Graduate Education (MS & PhD) at MSU CVM
A number of graduate programs are available through the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine, providing advanced educational opportunities for students in a broad range of biomedical and veterinary sciences. Students may pursue a MS or PhD in Veterinary and Biomedical Science (VBMS) or a PhD in Environmental Toxicology (ENVT). The goal of the VBMS and ENVT programs is to train the next generation of scientists and educators who will be leaders in biomedical and veterinary research and education.
Faculty in CVM’s Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, Department of Clinical Sciences and Department of Pathobiology & Population Medicine lead each student’s graduate education. Involvement in ongoing research projects conducted by the faculty is an important part of each of these degree programs.
MS – Veterinary and Biomedical Science (MS-VBMS)
Concentrations in the following areas:
Population Medicine Non-Thesis (PMNT)
Requires: 35 hours of coursework
Population Medicine Thesis (POPM)
Requires: 25 hours of coursework + 6 hours research
Population Medicine (POPM)
Requires: See general requirements above. Coursework must include CVM 8333 Food Safety, CVM 8513 Applied Epidemiology, CvM 8503 Epidemiology and Biostatistics.
Veterinary Medical Research (VMRC)-default
Requires: 24 hours of coursework including 1 seminar and 1 statistics + 6 hrs research
Computational Biology (VCBC)
Requires: 24 hours of coursework including 1 seminar, 1 statistics, BCH/PSS 8653 Genomes and Genomics, CSE 6613 Bio-computing, CSE 6623 Computational Biology + 6 hrs research
Infectious Diseases (VIDC)
Requires: 24 hours of coursework including 1 seminar, 1 statistics, CVM 8303 Advanced Immunology, BCH 6013 Principles of Biochemistry or BCH 6713 Molecular Biology + 6 hrs research
Toxicology (VTOX)
Requires: 24 hours of coursework including 1 seminar, 1 statistics, CVM 8543 Mechanisms Toxic Action and CVM 6513 Environmental Toxicology + 6 hours research
PhD – Veterinary and Biomedical Science (PhD-VBMS)
Concentrations in the following areas:
General CVM PhD Requirements
All PhD programs require 60 hours beyond the MS degree or 90 hours beyond the B.S. degree. Students with a MS are required to take at least 20 hours of research, 3 seminar courses, and two statistics courses. The remaining 31 hours can be met by a combination of graduate coursework and research/dissertation (CVM 9000) as approved by the student’s doctoral committee.
Students with a BS degree admitted without a MS are required to take a minimum of 24 hours of graduate coursework, at least 20 hours of research, three seminar courses, and two statistics courses. The remaining 46 hours of credit can be met by a combination of graduate coursework and research/dissertation (CVM 9000) as approved by the student’s doctoral committee.
Veterinary Medical Research (VMRC)
Default concentration. See general requirements above.
Computational Biology (VCBC)
See general requirements above. Coursework must include BCH/PSS 8653 Genomes and Genomics, CSE 6613 Biocomputing, and CSE 4623/6623 Computational Biology.
Infectious Diseases (VIDC)
See general requirements. Coursework must include CVM 8303 Advanced Immunology, BCH 6013 Principles of Biochemistry or BCH 6713 Molecular Biology.
Application and Admission to the Program
Students pursuing admission to one of the MS or PhD programs in CVM must complete all admission requirements of the MSU Office of Graduate Studies (OGS). From the MSU Office of Graduate Studies page, students should click on “Apply Online Now” to be directed to the MSU Graduate Admission Online Application site.
In addition to the MSU OGS application, the CVM Graduate Faculty would like to evaluate prospective student’s research interests using the CVM Graduate Student – Background and Interest Form. Students interested in the CVM graduate program should complete the form and submit to the CVM ORGS Office by emailing the form to Tia Perkins at tia.perkins@msstate.edu. This form will be used to evaluate the student’s research interests and place students within the appropriate research program when admitted to the CVM Graduate Program. The form is also used to determine/award available graduate research assistantships/grants.
If you have additional questions or need assistance concerning CVM graduate education, please call 662-325-1417.
MSU 2024-2025 Graduate Academic Catalog
DVM-PhD & DVM-MS Dual Degree
In addition to the traditional MS and PhD programs in the College, there is a path within the DVM program in which students may pursue a DVM-PhD or DVM-MS Dual Degree.
A student in our DVM professional curriculum can simultaneously pursue the MS or PhD degree while working toward completion of the DVM degree. Students wishing to pursue the DVM and a graduate degree simultaneously are carefully screened for admission because of the rigorous requirements and time commitments necessary to work on two degrees simultaneously. Eighteen hours of graduate credit course work can be used as electives for the DVM degree.
DVM-MS
A student wishing to obtain a MS while working on his/her DVM degree must be officially admitted to the MSU Graduate School. Students seeking a MS degree can choose a thesis or non-thesis option. Credit hour requirements for either option range from 35 to 40 hours. A student choosing the thesis option must complete and defend a research project as part of his/her comprehensive final exam. Students in the non-thesis option must take a qualifying exam and a final comprehensive exam. A student could be awarded the MS degree at the same time he/she receives the DVM. In some cases, the MS degree is awarded 6 to 9 months after the DVM degree has been awarded. Students pursuing the MS degree in Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences can emphasize or focus on a commodity (beef, dairy, poultry, aquaculture) or specialize in a scientific discipline such as bacteriology, parasitology, virology, immunology, bioinformatics or epidemiology, to name a few.
DVM-PhD
The simultaneous pursuit of a DVM and PhD degree requires a highly motivated student who can handle a rigorous course load. Students seeking admission to this program go through a two-step interview process. The student is interviewed for admission into the DVM professional education program and the graduate program of the college. A student admitted to the DVM-PhD program starts in the DVM professional education curriculum and begins the PhD during the third and fourth year, and then works full-time to complete the PhD after graduating from the DVM program. Completion of the DVM-PhD program will require at least 7 years in most cases; however, this is shorter in time by 1 to 2 years than if the degrees were pursued separately.
If you have additional questions or need assistance concerning CVM graduate education opportunities, please call Tia Perkins at 662-325-1417 or email tia.perkins@msstate.edu.
