kansas Lipidomics Research Center
The National Science Foundation EPSCoR is funding the Kansas Lipidomics Research Center which is a collaborative venture of scientists in the Division of Biology, in the Department of Biochemistry, and at the University of Kansas. The Center performs comprehensive, quantitative profiling of lipid molecular species with high sample throughput, using mass spectrometric technologies. The levels of lipid metabolites in genomically altered and physiologically manipulated organisms are investigated to identify the functions of genes that encode proteins involved in lipid metabolism. The Center is also dedicated to improving lipid analytical technologies, to promoting collaborative research among lipid scientists, and to providing training opportunities for post doctoral, graduate, and undergraduate students. More information is available at http://www.k-state.edu/lipid/lipidomics.
Ecological Genomics
This program is funded by the National Science Foundation EPSCoR and is an interdisciplinary research initiative aimed at exploring the genetic basis for organismal responses to the environment. Students involved in the program will engage in an interdisciplinary program of study and work with faculty in ecology and molecular biology/genetics to employ functional genomic techniques to probe the interface between ecology and genetics. More information about the Kansas Ecological Genomics collaborative research groups can be found at http://www.ksu.edu/ecogen.
Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology
This graduate training program includes over 20 faculty who share common interests in molecular, cellular and developmental biology. Students who are members of MCDB labs conduct lab rotations during their first year, take a common set of core courses, and participate in a weekly research forum. For more information see http://www.ksu.edu/mcdb.
Facilities
The research-oriented graduate training activities of the biology graduate faculty are performed in four on-campus sites--Ackert Hall, Bushnell Hall, Chalmers Hall, and Leasure Hall--as well as at the off-campus site of the Konza Prairie Biological Station.
Ackert Hall
With some 130,000 square feet, Ackert Hall is the main biology facility. Ackert Hall provides modern well-equipped laboratories for teaching and research, and, in addition, contains the division offices, a three-section rooftop greenhouse, an electronics shop, a research supply storeroom, and small animal rooms. Equipment available for research includes ultracentrifuges, beta and gamma counting systems, high performance liquid chromatography systems, growth chambers, a research microscope facility (with confocal and transmission electron microscope plus image processing capabilities), mass spectroscopy, and glassware cleaning and sterilizing facilities.
Bushnell Hall
Graduate faculty members with an interest in environmentally oriented studies have offices and laboratory space in Bushnell Hall. Included in this building are the K-State Herbarium, three environmental chambers, dark rooms, and tanks for fish culture ranging from 100- to 2,000-liter capacity. Extensive computing and imaging facilities support the climatology and remote sensing activities
Chalmers Hall
Chalmers Hall was completed in November 2002 and is attached to Ackert Hall. This modern facility houses ten Division of Biology faculty and research programs in 12,300 square feet on the second floor of the building. Some of the research areas include: Bioinformatics, Ecological Genomics, and Kansas Biomedical Research Infrastructure Development (K-BRIN).
Leasure Hall
Leasure Hall is used to house the Kansas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. This unit is a partnership of the U.S. Department of the Interior, Kansas State University, the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, and the Wildlife Management Institute. Three U.S. Department of the Interior employees, as Division of Biology adjunct graduate faculty members, coordinate fisheries and wildlife research programs with state and university participation.
Konza Prairie Biological Station
Approximately 8,616 acres of native tall grass prairie has been set aside as a unique outdoor laboratory for long-term research. This land was purchased by the Nature Conservancy with funds provided by Katharine Ordway. Land management is designed to provide experimental manipulations, in order to understand patterns and processes in maintaining the prairie ecology.
Application Procedure to the Graduate Program
Before submitting an application, please take a few minutes to learn about the research programs in Biology at KSU. Your career goals will be better met if you chose a research topic that is of interest to you, but it is also important that this research topic is among the areas of expertise of our current research faculty. For more detailed information on individual research, click on individual faculty names on the Research Programs page.
Deadlines for Receipt of Completed Applications (NOTE: These application deadlines may not correspond to those found on the graduate school web pages, but these are the official deadlines for the KSU Biology Division. If you are applying to the Biology Division graduate program, please ignore the deadlines on the KSU Graduate School web pages and use the deadlines listed below.)
- For Fall (August) admission: Applications should be received by December 15
- For Spring (January) admission: Applications should be received by August 1
Applications for admission can be considered at other times of the year if funds are available; this depends on acceptance of offers, funding of new grants, and other parameters which cannot be predicted on an annual basis. In order for late (or early) applications to be considered, however, they MUST BE COMPLETE. See below for information on what constitutes a complete application.
We do not have separate admission "quotas" for foreign and domestic students. We will choose the best qualified applicants, whether foreign or domestic, from the applicant pool for each admission round.
Application for Assistantship & Financial Support
Separate application for assistantship is NOT required; we offer full financial support to all students whom we admit. Currently we offer a support package (stipend plus tuition) of $24,869 per calendar year. We provide this full financial support, via either a teaching or research assistantship, for all students whom we accept. This support is the same for both foreign and domestic students, and is offered for the duration of the graduate education period, contingent upon reasonable progress toward the degree. In other words, if you are accepted for admission into the program, you will be supported as long as you make reasonable progress toward a degree. ALL graduate students are eligible for in-state tuition and fees.
Application Materials
The following materials are required for a completed application:
- A $30 application fee ($55 for international students); credit card, personal check drawn on a US bank, cashier's check or postal money order made out to: Kansas State University Graduate School.
