MSBE Thesis
The Master of Science in Bioengineering Degree requires the completion of required coursework and the successful defense of a research-based thesis. Students entering the M.S. program are required to complete the thesis for award of the degree. The M.S. degree may be pursued on a full-time or part-time basis (see Time Limits for degrees).Students who are admitted to the M.S. thesis program and elect to pursue the Ph.D. degree must reapply to the College of Graduate Studies for the Ph.D. degree. Students admitted to the Ph.D. program may complete the M.S. thesis en route to the Ph.D. or may opt to bypass the writing of the M.S. thesis. Students who successfully defend the M.S. thesis and the Ph.D dissertation will be granted degrees of M.S. and Ph.D, while students that elect to bypass the M.S. thesis will be awarded only the Ph.D. degree. Students who are considering a change in terminal degree from M.S. to Ph.D. must discuss these two options with their research advisor and the Graduate Director. Any request regarding the change of the terminal degree must be approved by the faculty advisor and the Graduate Committee.
Basic Coursework Requirements
础听minimum听辞蹿听30 semester hours听of approved graduate coursework is required for a Master of Science in Bioengineering (MSBE) Thesis degree. All coursework must be听approved by the student's advisor听(or the听Graduate Director听if the permanent advisor has not been selected). Each student must meet the following minimum general coursework requirements:
- Register and attend the weekly Bioengineering Department seminar. Registration and attendance is听mandatory every semester.
- 颁辞尘辫濒别迟别听12听hours of Bioengineering听core听肠辞耻谤蝉别飞辞谤办.
- 颁辞尘辫濒别迟别听3听hours of coursework to satisfy the听mathematics听谤别辩耻颈谤别尘别苍迟.
- 颁辞尘辫濒别迟别听6听hours of听elective听coursework as approved by the advisor to support the research area.
- 颁辞尘辫濒别迟别听9听hours of Bioengineering M.S.听thesis research.
Curriculum
Bioengineering can be broadly classified into the three areas, or subdisciplines, of biomechanics, bioelectronics, and bioprocessing. Much of the important and exciting research in bioengineering is currently occurring at the interface of these areas. Employment opportunities for M.S. graduates are greatest for students trained in one of the subdisciplines with at least familiarity for the other two subdisciplines. As such, we have designed our M.S. curriculum so that students will have proficiency in all three subdisciplines of bioengineering. Elective coursework may be selected to support one or more subdisciplines as needed for completion of the thesis research.
The M.S. coursework and thesis requirements for a full-time student should take approximately 2 years to complete. The curriculum requirements for the M.S. thesis degree are summarized in Table 1. Coursework must be selected to satisfy the hour requirements for each category.
Table 1: Thesis M.S. in Bioengineering (MSBE) curriculum requirements.听The MSBE thesis degree requires a minimum of 30 credit hours distributed among several categories. Courses should be selected that are relevant to the area of research while satisfying the minimum hour requirements within each category.
| Category and Courses | Credit Hours |
| Core听 听听听听BIOE 5200 Physiology for Bioengineers听 听听听听听听听听or听BIOE 6100 Computational Physiology听 听听听听BIOE 5260 Medical Imaging Systems I听 听听听听BIOE 6520 Orthopaedic Biomechanics听 听听听听BIOE 6310 Biochemical Engineering Principles |
12 hours |
| Mathematics听 听听听听MIME 6000 Advanced Engineering Mathematics I |
3 hours |
| Electives听 听听听听no more than 3 hrs Special Topics courses |
6 hours |
| BIOE 6960 Thesis Research | 9 hours |
| BIOE 5930 Bioengineering Seminar | --- |
| Total (minimum) | 30 hours |
The vast majority of students entering the program with a B.S. in Bioengineering will require no remedial coursework. However, students entering with a B.S. degree from another engineering discipline or from the basic sciences may require remedial coursework. Students with non-engineering B.S. degrees may have to complete as many as five (5) prerequisite or remedial courses before registering for the BIOE core courses. Table 2 provides the prerequisite courses that are needed for completion of the core M.S. coursework.
Table 2: Prerequisite courses for the MSBE core courses.
| Biomechanics Core Course:听BIOE 6520 Orthopaedic Biomechanics | |
| 听听听听prerequisites: | CIVE 1150 Engineering Mechanics: Statics听 MIME 2300 Engineering Dynamics听 BIOE 4110/5780 Advanced Biomechanics or equivalent |
| Bioelectrical Core Course:听BIOE 5260 Medical Imaging Systems I | |
| 听听听听prerequisites: | EECS 2300 Electric Circuits |
| Bioprocessing Core Course:听BIOE 6310 Biochemical Engineering Principles | |
| 听听听听prerequisites: | graduate standing |
| Physiology Core Course:听BIOE 6100 Computational Physiology | |
| 听听听听prerequisites: | BIOE 4100/5200 Physiology for Bioengineers or equivalent听 MIME 6000 Advanced Engineering Mathematics I |
| Mathematics Core Course:听MIME 6000 Advanced Engineering Mathematics I | |
| 听听听听prerequisites: | MATH 2860 Elementary Differential Equations or equivalent |
Graduate BIOE courses are rotated so that approximately 6-8 courses are offered yearly. In addition to graduate Bioengineering courses, students may take graduate level courses in other departments and colleges to satisfy the elective credit requirements as well as to gain knowledge needed for the completion of a thesis degree. A sample curriculum for the M.S. degree is given in Table 3.
