MSFS Program Requirements
The mission of the Forensic Science program is to provide our students with comprehensive graduate level educational and research experiences in the forensic sciences and to prepare them for careers in public and private laboratories. The program also provides a strong foundation for further graduate studies.
The mission is made possible through the following goals:
- Developing the students' laboratory, medico-legal, and public policy skills through the required forensic science courses
- Guiding the student through the selection and completion of a research project, and
- Providing opportunities for pre-professional, laboratory-based internships and research with the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences (ADFS), the Jefferson County Medical Examiner’s Forensic Toxicology Laboratory, and the Jefferson County Drug Court.
In addition to completing a series of forensic science courses, students in the MSFS program are required to take courses in chemical instrumental analysis, biochemistry, quantitative analysis, and recombinant DNA technology offered by the Department of Chemistry and the Department of Biology. Students are encouraged to design a course of study (in consultation with their faculty advisor) with a specific concentration to meet their professional goals.
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Levelling Courses
The following courses are required, but students who have taken the equivalent course as an undergraduate may opt out of one or more. Since we primarily accept students with biology and chemistry backgrounds, it is expected that applicants will have taken at least two of these courses as at the sophomore or above level:
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Biochemistry
Typical course description of a biochemistry course: Overview of biochemical principles; chemistry of aqueous solutions, biochemical building blocks including amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids, and nucleotides; examination of metabolic pathways and enzymes that mediate catabolic and anabolic metabolism of carbohydrates, lipids, amino acids, and nucleic acids. Application of clinical correlations of metabolism to human nutrition and disease.
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Instrumental Chemistry Instrumental Analysis (with lab)
- Typical course description of an instrumental chemistry course: Focus on modern analytical chemistry instrumentation including chemical separations, spectroscopies (atomic absorption, infrared, UV-visible, fluorescence), mass spectroscopy, and thermal analysis.
- The typical lab includes: Focus on modern analytical chemistry instrumentation including chemical separations, spectroscopies (atomic absorption, infrared, UV-visible, fluorescence), mass spectroscopy, and thermal analysis.
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Molecular Genetics
Gene structure, function, and regulation. Chromosome structure and inheritance. An overview of the human genome.
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Quantitative Chemistry (with lab)
Typical course description of a quantitative chemistry course: Principles of analytical measurements, statistical and volumetric techniques, spectrophotometric analysis, and chromatography, with emphasis on equilibrium and applications. Lecture and laboratory.
Course Catalog
A complete list of program requirements and courses are available in the UAB Graduate Catalog.
Ready to Apply?
All the information you need to apply can be found on UAB's Graduate Admissions Hub.