Prospective Students - Graduate

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Areas of Study and Research

The department’s programs deal with a broad diversity of organisms, including bacteria, vascular and nonvascular plants, vertebrate and invertebrate animals, fungi, and protists. Concentrated fields of study include, behavior, ecology, genetics, morphology, and systematics. Research programs have relevance for global change, conservation biology, and revealing fundamental mechanisms underlying the structural and functional adaptations of organisms.

Degrees Offered

MA
The MA 1 requires 30 semester hours of graduate-level course work, and a thesis defense. The MA 2 requires 30 course hours and no thesis. There is no foreign language requirement.

PhD
Requires 30 course work hours, 30 hours of dissertation credit and two semesters of teaching, a comprehensive exam and a dissertation defense. There is no foreign language requirement.

Admission

Graduate School Minimum Admissions Standards
Individual graduate departments may have additional or more restrictive standards by which they evaluate graduate applicants. However, the Graduate School at CU-Boulder has established minimum standards for graduate admission. Applicants must:

1. Hold a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university, or have done work equivalent to that required for such a degree.
   
2. Show promise of ability to pursue advanced study and research, as judged by the student’s scholastic record.
   
3. Have adequate preparation to enter graduate study in the chosen field.
   
4. Have at least a 2.75 (2.00=C) undergraduate grade point average. Note: Applicants who cannot meet this undergraduate standard may still secure regular admission if they have completed 9 semester hours of relevant graduate course work with at least a 3.25 average.
   

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Admissions Requirements
Applicants must:

1. Hold a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university in biology or related sciences, or have done work equivalent to that required for such a degree.
2. Have an undergraduate grade point average of at least 3.00.
3. Provide GRE scores for the general test.
4. Complete the two-page EBIO department online application, and send to the department at the address below.
5. Submit three letters of recommendation.
6. Submit two official transcripts from each college and university attended. Transcripts cannot have "unofficial" or "student copy" noted on them. It is preferable that applicants arrange to have their transcripts sent directly to the EBIO department from their university records office.
7. Contact potential faculty advisor(s) before the application deadline. Our admission policy depends heavily upon faculty advocacy (admission depends upon a faculty member requesting that an applicant be admitted to our graduate program.)

Minimum Standards for Applicants
GRE and GPA statistics for the top 75 percent of students admitted in fall 2009: mean undegraduate GPA was 3.50; mean GRE scores were above the 70th percentile in all categories. Admission is dependent on faculty sponsorship.

Financial Support Available
The EBIO department only admits those students to whom it can offer support through teaching assistantships, research assistantships and fellowships, unless the student is enrolled in the MA 2, nonthesis program (in which case, no support is guaranteed).

Application Information and Deadlines   Fall admission Yes Application deadline December 31 International application deadline December 1 Financial assistance application deadline N/A   Spring admission No   Summer admission No

Contact Information

University of Colorado at Boulder
Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Graduate Program Coordinator
Ramaley N125A
334 UCB
Boulder, CO 80309-0334
Phone: 303-492-7654
Fax: 303-492-8699
Website: www.Colorado.EDU/eeb
E-mail: EBIOgrad@colorado.edu