Non-thesis masters of science that are 1 year

[runningpenguin00]

Hello, I'm interested in pursuing a non-thesis master of science that are 1 year (probably in physiology, though perhaps another science like molecular bio or biochem). I suppose programs lasting 2 years are fine too, but I'm a nontraditional and, even though I'm serious about the degree, I'd still prefer it to be 1 year. I'm still in the research phase of figuring out how this all works, and have developed some questions geared towards the topic. I also posted an old thread on a similar topic, but the questions here are more focused.

Questions:
1) Which non-thesis masters programs that are 1 year long would you recommend? Georgetown's masters program, for example, seems pretty popular. There doesn't exactly seem to be a US News & World Report, so I'm not exactly sure what the rankings are or even how to start evaluating programs since they seem very similar on the websites.
2) How competitive is it to get into a non-thesis masters program in general? My letters of rec would be written by professors from a while ago.
3) For the non-thesis masters program, is there any chance of not finishing the degree on time? Is this anything like with thesis masters programs where I risk going over another year if I don't finish the thesis on time?
4) If you were in the program before, how rigorous is it? How much free time is there? I'm invested in the experience, but I'm also going to hopefully be applying to medical school if I finish the MCAT this year & applications are time consuming.
5) If I can't finish the MCAT in time for this cycle, I'd have to take the MCAT next cycle and would be studying for the MCAT+ be in the masters at the same time. How doable is this?
6) How does the content of a non-thesis masters compare to medical school? How helpful is it?
7) What's the difference between a thesis and non-thesis program? Thesis emphasizes research, but both apparently still require research. Are there any other differences that are noteworthy?
8)To what extent does the non-thesis masters require research? For non-thesis, are there any specific deadlines or projects that must be finished before graduation? Or is it similar to undergrad, where the research is more unofficial?

Thanks. I know it's a long list. #1 is probably the most important to me since I'm trying to narrow down which schools to apply to right now. So if it's way too long, please try #1! Thanks again!

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[gyngyn]

What do you hope to gain from this degree?

 

[runningpenguin00]

What do you hope to gain from this degree?

1) do something interesting that I enjoy (I read physio in my spare time, but there's only so far I can go reading on my own in my spare time when it's unstructured like this)
2) do "light" research. I've been reading posts on masters w/ thesis, and those can go awry without careful planning + mistakes.
3) filler for time off, but I'd enjoy this filler I think
4) get back into the swing of school & prepare for med school physio. I've been out for a while. If I do get into med school next cycle, I think I'd be overwhelmed. As I study for the MCAT right now, it's amazing how much I took the details for granted when I first studied in undergrad.
5) do something different other than work, which is what I've been doing for a while now. It's enjoyable & has allowed me to develop new experiences while saving up, but it does get repetitive.

 

[gyngyn]

1) do something interesting that I enjoy (I read physio in my spare time, but there's only so far I can go reading on my own in my spare time when it's unstructured like this)
2) do "light" research. I've been reading posts on masters w/ thesis, and those can go awry without careful planning + mistakes.
3) filler for time off, but I'd enjoy this filler I think
4) get back into the swing of school & prepare for med school physio. I've been out for a while. If I do get into med school next cycle, I think I'd be overwhelmed. As I study for the MCAT right now, it's amazing how much I took the details for granted when I first studied in undergrad.
5) do something different other than work, which is what I've been doing for a while now. It's enjoyable & has allowed me to develop new experiences while saving up, but it does get repetitive.

As long as you are not expecting a boost to your medical school application, you can pick anything that interests you (if you can afford the time and the tuition).

 

[runningpenguin00]

As long as you are not expecting a boost to your medical school application, you can pick anything that interests you (if you can afford the time and the tuition).

I have been doing things that interest me with my time off. Needed to start this post because the MS is pretty expensive. There don't seem to be too many of these 1 year non-thesis masters program threads floating around too (at least from what my search yielded), so I hoped it would be helpful to start a new one that's hopefully more elaborate.

 

[gyngyn]

I have been doing things that interest me with my time off. Needed to start this post because the MS is pretty expensive. There don't seem to be too many of these 1 year non-thesis masters program threads floating around too (at least from what my search yielded), so I hoped it would be helpful to start a new one that's hopefully more elaborate.

I can't recommend an expensive Master's degree without a compelling reason.
I don't see one in your OP...

 

[runningpenguin00]

Why do most people do a non-thesis masters? It it doesn't help w/ GPA or make much of a difference on app, wouldn't they be going out of interest too?

 

[gyngyn]

Why do most people do a non-thesis masters? It it doesn't help w/ GPA or make much of a difference on app, wouldn't they be going out of interest too?

If you are doing it for entertainment, pick what you believe to be the most fun at a school (or in a region) that you will enjoy.

 

[JustAPhD]

That's a lot of cash for an interest. Some people will do a non-thesis special masters program (SMP) to help their application overcome a lower than average undergrad GPA.

 

[kitsunebito]

A large majority of people in my program are med school hopefuls and used the Masters as a filler for a gap year.

Rigor is kind of what you make of it. Some people go all out and jump into some PhD classes. Others soft ball easy classes to protect their GPA.

Non thesis usually requires a research paper of some sort delving into the research of others. Thesis is going to be the research you yourself produced in lab.

I don't know a master's student that isn't working as a teaching assistant for the tuition waiver. If you can cover living expenses and the fees associated with enrollment you should be fine just teaching a lab to cover tuition.

In terms of MCAT study it'd be difficult to juggle both, but I know plenty of people that have done it.


Just my experience, I will default to the expertise of others but those are my personal observations.

