biology phd qualifying exam

College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics    > Department of Biology and Biochemistry    > Biology, PhD

The Department of Biology and Biochemistry offers programs of research and study leading to a PhD degree in Biology.

For more information, please see http://www.uh.edu/nsm/biology-biochemistry/graduate .

Admission Requirements

In addition to the College of Natural Science and Mathematics Admission Requirements , applicants should have a Baccalaureate Degree (B.S.) in Biology, Biochemistry, or an equivalent discipline. Evaluation of applicants involves a broad range of criteria including undergraduate preparation, three letters of recommendation, a statement of purpose, and relevant scientific experience. GRE scores are optional. International students should visit http://www.uh.edu/graduate-school/admissions/international-students/ for information on additional requirements.

Degree Requirements

Minimum credit hours required for this degree: 54.0

There are two degree tracks in the Biology PhD program, Cell and Molecular Biology (CMB) Degree Track and Ecology and Evolution Degree Track.

Cell and Molecular Biology (CBM) Degree Track

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree will be awarded after students have successfully completed the following requirements. Students may satisfy the degree requirements by completing at least 54 approved credit hours; satisfactorily completing the laboratory rotations and formal graduate-level course requirements including seminars; completing 3-12 letter-graded credit hours of doctoral dissertation courses; and completing and defending a dissertation acceptable to the dissertation committee. All students must be continuously enrolled until the degree requirements are completed.

Course Requirements

15.0 credit hours.

Students are required to complete:

• BIOL 6120 - Responsible Conduct of Biological Research Credit Hours: 1.0

Students are required to complete at least two of the following four courses:

• BIOL 6240 - Molecular Genetics 1 Credit Hours: 2.0
• BIOL 6241 - Molecular Genetics 2 Credit Hours: 2.0
• BIOL 6230 - Advanced Cell Biology I Credit Hours: 2.0
• BIOL 6231 - Advanced Cell Biology II Credit Hours: 2.0

Seminar Requirements

• At least one seminar course per year (in either fall or spring semester). BIOL 6110 Biology Seminar does not apply to this requirement.

PhD students may petition the Department for modification of required courses.

Course Transfers and Substitutions

Transfer or substitution credits for electives are limited to 4 approved credits towards a PhD. A grade of B or better is required for transfer or substitution of course credit. Transferred and substituted courses must be at the graduate level. Courses taken in the context of an earned degree cannot be transferred, only substituted. Transferred and substituted courses must not be older than 10 years by the time of graduation at UH. Moreover, credits cannot be transferred or substituted to replace a core course without the approval of the CMB advising committee and will be limited to one 2-credit module. Students may appeal this process by submitting course information and a written statement justifying the transfer or substitution of specific course credits to the CMB Divisional Leader and the Associate Chair for Graduate Affairs. Course information should include a syllabus that covers course material, and a letter from the course instructor that addresses course content and student performance. A successful appeal will require a 2/3rds majority vote by the primary CMB faculty.

Scholastic Requirement

Graduate students must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.0 in all course work to be considered in good standing. Students not in good standing cannot receive a graduate degree and can be declared ineligible for support with a graduate assistantship (IA, TA, RA/TE or RA). Graduate students who receive grades of C+ or lower in 12 or more credit hours of course work attempted for graduate credit are ineligible for a PhD in Biology. Credit hours of “U” grades in S/U-graded courses apply toward the above 12-hour total.

Courses Taken Outside the Department

• Courses that do not promote the student’s academic development in Biology & Biochemistry, or do not contribute directly to the current research program of the student, will not be allowed.
• Students who wish to take courses outside the Department need the approval of their thesis or dissertation committee.
• Students may not pursue another degree program concurrently with a PhD in Biology.
• Students taking approved courses at other institutions need to notify the Graduate coordinator prior to the start of the term in order for the appropriate paperwork to be processed in time by the Registrar’s Office and the Graduate School.

