D. Requirements for the M.S. degree
1. Minimum Credit Requirements (Plan A with thesis)
The credit requirements for the M.S. degree are listed below.
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Core courses (2 Chosen from CHEM 631, 642, and 650) | 6(a) |
| Other required courses | 9(b) |
| Electives | 5 |
| Graduate Seminar I (CHEM 789) | 1(c) |
| Graduate Seminar II (CHEM 790) | 2 |
| Thesis (CHEM 797) | 6 |
| Teaching College Chem (CHEM 700) | 1 |
| Total Required Credits | 30(d) |
- Minimum Credit Requirements: Students who demonstrate proficiency on the qualifying exam in an area of chemistry may be exempted from taking the corresponding core course; electives will be substituted.
- Required courses are 600- or 700-level formal classroom or laboratory courses approved by the student’s advisory committee.
- For completing Program of Study second semester.
- The Graduate School requires a minimum of 18 credit hours (including thesis) at the 700 level for the M.S. degree.
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Core courses (2 Chosen from CHEM 631, 642, and 650) | 6(a) |
| Other required courses | 15(b) |
| Electives | 6 |
| Graduate Seminar I (CHEM 789) | 1(c) |
| Graduate Seminar II (CHEM 790) | 2 |
| Professional Paper (CHEM 791) | 1 |
| Teaching College Chem (CHEM 700) | 1 |
| Total Required Credits | 32(d) |
- Students who demonstrate proficiency on the qualifying exam in an area of chemistry may be exempted from taking the corresponding core course; electives will be substituted.
- Required courses are 600- or 700-level formal classroom or laboratory courses approved by the student’s advisory committee.
- For completing Program of Study second semester.
- The Graduate School requires a minimum of 18 credit hours at the 700 level for the M.S. degree.
2. Proficiency Exams
All Masters students must pass the Basic Proficiency exams by the end of their first year, as described in section C.
3. Seminar Requirements
All students pursuing an M.S. degree are required to give two seminars and obtain at least a B grade in each. The second should be on the student’s thesis research or Professional Paper for a non-thesis M.S. The student should register for the first seminar no later than the third semester in graduate school. He or she should consult with the faculty member in charge of seminars to get an idea of what is expected and obtain a copy of the “Seminar Guidelines” from the Department office. The final M.S. seminar should be scheduled to coincide with the final oral examination (see D.4).
4. Approval of Thesis and Final Examination
After completion of a thesis, the student is required to present and defend it to his/her Advisory Committee. Consult the University Catalog for information about thesis format, dates of submission, number of required copies, etc. In addition to the electronic copy required by the graduate school, each student shall submit two paper copies suitable for binding (acid-free/20 # bond paper, 1.5” left margins) to the Chemistry Department office. The department will pay for binding the copies for the office and the library. If you wish to have additional copies bound at the same time at your expense, we will try to accommodate that. A draft of the thesis should be given to members of the examining committee prior to final printing so that corrections and suggestions can be incorporated.
The completed, unbound thesis must be submitted to the committee at least one week and preferably two weeks before the final examination. The meeting in which the thesis is discussed also serves as the Final (oral) Examination.
Therefore, the student may be asked questions of a general nature not related to the thesis work; nevertheless, the emphasis is generally on questions related to the thesis. The final M.S. seminar should be scheduled for the same day as the final examination.
Filing your master’s thesis at the Graduate Division is one of the final steps leading to the award of your graduate degree. Your manuscript is a scholarly presentation of the results of the research you conducted. University of Nevada, Reno upholds the tradition that you have an obligation to make your research available to other scholars. This is done when the Graduate School submits your manuscript to the University Library.
Master’s Thesis Filing Guidelines
Master’s Final Review Approval
5. Change from the M.S. to the Ph.D. Program
A student wishing to change from the M.S. to the Ph.D. program must first inform their research advisor of this intention. The research advisor, with the approval of the Chemistry faculty, then initiates the necessary paperwork through the office of the Dean of the Graduate School. Note that this process generally requires re-application to the Graduate School. This includes increasing the size of the Advisory Committee from three to five members.