Biology University of Regensburg

The Master of Science in Biology builds on a Bachelor's degree in Biology and further deepens your knowledge through a variety of specialised modules.

Within a standard period of study of four semesters (two years), students study three focus subjects by attending lectures, seminars and practical courses. In the practical courses, which include six weeks of experimental work, students are directly involved in a current scientific project in one of the research groups of the faculty. In this way, students can choose from a wide variety of research fields, e.g. Biochemistry, Biophysics, Botany, Developmental Biology, Evolutionary Biology, Genetics, Human Biology, Microbiology, Nature Conservation, Neurobiology, Ecology, Cell Biology and Zoology.

In addition, students can choose from “secondary” subjects that are offered by other faculties of the university, e.g. Human Genetics, Immunology and Medical Microbiology.

According to the student’s interests, study programmes can be individually tailored. This is a special feature of the Master's programme in Biology at the University of Regensburg. Students can individually design their study programme either aiming for a broader spectrum or specialising in a specific field of research.

The study programme is finalised by an independent research project, the Master's thesis, in which students work in depth on a project for nine months.

The study programme includes three compulsory skills modules: Communication Skills, Job Skills and Research Skills. In these modules, students gain essential competencies and are trained in scientific strategies and the presentation of scientific results.

After completion of a Master's degree, the trained skills and acquired competencies will allow successful students to work in a variety of different work environments in the life science field. They may pursue a doctoral research project within the graduate school of the faculty of the Regensburg International Graduate School of Life Sciences (RIGeL) or any other academic programme. There are also excellent job prospects in the life science field outside academia that students with a Master’s degree can choose from.

Our programme aims to shape the scientific education and personal competence of the students for their future work in any part of the life sciences or associated fields.

Programme structure:

• The Master's programme comprises four semesters with a total of 120 ECTS. The curriculum is based on earning 30 ECTS per semester.
• Students have to choose three focus subjects, or two focus subjects and one secondary subject.
• Within the focus or secondary subject students have to choose one theoretical and one practical module.
• The three skills modules are compulsory.

Module Structure:

In the theoretical modules, students attend lectures and seminars and prepare scientific presentations. The module closes with a final oral examination.

In the practical modules, students participate in a six-week practical course accompanied by a seminar. The module is graded based on a portfolio in which the practical work, the protocol of the practical course and the student's presentation in the seminar are evaluated.

In the “Communication Skills” module, students write an essay, prepare and present a scientific poster and prepare an outline of the Master's thesis project.

In the “Job Skills” module, students can choose from excursions, job qualifying courses and internships.

In the “Research Skills” module, students are trained in essential scientific skills like finding good research questions, literature search and organisation, design and reproducibility of experiments, good scientific practice, visualisation of data, scientific writing and presentation.

Academic admission requirements for the Master's programme include the following:

1. a university degree or comparable degree achieved in a three-year degree programme in biology or a related subject with a minimum overall grade of 2.5 (German grading system. For degrees obtained outside of Germany, the grade is converted by the modified Bavarian formula.)
2. a proof of English and German language skills 

If a minimum overall grade of 2.5 is not achieved, an additional aptitude test has to be passed. The test is conducted as an oral peer review by three examiners (botany, zoology, molecular biology) with a duration of 30 minutes.

If the Bachelor's certificate is not finalised by the application deadline, a transcript of records in which the preliminary overall grade is shown has to be presented. The student must have earned a minimum of 150 credit points in the Bachelor's programme.

Student service fee: approx. 200 EUR per semester (includes a public transport ticket valid for the entire semester)

You will need a minimum of about 1,000 EUR per month (including rent, food, clothing, insurance, books, and study materials).

Students from EU member states and Switzerland do not need a work permit. Students from non-EU states who are registered at a German university are allowed to work 140 days per year.
Please note that almost all employers require good German language skills.

The International Office will try to assist students in finding a room in a student dormitory. The price for a room in a student dormitory ranges from approx. 300 EUR to 450 EUR per month.
For more information about student housing, please contact international.accommodation@ur.de.