PhD and MS Requirements

PhD and MS General Requirements of the Graduate School

PhD

The requirements for the PhD in Microbiology conform to the requirements of the Graduate School as set forth in the Graduate School Catalog. These requirements include approximately 44 to 48 academic credits, a second-year review, a general examination, and a final examination based on the dissertation (dissertation defense). Satisfactory completion of at least 15 credits of GRAD 6950 Doctoral Dissertation Research or GRAD 6960 Full-Time Doctoral Dissertation Research is required. A plan of study listing courses to be completed for the degree must be filed with the Graduate School before twelve credits are completed. These and other requirements of the Doctor of Philosophy degree are described in the Graduate Catalog.

Graduate students, their advisors, and their advisory committees are responsible for shaping student curricula depending upon each student's background and interests. An advisory committee is composed of a student's major advisor and two associate advisors chosen by the student after consultation with his/her advisor. An additional two faculty examiners must be added to the committee before taking the General Examination.

The number of courses and research credits that comprise the required 44-48 credits is determined by the students and their advisors. Typically about one-half of these credits are from coursework. Courses in microbiology, genetics, and biochemistry are used to fulfill this requirement. Appropriate courses outside these areas can also be used. All Microbiology graduate students must take MCB 5699, a weekly discussion of current topics in microbiology attended by students and microbiologists from around campus, at least twice during their program. Each student is expected to make presentations at these discussions periodically. Meetings of individual laboratory groups, as well as departmental meetings, provide students with opportunities to present their own research findings. Between years 2 and 4, all students must take MCB 5893 (Special Topics in Cellular & Molecular Biology)

SECOND YEAR REVIEW

Before the end of May of the second year, the students need to take the 2nd year review.

  • Follow the instructions for the Second Year Review
  • In brief, the purpose of the Second Year Review is for you to demonstrate that you have established the foundational knowledge in your research area such that you can craft impactful research questions for your thesis proposal.
  • Following the instructions, you will prepare a 2-3 page document describing the background and significance of your topic area, leading to your research questions and their importance. Your advisor can provide general input on this document but you are responsible for writing it.
  • You will also prepare a short (~20 minute) talk describing your research question and progress to date.
  • Your discussion with your committee will be based on both your document and your research talk.
  • The signed report on the 2ndyear review is given to the MCB Graduate Program Coordinator, Chelsea Bartos (BPB108).
  • Any corrective actions to the 2ndyear review need to be completed prior to authorization to take the General Exam in the third year.

MICROBIOLOGY GENERAL EXAMINATION

The Microbiology General Examination will follow the MCB guidelines. The exam must occur by the end of the third year of the Ph.D. program. Before starting the exam process, students must prepare a one-page Specific Aims document in consultation with their advisor. This document must be approved by the student’s committee before proceeding further. The committee may also provide feedback to the student at this time. To pass the General Examination, a student must pass both the written and oral portions.

Written Proposal:

Students will prepare a written research proposal that will be evaluated by their committee for both scientific content and the quality of the writing. This proposal must be submitted to the committee 10 business days (2 calendar weeks) before the public presentation and oral exam occur. The format of this document should broadly follow conventions for grants in the student’s research area, although specific formatting decisions are left to the student within the broader MCB guidelines See General Exam Requirements. Advisors may provide input on this document but will disclose the extent of this input to the committee. Any AI tools used to craft the document must also be fully documented (e.g., the exact tools and prompts used and for what purpose) and disclosed to the committee.

 Public Presentation:

A short (25-30 min) public seminar will be given before the oral exam. However, it is not a graded part of the exam. This presentation will describe the student’s subject area, hypotheses, and experimental approach. Students will receive feedback from their committee on the presentation.

 Oral Examination:

 A closed-door oral exam will occur following the public seminar to discuss questions arising from the proposal and the candidate’s general scientific knowledge. This will be conducted by the examining committee and any other faculty who wish to participate. The meeting will be chaired by a member of the committee and not the major advisor, who will instead be present primarily as an observer.

Following the successful completion of the General Examination, the committee will sign the Report of the General Examination for the Doctoral Degree (and give it to the MCB Graduate Program Coordinator.

Plan A and B MS Degree

The requirements for the MS degree in Microbiology conform to the requirements of the Graduate School as set forth in the Graduate School Catalog. Master's degrees may be earned under either of two plans as determined by the advisory committee. The first plan emphasizes research, the second requires a comprehensive understanding of a more general character.

Plan A requires 21 content course credits including
MCB 5884 MCB Research in Progress (1 credit)
MCB 6001 Intro to MCB Research (3 credits)
MCB 6002 Introduction to Faculty Research (1 credit)
on a Plan A Master's plan of study and a minimum of 9 credits of GRAD 5950, as well as the writing and oral defense of a thesis.

Plan B requires a minimum of 30 content course credits including
MCB 5884 MCB Research in Progress  (1 credit), a final examination, but no thesis.

In either case, advisory committees may require more than the minimum number of credits. Please see 1st Semester Course Requirements Flow Chart. Check the Graduate Catalog for details on transferring credits, time limits and other information.

All Microbiology MS students (both Plan A and B) must take MCB 5699 at least once during their program. Other suggested courses include MCB 5621, MCB 5631, and MCB 5679.

Students interested in careers in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries may also pursue an MS degree in Microbial Systems Analysis in the Professional Science Master’s (PSM) program (Contact psm@uconn.edu for more information).