Curriculum

The curriculum consists of several components: the core course requirements, the general seminar requirements, and elective courses. The goal is to provide a curriculum that is balanced

in breadth and depth. The breadth is provided by the core course requirements. The depth is provided by elective courses chosen by the student in consultation with his/her advisor. Some elective courses are listed below; however, the list is by no means exhaustive. The School requires an academic load of 16 hours per semester.

First Year

• Fall Semester: Course work as indicated, one laboratory rotation
• Spring Semester: Course work as indicated, two laboratory rotations
• Middle of May: Choose paper for first year exam, choose laboratory
• Beginning of June: Take first year preliminary exam
• Middle of June: Begin Ph.D. research

Second Year

Fall Semester

• No later than September 30th, submit a list of proposed members of Thesis Advisory Committee to the Department Office for approval • Write thesis proposal outline and meet with Thesis Advisor to discuss it
• Take required course(s), elective(s), plus research credit

Spring Semester

• Take BPH 567, Proposal Writing
• Complete course work
• Present first Student Seminar
• Meet with Thesis Advisory Committee for first Research Review • Prepare for Qualifying Examination

Note: Students generally complete the Teaching Assistantship (TA) assignment in the second year of studies (see Section III F).

Third Year

• Qualifying Examination should be taken before the start of the fifth semester of studies by October 1st (see Section IV).

Note: Students entering the program with an M.S. degree are encouraged to accelerate their examination schedule.

Departmental Seminars

The Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics, other departments in the School of Medicine & Dentistry and in the College sponsor seminar series with outside speakers. While not considered formal courses with associated credit, these seminars are an important part of the graduate student experience, which aims to provide a broad and diverse background of biology for those with quantitative backgrounds. Every effort must be made to attend and participate whenever possible.

BSCB Program Retreat - (Biennial)

The BSCB program holds a biennial retreat using a Gordon Conference format. It is a one-day event that starts with breakfast, includes lunch, and ends before dinner. Speakers are senior graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and faculty. A poster session is also included and students are encouraged to participate. All graduate students are invited and expected to attend.

Bioinformatics Cluster

For students interested in computational biology, it is strongly encouraged that they

attend the monthly Bioinformatics Cluster meeting. These meetings generally occur on the second Thursday of the month at 11:30 am for seminars by intramural and extramural speakers.

Entering students who wish exemptions from core courses may request that the Director of Graduate Studies arrange an exemption interview to determine whether an exemption is appropriate. The exemption interview consists of a 30-60 min discussion with the course director who will ask questions based on the content of the course under consideration. The course director will then advise the student, the student’s advisor(s) and the Graduate Studies Director, whether or not the course needs to be taken.

Requests for exemption for BPH 567 (Proposal Writing) will be reviewed by the Steering Committee. The critique written for the First Year  Preliminary Exam, if high enough in quality, is one means of exemption and the final decision rests on the recommendation by the chair of the exam. If the student has written a research proposal previously, that proposal may be submitted for review by the Steering Committee as a basis for exemption.

If a student in the program receives one grade of “C” or below, s/he will be reviewed by the Program faculty. A recommendation will be made to the dean that may include termination from the program. Note; two C grades are automatic grounds for expulsion from the Program by the dean’s office. If the student is allowed to remain in the program with one “C,” the course (or an appropriate substitute) must be re-taken successfully with a final grade of B- or higher.

Students encountering difficulties in coursework should immediately seek the advice of the course director and/or faculty advisor. Personal tutoring by advanced graduate students can be arranged by the Graduate Studies Coordinator.

Students in the M.D./Ph.D. program who are considering a Ph.D. in Biophysics are encouraged to meet with the Biophysics Program Director and potential thesis mentors as early as possible but no later than the middle of the second year of the M.D. program.

Curriculum

All M.D./Ph.D. students in the Biophysics program must complete the following courses:

Elective course: At least two elective courses must be taken. The Ph.D. advisor and Program Director must approve this choice. Recommended courses are listed below:

Other Requirements

Two research rotations should be conducted prior to joining a laboratory for dissertation research. Students are encouraged to complete these rotations during the first two years of the M.D. program.

The qualifying examination must be completed by the end of the third year of Ph.D. studies. 

The teaching assistant requirement is waived.

At least one meeting per year must be held with the thesis advisory committee (normally held after the student’s Biophysics Seminar presentation).

A satisfactory thesis must be written and successfully defended. Details of these requirements are given elsewhere in this handbook.