2022-23

Motion Introduced by:  Curriculum and Academic Programs Committee,

Date of First Reading:    January 31, 2022

Date of Second Reading: February 28, 2022

Title of Motion: Request from the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering – School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy – for the establishment of a graduate degree – MS Biological Design

Action Requested: This curricular proposal has received all college, school, unit and university administrative approvals, and is being presented to the Senate for review and voting decision.   

Rationale: The MS in Biological Design is designed to complement the current PhD program as a flexible degree program that will allow students from diverse backgrounds to seamlessly traverse the continuum between technology and biology with transformative and positive impact in biotechnology, human health, security, sustainability, and environment. This master’s program will utilize the foundations of the existing Biological Design Graduate Program, which is a unique transdisciplinary doctoral-only program at ASU and involves approximately 85 faculty members from several colleges including Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering (IAFSE), School of Life Sciences (SoLS), School of Sustainability (SoS) and School of Molecular Sciences (SMS). Students in the proposed Biological Design MS degree program will find a unique environment that truly reflects the ideals of the New American University that ASU espouses: use-inspired research, transcending academic disciplines, value for entrepreneurship, social embeddedness, and global engagement.