The University of Texas at San Antonio
Department of Biology
Contact:
Charles Wilson
Department of Biology
The University of Texas at San Antonio
One UTSA Circle
San Antonio, TX 78249
Telephone: (210) 458-4459
FAX: (210) 458-5658
E-Mail: charles.wilson@utsa.edu
WWW: http://www.bio.utsa.edu
Other Degrees Offered in the Program: Ph.D. in Biology with emphasis in Neurobiology; MS in Biology; MS in Biotechnology with Molecular Neurobiology concentration or Bioprocessing Technology.
Program Established: 1992
Total Number of Faculty: 25
Total Number of Students: 31
US Citizens: 80%
Female: 40%
US Under-represented minorities: 50%
Hispanic Origin: 50%
Total Number of Graduates in the Last Five Years:
8 (new program)
Average Number of Years to Complete the Program: 5-6
Program Description: The Division of Life Sciences offers the Ph.D. degree in biology with an emphasis in neurobiology. Students are supported with a stipend of $17,000 per year plus tuition and fees for five years. Students are required to obtain a minimum of 90 hours of credits and rotate through at least two research laboratories. Upon completion of the required 30 hours of formal classes, the students take a Qualifying Examination, the student proceeds to work full-time on the Dissertation research and writing. Students who graduated from the program have taken approximately 5 to 6 years.
Students in the Masters program can choose between the M.S. in Biology or Biotechnology with molecular neurobiology or bioprocessing technology concentration. Qualified Masters students can apply for support through Teaching and Research Assistantships.
The Division faculty research laboratories offer opportunities to pursue research in molecular and cellular neuroscience, biochemistry, molecular cell biology, enzymology, membrane biology, molecular genetics, protein and nucleic acid structure, developmental biology, tumor biology, aging, molecular virology, medical mircrobiology and endocrinology. The Division possesses state-of-the-art laboratories for the projects mentioned above, with equipment for protein purification, radioimmunoassay, radioreceptorassay, patch clamping, single cell and extracellular recording, stereotaxic recording, optical imaging using voltage-sensitive dyes, neuronal modeling, three-dimensional computer-generated neuronal reconstruction, brain slice preparations, camera lucida drawings, neuroanatomical tract tracing, cell culture, fluorescence-activated cell sorting, fluorescence microscopy, and scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Facilities are available for absorption and fluorescence spectrophotometry, phosphorimagery, 400-MHz FT-NMR spectrometry, FT-IR spectrometry, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, atomic absorption spectrometry, HPLC with photodiodearray detection, ultracentrifugation, DNA cloning and sequencing, peptide and oligonucleotide synthesis, transgenic mice facilities, protein imaging, scintillation and gamma counting.
A new 63,000 sq. ft. Biosciences Research Building, houses about half the research laboratories in the Division, with another new 117,000 sq. ft. Engineering and Biotechnology Building in the planning stages.
Admission Requirements:
How, or Where to Apply:
UTSA Office of Graduate Studies
6900 N. Loop 1604 West
San Antonio, TX 78249
Annual Tuition and Fees Costs: $3,700, included in Doctoral stipend
Approximate Cost of Living Per Year: $13,000-$17,000
Housing Availability and Costs Per Year: good, $600-$650/month
Day-Care Facilities Availability and Costs Per Month: approximately $100/wk.
Stipend/Assistantships and Financial Assistance: All students accepted with Doctoral stipend support of $17,000/year plus tuition and fees.
How to Apply: Consideration automatically done with application for Ph.D. students. Masters students must apply for assistantships, and are normally eligible for financial aid.
Last revised February 2004
http://www.andp.org/programs/graduate/unitedstates/texas/utsa.htm
Directory of Neuroscience Training Programs
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