 

[runningpenguin00]

That's a lot of cash for an interest. Some people will do a non-thesis special masters program (SMP) to help their application overcome a lower than average undergrad GPA.

Well, the masters could translate into research during med school and potentially research during my career. I'm hesitant to say a PhD because I'd like to get things going & I've seen physicians without PhD continue research, so it's still an option. Not exactly sure how it works though.

 

[runningpenguin00]

A large majority of people in my program are med school hopefuls and used the Masters as a filler for a gap year.

Rigor is kind of what you make of it. Some people go all out and jump into some PhD classes. Others soft ball easy classes to protect their GPA.

Non thesis usually requires a research paper of some sort delving into the research of others. Thesis is going to be the research you yourself produced in lab.

I don't know a master's student that isn't working as a teaching assistant for the tuition waiver. If you can cover living expenses and the fees associated with enrollment you should be fine just teaching a lab to cover tuition.

In terms of MCAT study it'd be difficult to juggle both, but I know plenty of people that have done it.


Just my experience, I will default to the expertise of others but those are my personal observations.

Is there a difference between the PhD classes you mentioned and the easier classes? In terms of content? In my experience, easy classes tend to focus on elective material as opposed to core content. Or is the only difference the composition of the students?

What are grades like? I'm not quite sure because I know that masters such as MPH/nutrition have grade inflation, but do masters degrees involving the hard sciences? I'm not sure how med schools would interpret a lower grad school GPA should I get one.

For the non thesis, is publication necessary for graduation? How does the research component work out specifically for graduation? Does authorship matter (for example, maybe I'm near the bottom...).

Anything else I should know about? I guess I'm just hesitant because it is quite a big sum & it's a change in direction for me.

Thanks everyone, really appreciate it.

 

[kitsunebito]

Is there a difference between the PhD classes you mentioned and the easier classes? In terms of content? In my experience, easy classes tend to focus on elective material as opposed to core content. Or is the only difference the composition of the students?

What are grades like? I'm not quite sure because I know that masters such as MPH/nutrition have grade inflation, but do masters degrees involving the hard sciences? I'm not sure how med schools would interpret a lower grad school GPA should I get one.

For the non thesis, is publication necessary for graduation? How does the research component work out specifically for graduation? Does authorship matter (for example, maybe I'm near the bottom...).

Anything else I should know about? I guess I'm just hesitant because it is quite a big sum & it's a change in direction for me.

Thanks everyone, really appreciate it.

1. I'd say varies by class. You can take higher level undergraduate classes that are crosslisted meaning Master students can enroll, and there's usually some additional work like paper presentation or something involved. Some of the PhD courses are exceptionally rigorous, but due to the advanced level of the class, just about everyone will put the work in to not disappoint a professor who they may wind up working under, especially since there will only be a handful of students per class. That'd be the closest thing I've encountered to inflation. I know some people that cruise through online ethics/MPH classes as electives for the grade alone. Definitely a difference in content, the higher level courses will be pushing the limits of that field, and some will forego textbooks in favor of the most recent publications on a subject.

2. I'm not sure if publication is necessary, I'm currently working on my paper myself, but for Non-thesis as I understand it the paper just gets pushed through a few faculty and presented to a board for final grading and subsequent graduation. I've heard of people who didn't meet paper deadlines or did very poorly on their final paper who were held from graduating until satisfactory completion. For a true thesis I'll default to someone else because I'm not familiar with that process.

 

[runningpenguin00]

1. I'd say varies by class. You can take higher level undergraduate classes that are crosslisted meaning Master students can enroll, and there's usually some additional work like paper presentation or something involved. Some of the PhD courses are exceptionally rigorous, but due to the advanced level of the class, just about everyone will put the work in to not disappoint a professor who they may wind up working under, especially since there will only be a handful of students per class. That'd be the closest thing I've encountered to inflation. I know some people that cruise through online ethics/MPH classes as electives for the grade alone. Definitely a difference in content, the higher level courses will be pushing the limits of that field, and some will forego textbooks in favor of the most recent publications on a subject.

2. I'm not sure if publication is necessary, I'm currently working on my paper myself, but for Non-thesis as I understand it the paper just gets pushed through a few faculty and presented to a board for final grading and subsequent graduation. I've heard of people who didn't meet paper deadlines or did very poorly on their final paper who were held from graduating until satisfactory completion. For a true thesis I'll default to someone else because I'm not familiar with that process.

Thanks for the info, a couple more lol... 🙂

Why did you (and your peers) pursue the non-thesis masters?

For those who didn't meet the thesis deadline or did poorly, did they have to stay another year or were they able to complete it within the 1 year? Do you know if there have been cases of the 1 year non-thesis masters turning into 2 years?

Anyone know where I can find statistics on the percentage of students who graduate the program/students who enrolled? Not sure if its posted on their websites....don't think so. Usually they include which schools their students go off to.

 

[kitsunebito]

I personally wanted to test myself. If I had another semester to spare I would be able to pick up a second concentration but I'll finish with one and I'm ok. A number are either setting themselves up for later academic careers or professional school of some sort. I know the general consensus is that grad degrees don't improve your application to school but a number consistently get acceptances post grad school, attribute that to what you will.

Those that were incomplete had to start over during the next semester until they got it right.

Plenty of people wind up dragging their master out. Some want to take a lighter course load for MCAT, some switch focuses. If you map out your year you shouldn't have any delays. I've heard of people even doing it in two semesters but I would advise against that.

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[runningpenguin00]

I feel the same way, that grad school is interesting and challenging if expensive. It's something I'm really interested in doing during the next year. Thanks kitsunebito!