M.S. in Clinical Translational Sciences

Now offered on UAHS Phoenix and Tucson Campuses!

Program Description

The M.S. program in Clinical Translational Sciences (CTS) at the University of Arizona (UA) welcomes applications from post-baccalaureate students who have earned a bachelor's or master's degree in a biological or health science discipline and from postgraduate students holding a terminal health sciences degree (e.g., M.D., Pharm.D., Dr.P.H., D.N.P., etc.).

The program is intended to provide the foundation for a research career in the Clinical Translational Sciences. In the M.S. program students gain:
  (a) an adequate base knowledge of biostatistics and CTS coursework that is specific to the student’s health-related discipline or clinical interest (e.g. Surgery, Cardiology, Neurology, etc.);
  (b) experience and training in research, culminating in the thesis research project; and
  (c) professional development including experience and training in presentation and publication of research findings, preparation of grant applications and ethics in clinical research.

The mission of the Master’s program is to provide an avenue for the student to gain more experience in and exposure to the diverse areas of the clinical translational sciences and to offer a mechanism for the student to obtain in-depth knowledge in a specific area of health sciences research.  CTS students may specialize in an area such as immunology, neuroscience, cellular and molecular medicine, pharmacology, or other areas of biomedical science, or they may elect the CTS program's new concentration in clinical research.  To this end, students will participate in a specific laboratory or clinical research project under the guidance of a UA faculty member, in addition to taking courses selected from the offerings of UA's health sciences colleges:  Medicine, Pharmacy, Public Health and Nursing.

Clinical Research Track

Recognizing the need for highly qualified clinical investigators, the CTS M.S. program now offers a concentration in Clinical Research.  Students in the Clinical Research track of the M.S. program will learn to design, conduct and analyze the results of research projects with human subjects with the goal of translating findings into better treatments and patient outcomes.  A Clinical Research student will take Principles of Clinical Research I and II (CTS 501/502) as the principles courses for their program.  CTS also offers a course in Informatics for Clinical Research (CTS 503) to train students in management and use of clinical research data.

Tuition and Fees

Please refer to the UA Bursar's Office Tuition and Fees Calculator for up-to-date information regarding tuition and fees.  Note that anyone employed by UA in a benefits-eligible position may also take advantage of the University’s Qualified Tuition Reduction program.

Degree Requirements

All M.S. students must complete a minimum of 30 units of graduate-level coursework, including 6 units of thesis credit, to earn the degree.  At least 15 units must be letter-graded (i.e., A, B, C) rather than receiving S/P (superior/pass) grades.  Upon approval by the student’s faculty advisor and the CTS Director of Graduate Affairs, up to 6 graduate credits can be transferred from another graduate program or an M.D. or other advanced degree, provided the grade earned is "B" or better, and the course was completed within 6 years of the planned M.S. completion.

Required courses:

The courses required for the M.S. degree are different for post-baccalaureate and postgraduate students.  The current curricular requirements are available here:

Note: Substitutions for normally required courses may be approved by the CTS Director of Graduate Affairs and the faculty advisor. The remainder of the required units will be accounted for by courses selected by the student’s faculty advisor as relevant to the student’s research interests.

Minor Requirements

Master’s students at UA do not declare a minor, but the student may include courses from another field in the program of study with their advisor’s approval.

More Information

For more information, please contact the CTS program at CTSsupport@email.arizona.edu.