Graduate Student Rotations

The CMB faculty requires that all graduate students enrolled in a PhD program complete at least two rotations in research labs during the first year, and prior to selection of the major professor. Rotation periods are flexible, but must last at least six weeks. At the end of each rotation, students will submit a short report to their rotation advisor, which will include the initial goals, the procedures used and techniques learned, and the results achieved. A written evaluation of each rotation will be completed by the rotation advisor and submitted to the Division Graduate Committee (DGC). Rotation reports and evaluations must be submitted to the DGC before the next rotation can begin. Any exceptions to the rotation policy must be approved by the DGC. Exemption from a second rotation may be granted by petition to the Associate Chair for Graduate Affairs, and will require justification and approval by the student’s advisor. If a student has applied to our Graduate Program with the explicit goal of working with a specific advisor and does not wish to carry out a second rotation, he or she may request an exception, outlining the rationale for declining the second rotation. This request must be accompanied by a letter from the prospective major professor explaining why the decision not to participate in a second research rotation is in the best interest of the student.

First Year Evaluation

At the end of the second term in residence (not counting summers) all students will undergo a first year evaluation administered by the DGC. A positive evaluation must be received for the student to remain in good standing. The evaluation will consider the student’s progress and take into account the following:

• Courses taken and grades.
• Seminar class performance.
• Attendance at departmental seminars.
• Reports from rotation advisors.
• Student’s acceptance into a research lab.
• Other information as required by the DGC.

Committee Meetings

All students must form and meet with their thesis/dissertation committee no later than the third term following admission (not counting summer sessions). For PhD students, the first meeting will focus on the qualifying exam topic. After passing their qualifying exam, PhD students must meet with their committee during their 5th term (not counting summer sessions) to discuss their research plan. In addition, all students must convene a meeting of their committee, at which a majority of the members are present, at least once per calendar year to discuss their progress until graduation.

PhD Qualifying Examination

The Cell and Molecular Biology Division requires graduate students to pass a qualifying exam in their second year. This exam serves to develop and reinforce the skills required for developing experimental programs to test hypotheses and to communicate scientific ideas in a concise manner. Students unable to successfully demonstrate these skills will fail the examination and will not remain as doctoral candidates in the program. The exam has three components: 1) a written thesis proposal, 2) an exam to test general foundational knowledge that is necessary for a successful career in cell and molecular biology research, and 3) an oral defense of the written proposal. The dissertation committee will evaluate the student’s performance. At any point during these three exam components, the committee may decide that the student has an unconditional pass and can move on to the next component; a conditional pass in which the student needs to go back and make improvements before moving on or that the student needs to take extra coursework; or in rare situations, the student has failed without recourse. Details and due dates of the qualifying exam can be found here . Students who do not complete all three qualifying exam components by the end of their second year shall receive an unsatisfactory grade for their research hours for that second term of their second year. The student will continue to receive an unsatisfactory grade for research hours for every following term until they complete the exam or change degree plans to a Masters in Science. A student who accumulates a total of 12 credits of unsatisfactory grades in courses and research hours will be automatically dismissed from the University. Students who are given the option to retake the qualifying exam, but are unable to reschedule or retake in the second term of their second year will be given a grade of incomplete for their research hours. The grade will be changed to an “S” or “U” depending on whether the student retakes or does not retake the exam in the following academic session (summer or spring term). Every effort should be made for the student to retake the exam by the end of their second year in the program. If prolonged absence of a committee member would make it impossible for a student to meet this requirement, that committee member will be replaced.

Preparation of the Dissertation

Each student whose objective is the PhD degree is expected to commence graduate research as soon as possible. It should be recognized that research is an integral component of the degree requirements and that failure to maintain an adequate program of research constitutes unsatisfactory progress toward a degree.

• Permission to write and defend the dissertation PhD students will need to obtain formal permission to write and defend their dissertation from their dissertation committee. The “Dissertation Committee Permission Form” will need to be signed by all committee members and turned in to the Graduate Coordinator no later than the end of the term prior to the anticipated term of the defense. It is recommended, but not mandatory, that the student have a committee meeting at that time in order for the committee to be aware of the student progress and make final recommendations before the defense. It is expected that the student make progress towards graduation within a year of filing the form.
• Submission and Defense of the Dissertation Each student must submit and defend the dissertation when it is in final form. Part of the defense will include the presentation of a seminar open to the public. Following this seminar, a formal defense/examination will take place, which is open to any faculty member of the University community. Despite the open nature of the defense, the thesis or dissertation committee has sole responsibility in deciding whether or not the examination is passed. In order for a student to pass the examination, an affirmative vote by the major professor and no more than one negative vote by other committee members must be recorded.

