...
All BME Ph.D. students are required to review and sign the BME milestone agreement at the beginning of their first semester.
Coursework Requirements
Personalized Learning Plan
...
All BME Ph.D. students are expected to secure a faculty advisor during their first semester in the program. Failure to do so will delay the qualifying exam process and will impact completion of program milestones on time. Students who fail to secure a faculty advisor by the end of their second long semester may be dismissed from the Ph.D. program. In this case, students may petition the Graduate Studies Committee to remain enrolled in the program as a master's degree seeking student.
Qualifying Exam
Students must pass a qualifying exam at the end of their first year. This is required for students to continue in the Ph.D. program. This exam has both written and oral components. Detailed instructions for the qualifying exam are available at the graduate office and are provided to students in advance. Details can also be found in this program handbook. Students advance to candidacy following successful completion of the qualifying exam.
Advancing to Candidacy
Following successful completion of the qualifying exam, students apply to advance to candidacy. In order to advance to candidacy, students must identify a doctoral dissertation committee of at least four members in consultation with their faculty supervisor.
Dissertation Proposal
Students must complete their dissertation proposal by the end of their third year, but are encouraged to do so as early as the end of the second year. The proposal exam includes both a written and an oral component. The written component involves submitting an NIH R01 proposal (maximum 12 pages) to the student’s dissertation committee no less than two weeks prior to defending it orally to the same committee.
...
Final Oral
...
Exam
Students complete their final oral defenseexam typically at the end of their fifth year. The Graduate School provides critical information regarding deadlines, paperwork, and scheduling. Students file to graduate at the beginning of their final semester.
...