Ph.D. Requirements
The Ph.D. program in Biophysics is designed to provide students with training in the broad realm of Biophysics and thus prepare them for a career in modern biomedical research. Our program begins with two years of didactic course work integrated with laboratory research. The first year, as an undeclared Biomedical Sciences (BIMS) student, includes rotation through three research laboratories and completion of the BIMS Core Course in Integrative Biosciences. By late February of the first year, each BIMS student will select a mentor and declare a degree program. During the Spring semester of the first year and through the second year of study, Biophysics students will complete the required course work and prepare for the qualifying examination. Students will be evaluated for Advancement to Candidacy based on their overall performance in the program. This evaluation will include performance in course work, research rotations, defense of a written thesis proposal, and participation in program activities, such as the Journal Club, Research-in-Progress talks and seminars. Upon completion of required coursework and the Advancement to Candidacy Exam, Biophysics students are eligible to earn the M.S. in Biological and Physical Sciences.
After Advancing to Candidacy, students will concentrate on conducting independent research under the guidance of a mentor and dissertation research committee. The student’s research is expected to advance an area in the broad realm of Biophysics. As evidence of this level of achievement, students will publish research papers, including at least one as first author, and these papers will appear in recognized, peer-reviewed journals. The culmination of the research endeavor is a written dissertation that is presented publicly, and then defended orally before a faculty committee. The final examination for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy is devoted entirely to defense of the dissertation by the candidate. Student progress through the program is guided at all times by a committee of faculty advisors and is reviewed at least annually by the student’s dissertation committee. This training experience allows students to earn the Ph.D. in Biophysics in four or five years.
The student will meet at least annually with their advisory committee during the course of their research work. For completion of the Ph.D. requirements, the student must meet the University residency and credit requirements as listed in the Graduate Record. Finally, the student must submit and successfully defend a dissertation describing original research in a field of Biophysics.
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