Ecology and Evolution Degree Track

The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree will be awarded after students have successfully completed the following requirements. Students may satisfy the degree requirements by completing at least 54 approved credit hours; satisfactorily completing the formal graduate-level course requirements including seminars; completing 3-12 hours of letter-graded doctoral dissertation courses; and completing and defending a dissertation acceptable to the dissertation committee. All students must be continuously enrolled full time until the degree requirements are completed.

Major Professor and Dissertation Committee

• During the first year, each student is required to select, by mutual agreement, a tenured or tenure-track member of the faculty of the Division of Ecology and Evolution as a major professor who, with the dissertation (PhD) committee, will supervise the student’s graduate studies. The student’s choice of faculty advisor must be approved by the graduate committee chair. If a student wishes to work jointly with more than one professor, an understanding as to who is primarily responsible for supervision of the student’s graduate studies should be reached.
• In consultation with the major professor the student shall select, by mutual agreement, faculty members to serve on their committee. The committee shall be chosen before the end of the second term of residence. Details on the committee composition are given in the section “Academic Policies” below.

13.0 Credit Hours

• BIOL 6204 - Advanced Ecology & Evolution I Credit Hours: 2.00
• BIOL 6205 - Advanced Ecology & Evolution II Credit Hours: 2.00

Students are required to complete one of the following:

• BIOL 6310 - Biostatistics Credit Hours: 3
• BIOL 6410 - Applied Biostatistics Credit Hours: 4

Students are required to complete at least 4 additional SCH in formal graded BIOL or BCHS lecture courses at the 6000 level, for a total of at least 13 Credit Hours.

• At least one seminar course per year (typically, BIOL 7167 Population Biology Seminar, in either fall or spring semester).  BIOL 6110 Biology Seminar does not apply to this requirement.
• For transfer or substitution of course credit, a grade of B or better is required, and courses taken towards a prior degree cannot be transferred; they can only be substituted. All substituted of transferred courses must have been taken within 10 years of the time of graduation at UH
• Students may initiate the transfer or substitution process by submitting course information and a written statement justifying the transfer or substitution of specific course credits to the E&E Division Policy Leader and the Associate Chair for Graduate Affairs. Course information must include a syllabus that covers course material
• A successful transfer or substitution will require unanimous support by the Associate Chair for Graduate Affairs, the E&E Division Policy Leader, the E&E members of the Graduate Committee and the student’s thesis/dissertation committee if it has been formed.

During the second long term all students will undergo a first year evaluation administered by faculty in the division (typically, division members of the Graduate Committee). A positive evaluation must be received for the student to remain in good standing. The evaluation will consider the student’s progress and take into account the following:

• Courses taken and grades
• Seminar class performance
• Attendance at departmental seminars
• Research progress
• Report from research advisor(s)

