Graduate Exams in Molecular, @@@@Cell and Developmental Biology

Although students are not subject to a formal examination at the end of their first year, students are evaluated based on four primary criteria:

The modular core course is designed to provide students with a comprehensive knowledge in Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology as an intensive first year course. Each module includes problem–oriented questions which become part of the preliminary evaluation at the end of the first year. A different educational opportunity is thus offered by the comprehensive examination which is in the form of a research proposal outside the area of the thesis work. As a part of the examination, the student also presents an abstract of the thesis proposal. Both documents must be defended orally. For a helpful guide on how to prepare for a comprehensive exam, students may consult our comprehensive exam FAQ.

Students take their exam at the end of the second year, or one year after passing the preliminary evaluation. At this point, students are expected to have completed the core course and to have completed at least one advanced topics course. The examination will progress according to the following schedule:

Submission of proposal topics to committee	February 15th
Choice of proposal topic	March 1st
Submission of written proposal	April 15th
Submission of abstract of thesis research	May 1st
Oral Examination	May 7th

The format of the written proposal is that of an NIH grant application. It follows the NIH guidelines except that the length is limited to fifteen pages. This written proposal is evaluated with respect to experimental feasibility, conceptual foundation, originality and imagination, writing style and knowledge of the relevant literature.

The examination process is initiated by the student submitting to the committee three possible topics for the research proposal. These topics are not in the area of the student’s thesis research nor can they be directly related to any of the ongoing projects in the student’s thesis laboratory. The committee chooses among these topics and notifies the student. If none of the three topics are deemed suitable, the committee meets to develop a topic in consultation with the student. The nature of the topic should be a well–defined biological problem which is not resolved in the current literature. At this stage the student also provides a brief statement of their research interests or possible area of thesis study.

Students have approximately six weeks to write the proposal. Students may wish to discuss approaches with members of the committee but should not discuss the written document with them prior to submission. The student then submits four copies of the proposal to the committee.

Approximately two weeks after submission of the proposal for the comprehensive exam, students submit an abstract of their intended thesis research to the committee. This abstract is not more than two pages in length, and includes an exposition of the problem the student seeks to address and the experimental approaches to be used. Inclusion of preliminary data is not necessary. The thesis abstract is intended to ensure that the grant proposal is quite separate from the thesis work and that a thesis problem has been formulated at this time.

One week after submission of the thesis abstract the student meets with the committee for the oral examination. The exam should not exceed two hours. The committee evaluates the student’s grasp of the basic concepts of the research proposal, familiarity with experimental approaches and rationale. The committee may address any reasonable area of knowledge deemed to be necessary for successful execution of the research project. At the end of the oral exam the committee (in the absence of the student) votes (pass/fail) on the performance of the student. Both the written and the oral parts are considered. The chairperson of the committee communicates the decision to GPOC (the Graduate Program Oversight Committee) and a copy of the proposal is added to the student’s dossier. A passing performance is required for acceptance to candidacy for the PhD degree.

The committee consists of three members of the Departmental faculty, not including the student’s research advisor. One member will serve as chairperson. Usually this committee continues as the thesis committee with the addition of the research advisor and one other faculty member from outside this Department.

After a student's dissertation research has been completed, a decision made in conjunction with the thesis advisor and dissertation committe, the student defends the dissertation in an open, public forum. After the public presentation, the student defends the thesis in a private meeting with her/his committee. A joyous celebration follows successful defense of the thesis.