Table 3: Sample curriculum for the MSBE thesis degree.听Elective and pre-requisite coursework as well as total thesis hours will vary for each student.
| Course | Semester | Category | ||||
| Fall 1 | Spr 1 | Sum 1 | Fall 2 | Spr 2 | ||
| BIOE 5200 Physiology for Bioengineers | 3 | 听 | 听 | 听 | 听 | Core |
| BIOE 5260 Medical Imaging Systems I | 3 | 听 | 听 | 听 | 听 | Core |
| BIOE 6520 Orthopaedic Biomechanics | 听 | 听 | 听 | 听 | 3 | Core |
| BIOE 6310 Biochemical Engineering Principles | 听 | 3 | 听 | 听 | 听 | Core |
| MIME 6000 Advanced Engineering Mathematics I | 3 | 听 | 听 | 听 | 听 | Math |
| BIOE 5780 Advanced Biomechanics | 听 | 听 | 听 | 3 | 听 | Elective |
| BIOE 5/6XXX or other graduate-level course | 听 | 3 | 听 | 听 | 听 | Elective |
| BIOE 6960 Thesis Research | 听 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 6 | Research |
| BIOE 5930 Bioengineering Seminar | R* | R* | 听 | R* | R* | 听 |
| Total hours | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 30+ |
| * Seminar is a no credit course offered Fall and Spring semesters. | ||||||
UT Plan of Study
All MS students must file a听Plan of Study听with the College of Graduate Studies by the beginning of their second year in the program. A student's Plan of Study should be completed in consultation with the faculty advisor. The plan of study must be听TYPED听and include听ONLY听those courses that count toward the 30 hrs required for the degree, even if additional coursework hours are completed. Students are responsible for selecting approved courses that satisfy the curriculum requirements as outlined in Table 1. For each semester, hours listed must be totaled. Future courses should be entered with the expected term to be taken and no grade entered. Completed Plans of Study should be saved electronically in case modifications are required. Completed Plans of Study should be submitted to the Graduate Program Director for approval by听September 15. Modifications to an approved Plan of Study must be submitted on a听Plan of Study modification form听or, if substantial, on a new Plan of Study form to the Graduate Program Director.
M.S. Thesis Committee
After the student is matched with a faculty advisor, the faculty advisor and the student will select an M.S. thesis committee. Students are encouraged to select a thesis committee as early as possible. The thesis committee is composed of at least 3 members of which 2 must be full-time faculty members from the Department of Bioengineering. 听If the third member is not a full-time faculty member in the department, he/she must at least be a member of the UT Graduate Faculty. 听The student's advisor serves as the committee chair unless the advisor is not a full member of the UT Graduate Faculty. The faculty advisor has the final authority and responsibility for guiding the research as appropriate. Other committee members are selected to provide additional guidance and direction for the research project. Students are encouraged to consult with committee members and other members of the faculty as needed during the course of their research.
GRAD Form
Prior to initiating thesis research, each student must complete and file a听GRAD Form听with the College of Graduate Studies. Students must complete this form and receive the required approvals prior to beginning any research for a thesis involving humans, animals, radiation, or biohazardous substances. Federal regulations do not allow retroactive approval. Completion of the GRAD Form indicates that a student's committee has approved both a topic and an approach for the research, and is aware of federal requirements for institutional review of research methods. This form must be signed by the student, research advisor, and thesis committee members.
M.S. Thesis and Thesis Defense
The semester in which a student is expected to complete and defend the thesis, the student must be registered for at least 1 credit hour. In addition, the student must file an听Application for Graduation form听with the College of Graduate Studies.
When the student's research is essentially completed to the satisfaction of the faculty advisor, the student will prepare a final draft of the thesis. Students should obtain guidelines regarding thesis preparation from the College of Graduate Studies and download the听听from the College web site. The thesis should be submitted to the faculty advisor for critical review and evaluation. After the faculty advisor has reviewed the draft thesis, recommended changes, and approved the final text of the document, the student will submit a copy of the thesis to each member of the thesis committee. The thesis committee members must be given听at least two weeks听for the review of the thesis before the thesis defense. The student must coordinate with all of the thesis committee members in scheduling a date and time for the thesis defense.听All members听of the thesis committee must be present at the thesis defense. The student is responsible for reserving the BIOE conference room or other room for the thesis defense. Reservations for the BIOE conference room are made on a first-come, first-serve basis, so reservations should be made at least two weeks in advance of the defense.
