3 - MASTER OF SCIENCE (MS) DEGREE PROGRAM

The Graduate Program in Nutrition originally existed on the Norman campus.  In the fall of 1989, the Graduate Program began to undergo a transfer to the Health Sciences Center in Oklahoma City, which became official in 1991.  Students seeking a MS Degree from the Department of Nutritional Sciences can take courses at the OUHSC in Oklahoma City or can earn a degree through distance education at the Schusterman Center in Tulsa.  The MS in Nutritional Sciences has an emphasis on advanced training and research methodologies.  The MS in Nutritional Sciences (1228M) requires a minimum of 34 credit hours beyond the BS degree and may be taken as either a thesis or non-thesis option.

Listing of Available NS Non-Core Courses offered for MS students

Please click here to view more information on the Master of Science in Nutritional Sciences: Thesis Option curriculum.

Fall 1^st Year: 11 hours

• NS         5833       Non-Energy Nutrients
• NS         5233       Research Methods
• BSE       5163       Biostatistics Methods I
• NS         5132       Weight Management

Spring 1^st Year: 10 hours

• NS         5823       Energy Nutrients
• NS         5980       Thesis (2 hours)
• NS         5272       Geriatric Nutrition
• HPS       5503       Health Promotion

Fall 2^nd Year:  8 hours    

• NS         5970       Seminar (1 hour)
• NS         5980       Thesis (2 hours)
• NS         5960       NS Elective: Directed Readings (2 hours)
• HPS       5213       Social & Behavioral Science in PH

Spring 2^nd Year:  5 hours

• NS         5980       Thesis (2 hours)
• NS         6103       Pediatric Nutrition

TOTAL: 34 Hours

Please click here to view more information on the Master of Science in Nutritional Sciences: Non-Thesis Option curriculum.

Fall 1^st Year: 9 hours

• NS        5833      Non-Energy Nutrients
• NS        5233      Research Methods
• BSE      5163      Biostatistics Methods I

Spring 1^st Year: 8 hours

• NS        5823      Energy Nutrients
• NS        5272      Geriatric Nutrition
• HPS      5503      Health Promotion

Fall 2^nd Year:  10 hours                               

• NS        5990      NS Elective: Special Studies 2 hours
• NS        5113      Nutrition and Immunology
• NS        5132      Weight Management
• HPS      5213      Social & Behavioral Science in PH

Spring 2^nd Year:  7 hours

• NS        5970      Seminar (1 hour)
• NS        6103      Pediatric Nutrition
• NS        5103      Master’s Project (3 hours)

TOTAL: 34 Hours

All graduate students in the MS Program must complete a final examination, which validates mastery in nutritional science.  The following is required:

• THESIS OPTION: the oral defense of thesis serves as the final exam
• NON-THESIS OPTION: a "Comprehensive Exam" serves as the final exam

A Committee of three to five faculty members, two of whom must be from the Department of Nutritional Sciences, serves as the student’s Thesis Committee.  The student selects faculty members who are willing to serve on the committee.  The student is responsible for selecting faculty to serve on the thesis committee.  All prospective committee members sign the "Thesis Committee Request Form", which may be obtained from Departmental staff.  The committee must consist of a Chair/Major Professor (from the NS Department) and at least one other graduate faculty member from NS.  One individual outside the Department of Nutritional Sciences may be asked to serve on the student's thesis committee.  If a faculty does not hold a graduate faculty appointment, the Chair/Major Professor will request a special appointment from the Dean of the Graduate College upon solicitation by the graduate student or the graduate student's major professor.  A special appointment is usually reserved for individuals who are adjunct faculty possessing unique knowledge of an area of interest.

The student must submit a prospectus to the Thesis Committee prior to beginning the proposed research.  The prospectus should be brief yet present a proposed plan of work.  It should include:

• problem/hypothesis
• rationale for investigation
• outline of material/methods
• time frame

The student is expected to convene the Thesis Committee and present the Prospectus for review and approval. The prospectus should be filed with the Graduate Program Director and signed by all members of the Thesis Committee.  The respective form may be requested from Departmen­tal staff.  By having the prospectus approved by the committee, this protects the student from misunderstandings that might otherwise arise and will provide the student with optimal committee advice.

Complete guidelines for writing a thesis are found on the Graduate College website (ouhsc.edu/graduate).  These guidelines should be followed carefully.  In addition, the student must decide, with advice from their Advisory Committee, whether to organize the thesis in the “traditional” or “manuscript” style of organization.

Prior to the defense of the thesis, the chair of the student's committee must send a memorandum (Request for Defense of Thesis) including a list of all committee members, the date of the defense, and a request for the Authority Form to the Graduate College.  The Authority Form will not be issued if the student has not filed an Admission to Candidacy form and enrolled in at least two credit hours of 5980 during the semester the examination is to be taken.

