Microbiology & Immunology

M.Sc, Ph.D

The graduate program in Microbiology & Immunology at Queen’s University offers high quality, intensive programs of study leading to the Master of Science (M.Sc.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees. Both are research degrees designed to provide you with an advanced level of knowledge and expertise in molecular microbial pathogenesis, which can include aspects of bacterial/viral physiology, genomics, proteomics, cellular microbiology and biotechnology.

We will guide you toward becoming a competent, independent scientist with career opportunities in research and teaching. Your education will be enhanced by the strong ties our department enjoys with groups in local public health and hospital laboratories and allied University departments.

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"Because our program is smaller than in most universities, I interact daily with almost all of the faculty. I can show them results as soon as I get them and get feedback immediately. We get so much supervision and so much personal attention. It’s just what you need when you’re starting out. At bigger schools, you have a weekly meeting with your supervisor. My supervisor is in the lab with me several hours a day, every day."

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Degrees Offered / Length of Program

• M.Sc.:2 years, full time
  
• Mini-masters (fast track to Ph.D.):1 year – 1.5 years
  
• Ph.D.: 4 years, full time

Method of Completion

• M.Sc.: Course work, research and thesis with defence
  
• Ph.D.: Research thesis with defence. Some course work may be required

Degree Level Expectations & Learning Outcomes

M.Sc - view this information as a PDF (107KB)

PhD - view this information as a PDF (104KB)

Supervisors and Fields of Study

Being accepted into the program is dependent upon a supervisor having the space and resources to support your graduate work. We recommend that you contact potential supervisors in advance of applying. Please see the department website for full details.

Fields of study:

• Virology & Cellular Biology: Bruce Banfield, Eric B. Carstens, Katrina Gee, Anna Majury, Leda Raptis, Jorge Martinez-Cajas, Wendy Wobeser
• Host Immune Responses: Sam Basta, Katrina Gee, Myron Szewczuk, Anne Croy, Anne Ellis, Bruce E. Elliott, Anna Majury
• Bacterial Pathogenesis & Physiology: Ken F. Jarrell, Nancy L. Martin, R. Keith Poole, Virginia Walker, Elaine O. Petrof, Wendy Wobeser, Heather Onyett, Dick E. Zoutman, Andrew Daugulis, Anna Majury

Employment Opportunities

Graduates from our programs have found work in: research laboratories at universities, government agencies, and medical centres; pharmaceutical, chemical companies, or biotechnology firms; hospital and public health laboratories; food production and fermentation industries; medical diagnostic companies; environmental testing laboratories and bioremediation companies; and governmental regulatory agencies.

A few examples of organizations where M.Sc graduate trainees are employed: Health Canada; Molecular Biology Lab at the National Institute of Mental Health; Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto; Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO); Importation and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Laboratory Security, Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response

Funding Information

• M.Sc.: $19,000 minimum
• Ph.D.: $21,000 minimum

Students often receive more than the minimum stipend as a result of securing additional sources of support such as national scholarships and teaching assistantships. Most successful applicants have secured external scholarship funding. The rest are supported by internal scholarships, awards, and bursaries and by individual faculty members' research operating grants.

Agencies from which our students obtain funding include: OGS, NSERC, Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF), Canadian Association of Gastroenterology (CAG). Queen’s automatically issues a $5,000 top-up award to winners of federal government tri-council awards.

  

Academic Prerequisites

Honours B.Sc. or M.Sc. in related field or Doctor of Medicine

• M.Sc.: 75% in both the 3rd & 4th years of undergrad program across all courses
• Ph.D.: M.Sc. in microbiology, biology, or some life sciences
• Direct Entry Ph.D.: In exceptional cases, applicants with an honours bachelor’s degree and an overall A average and who demonstrate advanced research ability may be granted direct admission to doctoral program.
• Mini Masters: Students enrolled in the M.Sc. thesis program may also be eligible to transfer into the Ph.D. program without completion of the Masters degree within 1–1.5 years.

Test Requirements

Oral English for international students If required, a TOEFL score of 600 (paper-based) or TOEFL iBT minimum scores of: writing (24/30); speaking (22/30); reading (22/30); listening (20/30), for a total of 88/120. Applicants must have the minimum score in each test as well as the minimum overall score.

 

Program Profiles

• Christina Guzzo - luck or just lots of hard work for this Vanier Scholarship holder...
• Katrina Gee (Faculty) - molecular regulation of cytokine production in HIV infection
• Jamaica Cass - Cancer research, not just a numbers game...