Advancement to PhD Candidacy

• A student advances to candidacy for a PhD degree after completion of a qualifying exam . The qualifying exam will be administered by the student’s dissertation committee, and will consist of three parts: (1) a written exam, (2) a dissertation proposal, and (3) an oral exam. Details and due dates of the qualifying exam can be found here .
• The qualifying exam must be completed by the end of the fourth term following admission (not counting summer sessions). In exceptional circumstances, a student may petition to take the proposal and/or oral parts of the qualifying exam in the fifth term. A successful petition will require unanimous support by the student’s dissertation committee and the Associate Chair for Graduate Affairs.
• If the student fails any part of the qualifying exam, the dissertation committee will prescribe a course of action. This may include (a) remedial courses; (b) repetition of the exam; or (c) termination of the student from the PhD program. In the case of the oral exam, such a prescription shall be given verbally immediately after the examination and followed by a written notification within one week. Any retakes must be completed by the end of the subsequent long term. Each exam may be taken no more than twice. Failure after the second try will result in either award of a terminal MS degree or dismissal from the graduate program.
• A student who fails to attempt the qualifying exam within the fourth term will receive a grade of “U” (unsatisfactory) in 2 credit hours or research. A student who is allowed to take the proposal and/or oral parts of the qualifying exam in the fifth term, but fails to complete the qualifying exam within the fifth term, will receive a grade of “U” in 2 credit hours or research. Any further delay will result in additional “U” grades in 6 research credit hours per long term (or 3 credit hours in the summer). Once a student who has not yet taken his/her qualifying exam has accumulated 12 hours of “U” grades, he/she will be ineligible for a PhD in Biology. 
• Students who fail to pass part of the qualifying exam in one term and were given the recommendation to retake the exam but were unable to reschedule within the same term will receive a grade of “I” (incomplete) for 2 credit hours or research. The grade will be changed to an “S” or “U” depending on whether the student retakes or does not retake the exam in the following term (not counting summer sessions). Note that the “S” or “U” grades reflect only whether or not the student has taken the exam in the given term. Failure to pass the qualifying exam will not result in a “U” in these research hours.

All students must form and meet with their thesis/dissertation committee no later than the third term following admission (not counting summer sessions). The first meeting will focus on the student’s initial research progress and plans for future research. For PhD students, the first meeting will also include some discussion of which committee members will conduct the written part of the qualifying exam, and the topics that will be covered. For PhD students, the second committee meeting will typically be the oral exam. After the first meeting, all students will meet with their committees (from which no more than one committee member may be absent), at least once per calendar year to discuss their progress towards completion of the degree. At any time the committee may decide that additional meetings should take place. At least one week before every committee meeting, the student will distribute a 2-3 page progress report to each committee member (see exception for qualifying oral exam in section D). After the first meeting, the student will bring a copy of the Committee Status Report from the previous meeting. At the end of each meeting, the chair of the committee will summarize the meeting and make recommendations to the student using a Committee Status Report form. If a committee member is absent from a meeting, the student will meet him/her within two weeks of the meeting.

Final Examinations

PhD students will need to obtain formal permission to write and defend their dissertation from their dissertation committee. The Dissertation Committee Permission Form will need to be signed by all committee members and turned in to the Graduate Coordinator no later than the end of the term prior to the anticipated term of the defense. It is recommended, but not mandatory, that the student have a committee meeting at that time in order for the committee to be aware of the student progress and make final recommendations before the defense. It is expected that the student make progress towards graduation within a year of filing the form.

Each PhD candidate must submit and defend the dissertation when it is in final form. Although any member of the University community may attend the final examination, the committee has sole responsibility in deciding whether or not the examination is passed. In order for a student to pass the examination, an affirmative vote by the major professor and no more than one negative vote by other committee members must be recorded. The examination will emphasize research achievements. In addition, competence in the candidate’s field of research and in the field of ecology and evolution in general will be expected. If the candidate fails to successfully defend his/her dissertation the committee may, 1) outline additional work to be completed and reassessed by the committee or, 2) recommend award of a terminal MS degree. PhD candidates shall have at least one manuscript based on their dissertation submitted for publication before their defense.

Academic Policies

Whether they follow the Cell and Molecular Biology degree track or the Ecology and Evolution degree track, students in the Biology PhD program must specify a dissertation committee and have the names on file in the Office of the Dean at least one term before their graduation. The committee must consist of at least four members, to include three faculty members who have their primary appointment within the department of Biology and Biochemistry and one approved member external to the department. Further details on committee composition can be found here. Additionally, specific requirements for each degree track apply as follows.

Cell and Molecular Biology Degree Track

At least two of the committee members must have their primary appointment in the Cell and Molecular Biology Division of the Department of Biology and Biochemistry. Research faculty may serve on the committee in addition to the core of four committee members who are tenured or tenure-track faculty.

At least three of the committee members (advising or non-advising) must be tenured or tenure-track faculty members with a primary appointment in the Department of Biology and Biochemistry. The three non-advising members must include one member with a primary appointment in the Ecology and Evolution Division of the Department of Biology and Biochemistry and one member from outside the Department of Biology and Biochemistry. At least two of the committee members (advising or non-advising) must have their primary appointment in the Ecology and Evolution Division. Committee decisions can only involve one dissenting vote from a committee member.

