University of Maryland, Baltimore County

The hallmark of the Applied Molecular Biology Masters program is a two-semester, seven-credit laboratory course that teaches students the state-of-the-art techniques of molecular biology in the context of an independent research project. In addition, the students take four lecture courses and prepare a scholarly paper on their research project. UMBC undergraduates may count up to twelve credits, i.e., three of the lecture courses, toward both degrees. The program not only prepares its graduates to become middle-level researchers in the biotechnology industry, but it also provides excellent training for students intending to enter a Ph.D. program after graduation.