- Graduate school application form, completed. This form is available on the web in various formats, just click here. If you cannot use the online application forms, you can request that the paper versions be mailed to you. Send an email with your postal address to our Admissions secretary, Diane Ukena.
- Statement of aims and objectives (see below for guidelines)
- Three Letters of recommendation. There is no required form or format; please instruct your referees to simply submit a letter on official letterhead stationery to Graduate Affairs Committee, Biology Division, Ackert Hall, Kansas State University, Manhattan KS 66506-4901. We prefer that referees send letters directly to us; if letters are to be included in a total application packet, they should be in signed and sealed envelopes.
- Official transcripts, one copy of each
- Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores (scores from both computer-based and paper versions are accepted) The institution code for KSU is R6334; the department code for the Biology Division is 0203. Only the general GRE is REQUIRED. Subject exams are NOT required, but if you have already taken these please feel free to send in your scores. This can provide the admissions committee with additional information about a candidate. Information about the GRE can be obtained from the Educational Testing Service (ETS) at:
Graduate Record Examination, ETS
Box 955
Princeton, NJ 08541
(609) 771-7670
or contact the ETS on the WWW at http://www.ets.org/ for more information. (NOTE: The KSU Biology program does not have a numerical cut-off for GRE performance. We have found that GRE scores are not a good sole predictor for success in graduate school, i.e. some students with excellent GRE scores do not perform well in graduate research, and others with marginal GRE scores turn out to be excellent researchers. For that reason we do not have a minimum required score for the GRE, but merely use the GRE score as one parameter in our admission decisions.)
- Additional requirements for students who are not US citizens or residents.
- Application/processing feeof $55; cashier's check, postal money order, credit card, or personal check from a US bank, made out to: Kansas State University Graduate School.
- Statement of financial support: This document is required by our graduate school, but is actually not relevant for applications to our program , since we offer full financial support to all who are admitted, and we don't admit anyone whom we cannot support. So please just read and sign the first part of this document, and ignore the rest.
- Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) minimum score of 600 on paper based test, 250 on the computerized test and 100 on the internet, required by KSU Graduate School (institution code for KSU is 6334, department code is 35). Additional information about this test, and the Test of Spoken English (TSE) can be found here.
For more information about graduate studies at KSU, see the Graduate School Home Page.
Send Application Materials to
Division of Biology
116 Ackert Hall
Kansas State University
Manhattan KS 66506-4901
Review Procedures
- Due to the large number of applications which we receive, we do not routinely inform applicants when their application packets are received, or when they are completed. If you wish to inquire about the status of your application, please email our admissions secretary, Diane Ukena (dukena@ksu.edu), and she will make sure that your request is answered.
- Completed applications are reviewed by a committee (see Graduate Affairs Committee Tab) of five (5) to seven (7) faculty, representing the areas of physiology; genetics, developmental and cell biology; microbiology and immunology; systematics and ecology; and virology and oncology. Reviews consist of evaluations of all items listed as required. We have no minimum test scores for the GRE; this standardized test is only one of the parameters we use for evaluation of applications. Prior research experience, as indicated by publications in print or in press, or in letters of recommendation, is an important consideration in our evaluation as well. Decisions are made in favor of those applicants whose credentials are believed to indicate the most promise for becoming successful graduate students.
- Incoming graduate students may be admitted to M.S in Biology or Ph.D. Degree programs in Biology or Microbiology. Admissions to specific research programs/laboratories within Biology or Microbiology are not made.
- Admissions are made only through the recommendation of the Director of the Division of Biology to the Dean of the Graduate School.
Statement of Personal Experiences and Goals
In the completion of the statement of aims and objectives the following questions may be of help to you. Use them as you wish.
- How well do you believe your preparation has been in the mastery of basic subject material and laboratory or field procedures and techniques in Biology and/or Microbiology? Give examples to illustrate your evaluation.
- Have you done any original research? Are the results published? If so, provide citation(s).
- How well do you believe your preparation has been in obtaining a broad background in supporting areas such as chemistry, biochemistry, mathematics, statistics and/or other areas valuable to your particular field of interest?
- Have you consulted with faculty advisors concerning the personal demands of graduate school imposed upon you as an individual and your family, should you be married? Have you considered any problems, financial, health, marital, or otherwise, that would preclude your giving predominant attention to graduate study?
- How important is the advanced degree that you seek to the completion of a successful career in the field of your interest? What ultimate objectives do you have as career goals?
- Do you have any "on-the-job" experience in the field of your interest or related areas? Give examples of things that you have done that you judge to be original and creative and that demonstrate leadership.
If you cannot use the online application forms, you can request that the paper versions be mailed to you. Send an email with your postal address to our Admissions secretary, Diane Ukena. You may also contact her if you want to know if your application has been received and if it is complete.
If you have general questions about graduate study at KSU, please contact the KSU Graduate School.
Graduate Affairs Committee
The Graduate Affairs Committee includes members from each of the major research sections of the Biology Division, as well as a student representative. This committee is responsible for admissions to our research program, oversight of graduate student progress, and acts as a liaison between the KSU Graduate School and the Biology graduate students.
Other major functions of the GAC include:
- Coordination of graduate student orientation and the Konza potluck picnic at the start of fall semester
- Coordination of the Biology Research Forum during the spring semester
- Annual selection of the winner of the Michael Scott Watkins award, given to an an outstanding graduate student instructor
In collaboration with members of the Biology Graduate Student Association, we have also prepared a brief document outlining graduate students expectations and responsibilities. You can also obtain electronic versions of various forms and other documents that pertain to graduate student affairs by clicking here.