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• Professional Science Master's Degree in Biotechnology

Application Process Update

The Department of Biological Sciences is waiving the GRE requirement for our graduate program for students applying for admission in 2022 and 2023. If you are applying without a GRE score, please enter a future GRE exam date into the application when prompted. This does not need to be an actual exam date. Entering a future date will allow your application to be sent on to our review committee where it will receive full consideration. Reporting your scores is entirely optional. If you choose to not submit a GRE score, this will have no bearing on the competitiveness of your application. If you have any questions regarding this pro​cess, please reach out to  Dr. Erica Selva or  Dr. Jessica Tanis​ Graduate Program Co-D​​irectors.

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Graduate program welcome, research facilities, admission requirements, how to apply, financial aid.

• Professional Development ​

Graduate Student Groups

Degree requirements.

See also: Quick Facts for Graduate Program Applicants

The Department of Biological Sciences offers research-based Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees with research foci in the areas of cancer biology, cardiovascular biology, cell, and extracellular matrix biology; cell and organ systems physiology; developmental biology, microbiology; molecular biology and genetics; and musculoskeletal biology. Formalized Graduate Concentrations provide students with curricula and research mentoring that are tailored to the student's career goals. We have also developed an innovative joint Ph.D./MBA program for students interested in combined training in scientific research and business administration.

We have developed both a Professional Science Master’s (PSM) and Graduate Certificate in Biotechnology to serve the needs of both prospective full-time students interested in careers in biotechnology industries and part-time students currently working in scientific industry careers. The PSM in Biotechnology blends rigorous scientific coursework taught by UD science faculty with business coursework offered through the UD Alfred Lerner College of Business capped by a six-month-long internship with one of our industrial partners. Part-time students can complete the internship requirement in their workplace as part of a professional development plan.

Our Department currently has approximately 30 faculty members and at least three additional faculty member is expected to join us in 2020. Several distinguished scientists from other departments at the University of Delaware hold joint appointments in Biological Sciences and further broaden our base of research expertise. Our graduate program also participates in the "Human Health Initiative" , which gives our graduate students additional training opportunities in pediatric research with scientists based at the Nemours Research Foundation, A.I. Dupont Hospital for Children.

At the core of our program is the exciting research carried out by our graduate faculty . Our Department's research efforts are recognized nationally and internationally. An important index of scientific excellence is the level of external funding awarded to a research program: Biological Sciences faculty hold research awards from a variety of federal agencies, and in 2009, over $7,000,000 in external grants were awarded to support Biological Sciences research efforts.

The Department of Biological Sciences offers a unique combination of state-of-the-art research facilities in a safe and very attractive campus . The University of Delaware, which originated as a private academy in 1743, is located in one of the world's most dynamic scientific corridors. Many major research centers in academic, industrial and federal laboratories are within a 90-minute drive in Philadelphia (44 miles), Baltimore (59 miles) and Washington, D.C./Bethesda (100 miles). New York lies only 133 miles from the Newark, DE campus. A large biotechnology community , including DuPont, Hercules, Siemens, and AstraZeneca, also is located in Delaware.

The Department of Biological Sciences occupies Wolf Hall which is located on the main campus and has well-equipped laboratories for research and teaching. Various core facilities including DNA sequencing, microscopy and advanced molecular imaging, whole-animal imaging, and cellular proteomics are available in the department and affiliated institutions including the Delaware Biotechnology Institute , The Nemours Research Foundation at A.I. duPont Hospital for Children and the Center for Translational Cancer Research which is a partnership between the University of Delaware, The Helen F. Graham Cancer Center and A.I. duPont Hospital for Children/Nemours Biomedical Research.

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Graduate admission criteria of the Department include a recommended minimum scholastic index (grade point average on a 4.0 point scale) of 3.0 overall and 3.0 in the sciences. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test (Verbal, Quantitative, and Writing) is required. Competitive scores are approximately 550 (Verbal) and 650 (Quantitative, Analytical).