The thesis defense is an open and announced public presentation by the student.听Announcement of the thesis defense is a formal procedure and is a requirement for the defense.听A BIOE Announcement of Thesis/Dissertation form must be completed and submitted to the BIOE Secretary and the College of Engineering Office of Graduate Studies听at least two (2) weeks听prior to the scheduled defense. In a situation where intellectual property disclosure is an issue, the thesis defense can be closed to the public by request of the faculty advisor. The announcement of thesis defense is still filed, but with the notation that the defense is closed to the public.
The student must bring the completed BIOE M.S. Thesis Defense Approval form to the defense to be signed by the committee members following a successful defense. The thesis defense itself typically consists of a听30 minute听formal oral presentation by the student, followed by open and closed sessions for questions. In the open question session, all guests attending the defense are invited to ask questions. Following the open question period, all guests will be asked to leave and the committee and student will remain for a closed question period. After all of the committee members have questioned the student in private, the student will be dismissed from the room so the committee can deliberate. The committee will discuss the student's thesis and come to a decision by vote as to whether or not the student has successfully defended the thesis. If the student passes the thesis defense, a听grade will be assigned to the thesis research. If the student does not pass the thesis defense, then the thesis committee, in consultation with the Graduate Director, will decide a course of future action.
A student who successfully passes the thesis defense may be required to change or modify the thesis as requested by members of the thesis committee and the advisor. These corrections must be made by the student and approved by the research advisor. The听unbound original and a copy听of the final thesis must be submitted to the College of Graduate Studies. The student must check with the COGS to ensure that the corrected thesis is received by the graduation deadline for the semester of the defense. In addition,听electronic听copies听of the final thesis must be听given to the Department (one for the advisor and one for the Department library).听
Time Limit
The M.S. degree may be pursued on a full-time or part-time basis. However, students must complete all the requirements for the M.S. degree within听six (6)years from the initial date of registration as a graduate student in the Department.
M.S. Forms Check Sheet
Over the course of the M.S. thesis, several milestones must be achieved. These milestones are typically documented with a specific University or Department form. The specific milestones, forms, and the times for submission of these forms are summarized in Table 4.
Table 4: M.S. Thesis Forms Check Sheet.听The forms listed below must be completed and filed by the appropriate due dates as part of the MSBE degree requirements. All forms are available on-line.
| Form | Due date | Return to |
| BIOE Advisor Selection | End of 1st semester of enrollment | Graduate Program Director |
| UT Plan of Study for the MS Degree | September 15 of the 2nd academic year | Graduate Program Director |
| GRAD form | After advisor selection, prior to initiation of research involving humans, animals, radiation, or biohazardous materials | Graduate Program Director |
| UT Application for Graduation | Beginning of final semester; check the听Registrar's website听for specific dates | College of Graduate Studies |
| Announcement of Thesis/Dissertation | At least two weeks prior to thesis defense | BIOE Secretary |
| College of Engineering MS Thesis Cover Page | Attach to front of completed thesis | |
| M.S. Thesis Defense Approval | Bring to the thesis defense | BIOE Secretary |
| BIOE Graduate Exit Interview Form | Upon completion of thesis degree requirements | BIOE Secretary |
M.S. Graduation
Students must apply for graduation using the听UT Application for Graduation听form. This form must be filed with the Graduate School at or before the beginning of the semester during which the degree requirements are expected to complete.
To receive the MSBE thesis degree, a student must:
- Satisfy the coursework requirements summarized in Table 1.
- Maintain a听3.0/4.0 GPA听in all coursework (see Grade Requirements for Graduation).
- Submit all appropriate degree forms according to Table 4.
- Write and successfully defend the M.S. thesis and make any corrections as required.
- Submit the听unbound original听and听one copy听of the M.S. thesis to the College of Graduate Studies by the graduation deadline for the semester of the defense. Each copy of the thesis must include an听original signed College of Engineering M.S. thesis cover page.
- Have all听PR听and听IN听grades removed from the transcript. The College of Engineering Graduate Office must see a copy of the final thesis before grade change forms will be processed. A copy of the College of Graduate Studies cover page, COE cover page and abstract will be made for the College files to verify that the thesis has been completed.
- Show evidence that results from the research have been submitted for either publication or presentation at a conference.
- Submit an electronic copy of the thesis the faculty advisor.
- Submit听two electronic copies听of the M.S. thesis to the Bioengineering Department: one for the department library and one for the research advisor.
- Additional requirements听as documented by the College of Graduate Studies.
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