The defense will be oral.  The defense will largely be restricted to information pertinent to the thesis project.  Within 72 hours after the thesis defense, the Report Form (the reverse side of the Authority Form) must be returned to the Graduate College with the results and signatures of all committee members.  If one member dissents, a minority report must be filed with the Graduate Dean.  If the committee consists of three members of which two dissent, the performance is graded as unsatisfactory.  If the committee consists of more than three members and two dissent, a minority report must be filed and the Graduate Dean will investigate.  The Dean’s decision will be final.  If more than two members cast an unsatisfactory vote, the defense is to be graded unsatisfactory.

Only one attempt is afforded the candidate in defending the thesis.  If the defense is graded unsatisfactory, this decision is final and the defense cannot be repeated.  Courses taken prior to failing the thesis defense can count for no more than 25 percent of the credit hours required for a master’s degree at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.  These courses must be applied to an academic program other than the one in which the student failed the defense.  The student must gain admission to a different program and have the permission from that department and the Dean of the Graduate College to include any courses used from the previous graduate program.

Students must comply with all rules established by the Graduate College.  Students should check on the current rules by viewing the Guidelines for the Preparation of the Master’s Thesis.  Electronic submission of a thesis is allowed by the University. Hard copy submission requires the student to submit three unbound final copies, on 100% cotton bond paper with original signatures, within 60 days of completion of the oral defense.  The Department requires an electronic copy (in Word) be given to the major professor and also given to the Departmental staff (in Word or pdf).  The thesis in Word will be converted to a pdf file and stored on the L drive for reference purposes.  It is up to the student, in discussion with the Major Professor, if they wish to provide a hard copy to any committee members. 

A comprehensive examination is one of the requirements of the HSC Graduate College of a non-thesis master's degree program.  In the Department of Nutritional Sciences, the exam is oral and covers material related to the student’s Master’s Project.  The purpose of the exam is to provide a means by which the graduate student demonstrates evidence of having achieved an advanced level of knowledge in nutrition.

The following Departmental guidelines apply to the Master’s Project and Comprehensive Exam:

1. The student begins the Master’s Project by enrolling in NS 5103 Master’s Project.
2. Each student must decide on a topic for the Master’s Project.  The student must meet with a faculty willing to supervise the Master’s Project to discuss the topic and to receive approval to proceed with the project.
3. A Committee of three faculty members from the Department of Nutritional Sciences serves as the student’s Graduate Advisory Committee.  The student selects three faculty members who are willing to serve on the committee.  One of the members of the committee will serve as the project director.  The names of these three individuals are ultimately for­warded to the Graduate College via the "Admission to Candidacy" form submitted prior to the Comprehensive Exam.  The committee may be composed of two NS faculty and one additional person from outside of NS as long as the individual has a graduate faculty appointment and has a special interest in the student’s project.  More typically, all three members of the committee are NS faculty.  The topic will be approved by the faculty mentor (Major Professor) and the Committee.
4. The Master’s Project shall include writing a paper, typically a literature review of the topic of interest.The review is expected to be focused on a topic and one option is that it be prepared for submission as a manuscript to a peer-reviewed journal.The specific guidelines for the manuscript will depend on the journal selected.This manuscript will be submitted electronically to the Major Professor in a Word document.It will be up to the Major Professor to submit the manuscript for publication, although it is encouraged that the student assists in this process of submission as a learning experience.It is up to the advisory committee if the paper should be prepared in journal manuscript form or a more traditional paper format.It is expected that the literature review will be at least 20 double-spaced pages in length and to include at least 50 references from the scientific literature.
5. The Master’s Project shall include a component that allows the student to demonstrate an application of the knowledge.  The exact nature of this component of the project can vary and the student’s faculty advisory committee must approve the project.  Examples of possible projects include case studies (either real or simulated), development of nutrition education materials, application of technology, dietary assessment, developing clinical guidelines for a facility, among other projects.  The grade for the Master’s Project is based on the quality of the literature review and associated project, and is determined by the Major Professor.  If a student earns an Unsatisfactory grade in the course, they will be allowed to repeat the course one time.  If they earn an Unsatisfactory grade in the course on their second attempt, they will be dismissed from the program.
6. Upon satisfactory completion of the Master’s Project, the Comprehensive Exam shall include an oral presentation that is professionally presented to the Examination Committee and is open to the public.  The Committee shall have been given a copy of the literature review and associated project from the Master’s Project in advance of the presentation.  In the presentation the student will summarize the literature review and their project and entertain questions from the general audience.  Following the presentation, the student will meet in closed session with the Committee for an oral defense of their presentation.  Collectively, the oral presentation and defense of the presentation represent the Comprehensive Exam.
7. Each member of the committee will score the Comprehensive Exam as either satisfactory (S) or unsatisfactory (U).If the Comprehensive Examination is failed, a report must be submitted to the Graduate College indicating whether the student may repeat the examination. This report must also outline the student's deficiencies. A student who fails a second time will no longer be eligible for a master's degree in the academic program in which the examination was failed.