Admission to the graduate program in Biological Sciences requires demonstrated academic excellence and the following (or the equivalent): two years of biological sciences; one semester of mathematics, preferably to include calculus and/or statistics; one year of college physics; one year of inorganic (general) chemistry; and one course in organic chemistry. Any deficiency in undergraduate training must be made up (without graduate credit) during the first year of graduate study. Further, nearly all successful applicants have prior, substantive research experience which is well documented in the application.

Applicants who are not U.S. citizens must complete the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a score of 600 or higher on the paper-based test, 250 or higher on the computer-based test, or 100 or higher on the TOEFL iBT in accordance with University of Delaware regulations for graduate assistantship eligibility . Applications from non-U.S. citizens who do not have a degree from a U.S. institution will be rejected without further review if these minima are not met. Students who need further training in English prior to attending graduate school may apply for admission through the University of Delaware English Language Institute's Conditional Admission Program .

TOEFL scores are not required of international applicants who have completed a college degree in the U.S. Foreign applicants also are strongly encouraged to complete the Test of Spoken English (TSE) with a score of 45 or higher: international students are given a test very similar to the TSE when they arrive on campus and a passing score is required in order to qualify for financial aid . Previous training or residence in the U.S. does not exempt foreign nationals from these requirements. Requests for a waiver of the language test requirements (for example, for students from English-speaking countries outside of the U.S.) must be approved by the University of Delaware Office of Graduate & Professional Education . Admission to the graduate program in Biological Sciences is competitive. Those who meet the stated minimum requirements are not guaranteed admission, nor are those who fail to meet all those requirements necessarily precluded from admission if they offer other appropriate strengths.

Research-based MS and Ph.D. Programs:

Application must be made electronically to the University's Office of Graduate & Professional Education . It must include three letters of recommendation (sent directly to the University of Delaware Office of Graduate & Professional Education) from persons able to judge the applicant's ability to pursue graduate study. All applications also must include a personal statement that addresses the following questions:

• What scientific research experience have you had?
• What are your research interests and long-term professional objectives?
• What specific attributes of our Department make you feel that it would be a good place for you?
• Are there any special circumstances related to your academic record that you feel we should know about?

Applications normally are considered only for fall entrance, but applicants who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents may request permission to enroll during the spring or summer semester. Application materials must be completed by October 1 in order to be considered for spring admission. International applicants are considered only for fall admission. Complete applications received by January 15 have optimal consideration for fall admission and financial aid; April 15 is the final Departmental deadline. In exceptional circumstances, late applications from U.S. citizens will be considered until July 1.

Professional Science Masters in Biotechnology and Certificate in Biotechnology

Application must be made electronically to the University's Office of Graduate & Professional Education . It must include three letters of recommendation (sent directly to the University of Delaware Office of Graduate & Professional Education) from persons able to judge the applicant's ability to pursue graduate study. GREs are required of PSM applicants but are not needed for the Certificate program. Applications to the PSM or Certificate in Biotechnology programs also must include a resume or CV outlining work and/or academic experience in the field of biotechnology and a personal statement that addresses the following questions:

• What scientific research/employment experience have you had? Please be specific about the field of work and job responsibilities
• What are your long-term professional objectives?
• What specific attributes of our Department and the PSM in Biotechnology make you feel that this degree is appropriate to help you achieve your professional objectives?

Applications normally are considered only for fall or spring entrance. For optimal consideration for Spring admission, all application materials should be completed by October 1, although applications will be considered until December 1st if there are remaining positions in the program. For optimal consideration for Fall admission, all application materials should be completed by January 15, although applications will be considered until July 1st if there are remaining positions in the program. Foreign nationals are encouraged to apply by the full consideration deadlines to give sufficient time to obtain the necessary visas for graduate study in the USA.

All students admitted into the research-based MS and Ph.D. programs receive generous financial aid packages of over $52,600/year. One component of the financial aid is in the form of graduate assistantships. The stipend level for 2019-2020 graduate assistantships is $26,666 per year for M.S. and pre-candidacy Ph.D. students and $28,000 per year for post-candidacy Ph.D. students. In addition, all graduate assistants in Biological Sciences receive a full-tuition scholarship, health insurance and can enroll in optional dental coverage .

The University also offers other fellowships and scholarships on a competitive basis. Additional fellowships are available through interdepartmental training grants including the NIH-funded Chemistry-Biology Interface Program .

Domestic students admitted into the Professional Science Masters Degree should file FAFSA forms to access the relevant financial aid available for Professional Graduate Study. Foreign applicants are not typically offered financial aid for the PSM program.

The University offers Graduate Student and Family Housing on campus, and a wide range of apartments are available in Newark and the surrounding area.

Professional Development

Students in the Biological Sciences graduate program are encouraged to participate in national and international scientific meetings. Financial support is available from the Department and from the University to offset the cost of travel to scientific meetings.

Graduate students also are encouraged to publish the results of their research projects in prestigious journals, books, etc. The Carson Best Paper Award is given annually to the best scientific paper published by a Ph.D. student currently enrolled in the graduate program.

The Department maintains a Biology Graduate Student Association, and the University supports a variety of graduate student groups .

All students enrolled in the research-based MS or Ph.D. program must select a Graduate Concentration with which to affiliate for the duration of their training. Each fall and spring semester, all MS and Ph.D. graduate students enroll in a graduate research seminar course which provides a mechanism to enhance oral presentation skills.

The research-based Master of Science program requires a minimum of 16 credit hours of courses and successful completion of the preliminary examination. The primary emphasis is on research that culminates in an oral defense of a written thesis. For the Ph.D. degree, a minimum of 16 credit hours of courses, successful completion of the preliminary and qualifying examinations, and the oral defense of a written dissertation are required. Two semesters of experience in the teaching of undergraduates is required of all doctoral candidates.

The preliminary examination, required of MS and Ph.D. students, is administered after completion of two semesters of study and is designed to identify the student's strengths and weaknesses so as to maximize prospects for successful completion of graduate study. The doctoral qualifying examination is an in-depth examination of the student's research specialty and is administered after six semesters of enrollment. It is expected that a significant portion of the dissertation will be suitable for publication.

The research-based M.S. degree curriculum is designed for completion in two years ; the Ph.D. curriculum is designed for completion in five years .

The Professional Science Masters in Biotechnology requires 12 credit hours of core Biology coursework, 9 credit hours of Biotechnology breadth coursework, 15 credits of “PLUS” coursework focused on business practice and ethics and a 6-month long industrial internship.

The Certificate in Biotechnology requires 9 credit hours of core Biology coursework and 6 credit hours of Biotechnology breadth coursework. The coursework leading to the certificate can be rolled into a later PSM in Biotechnology.

For further information or assistance, please contact the Department's Direc​tor of Graduate Programs .

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Ph.D. Qualifying Written Exam

Students must pass exams in 4 topics. Topics must be selected such that two of them are from one subject area and two of them could be from the remaining two subject areas or one of each*. Main subjects and the topics are listed below. *One of the topics may be selected from the topics of other PhD programs with the approval of the student's adviser.

Subject areas and topics:

Plant biotechnology:.

• Plant biotechnology - Selim Çetiner
• Plant physiology - Levent Öztürk

Molecular Biology

• Cell biology - Zehra Sayers
• Immunology - Özgür Kütük
• Molecular biology and biochemistry - Nur Mustafaoğlu and Hüveyda Başağa
• Cancer biology - Alex Lyakhovich
• Neurobiology - Nur Mustafaoğlu
• Genetics -  Ogün Adebali

Bioinformatics

• Computational biology - Ogün Adebali and Öznur Taştan
• Structural biology - Zehra Sayers and Canan Atılgan

Bioengineering:

• Biosensors - Nur Mustafaoğlu
• Tissue engineering - Nur Mustafaoğlu

The faculty members of the MBGB program suggest that the following are appropriate study subjects/references for these exams. If a resource is not indicated please consult with a faculty member whos research is similar to the subject in question or the graduate area advisor.

• Plant biotechnology exam: Textbook: Plant Biotechnology The genetic manipulation of plants Second Edition Adrian Slater, Nigel Scott, and Mark Fowler ISBN: 9780199282616 
• Chapter 1 Membrane Structure and Membranous Organelles
• Chapter 3 Membrane Transport
• Chapter 10 Protein Synthesis, Folding and Degradation
• Chapter 22 Responses to Abiotic Stress
• Chapter 23 Mineral Nutrient Acquisition, Transport, and Utilization
• Chapters 10 - 20
• Chapters 1-10.

Biochemistry;

• Amino acids, peptides, and proteins, their structure and function
• Carbohydrates and lipids and nucleic acids (their structures and functions)
• Nucleic acids and their functions
• Membranes and transport
• Bioenergetics and metabolism (electron transport chain and ox phosphorylation)

Molecular Biology;

• Genetic materials and structures
• Central Dogma: DNA Replication Transcription, Translation
• Mutability and Repair of DNA
• Regulation of gene expression
• Principles of methods used in molecular biology

Textbook: Any recent biochemistry or molecular biology textbook and recent articles from literature. Students will be asked to comment on an article from literature in terms of hypothesis, methodology used and suggestions for furthering the research.

• Principles of Biochemistry Eighth  Edition|©2021 David L. Nelson; Michael M. Cox (or earlier editions but not older than 5th)
• Chapter 12 Biosignaling
• 12.8 Regulation of Transcription by Nuclear Hormone Receptors
• 12.10 Regulation of the Cell Cycle by Protein Kinases
• 12.11 Oncogenes, Tumor Suppressor Genes, and Programmed Cell Death
• 25 DNA Metabolism
• 25.1 Medicine: DNA Repair and Cancer
• Biology Of The Cell - Bruce Alberts  (at least 4th Ed.)
• Chapter 23 Cancer

In addition, the following textbooks are highly recommended to read:

• Introduction to Cancer Biology Robin Hesketh, University of Cambridge Published 2023 2 Ed. or earlier ISBN: 9781316512616
• The Biology of Cancer Third Edition by Robert A Weinberg ISBN: 978-0-393-88764-8
• From Neuron to Brain by Author A. Robert Martin, David A. Brown, Mathew E. Diamond, Antonino Cattaneo, Francisco F. De-Miguel, and Foreword by John Nicholls ISBN: 9781605354392
• Biological sequence analysis. Probabilistic models of proteins and nucleic acids, edited by R. Durbin, S. Eddy, A. Krogh, and G. Mitchinson. 1998. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
• Altuna Akalın, Computational Genomics with R, https://compgenomr.github.io/book/stats.html (Not the coding part but the concepts)
• Branden and Tooze, Introduction to Protein Structure, 2nd edition, Garland Science, 1999.
• Bahar, Jernigan and Dill, Protein Actions, Taylor & Francis, 2017.
• Petsko and Ringe, Protein Structure and Function, New Science Press, 2007
• Biosensors: Essential, Gennady Evtugyn, Springer ISBN 978-3-642-40241-8
• Handbook of Immunoassay Technologies by Sandeep K. Vashist and John H.T. Loung ISBN 978-0-12-811762-0
• Principles of Tissue Engineering by Robert Lanza, Robert Langer, Joseph Vacanti eBook ISBN: 9780128214015, Hardcover ISBN: 9780128184226
• Concepts of Genetics, Global Edition by William S. Klug (Author), Michael R. Cummings (Author), Charlotte A. Spencer (Author), Michael A. Palladino (Author), Darrell Killian (Author) Publisher: Pearson; 12th edition (June 10, 2019) Language: English Paperback: 864 pages ISBN-10: 1292265329 ISBN-13: 978-1292265322

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PhD Qualifying exam question examples?

I'm a PhD student who is about to go into qualifying exams in the next month. I research farm animal bacterial pathogens, invertebrate infection models, microbiomes, and bacterial WGS. The format will be a set of written questions from each committee member each giving me 1-2 days to answer them. Then an oral presentation of my research followed by the much dreaded oral questioning by the committee.

Can you share examples of quals questions you've had to answer or have given? Also share any success or horror stories while at it!

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