The University of Georgia requires a minimum of three full years of study beyond the Bachelor's degree for the award of a PhD degree. At least two consecutive semesters of full-time work (enrollment for 30 hours of consecutive course work on the program of study) must be spent in resident study on the campus.

The Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology requires a grade of "B" or better in all core courses. If a student fails to receive a "B" in a core course, the course must be repeated until a "B" is earned. The first-year core curriculum consists of the following: one semester of Graduate Professional Development (BCMB8005), two semesters of Advanced Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BCMB8010 and BCMB8020), Introduction to Research in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BCMB 8030), two semesters of Laboratory Rotation (BCMB8035 for both MSc and PhD students), one semester of a Graduate Teaching Internship that is required by the Graduate School (GRSC7770), and one of the following four courses - two semesters of Physical Chemistry (CHEM6911 and CHEM6912), Advanced Physical Biochemistry (BCMB8040), Molecular Cell Biology (CBIO8010), or Nucleic Acids (GENE8920). All BCMB Graduate Students are also required to attend the Regular Seminar Series. First and second year students should enroll in BMB8060 for 1 credit hour each semester. Third and fourth year students should enroll in BCMB8060 for 2 credit hours once during the academic term and are expected to present a research seminar during the enrolled semester. All students must also enroll in electives, 4 hours or 6 hours for MSc and PhD candidates, respectively, that can include courses in the BCMB8100 series or other 8000 level BCMB courses approved by the Graduate Affairs Committee. One graduate level course from a department other than BCMB, including but not limited to Cellular Biology, Genetics, Microbiology, Plant Biology, Statistics or Computer Science, can be applied to the elective requirement with permission of the Graduate Coordinator or the Graduate Affairs Committee.

The Laboratory Rotation requirement (BCMB8035) is waived as soon as a student chooses a laboratory for his/her thesis or dissertation research and enrolls in BCMB7000 or BCBM9000.

The Graduate School and BCMB require that ALL graduate students enroll in GRSC7770. Domestic students must enroll in a one-hour section of GRSC7770 and International students must enroll in a three-hour section unless their previous degree is from a U.S. institution. See the Graduate Coordinator for recommended sections of this course.

The Graduate School also requires that students who wish to receive a tuition fee waiver as Teaching or Research Assistants enroll for a minimum of 12 hours to maintain their eligibility. Students who fail to register for at least 12 hours will be assessed with full tuition costs. Don’t forget, the Graduate School residency requirement is 30 consecutive hours of course work (this does not include the summer semester).

All students will take the following program of study to maximize progression through the degree program. Divergence from this program must be approved by the Graduate Affairs Committee.

All students must also follow the following time line to satisfy
both Departmental and Graduate School requirements
for continual progression towards a final degree.

All forms are available at the
Graduate School web site <www.grad.uga.edu>

COURSE EXEMPTIONS

Students entering the Graduate Program with an MS degree may exempt a course through written petition to the Graduate Student Affairs Committee. The petition should include a syllabus of the course offered as an exemption and a copy of a transcript documenting the grade received in the course. A letter of support from a student's advisory committee or major professor may be included with the petition. Students entering with a BS in Chemistry or Biochemistry and documentation showing that they have completed a two semester (three quarter) P-Chem course for majors may also petition to exempt the P-Chem requirement.

MAJOR PROFESSOR AND ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Entering graduate students must enroll in laboratory rotation (BCMB9000) each semester until they have been accepted into a research laboratory for their thesis or dissertation research project. Students are urged to make this decision by the end of the first Spring semester. The student in consultation with his major professor should select his/her advisory committee as soon as possible after selecting a major professor (three members for an M.S. or Ph.D. candidate). A student's major professor is included in the committee count and serves as the chairperson of the committee. At least two committee members must be BCMB faculty or adjunct faculty. Students with Co-Chairpersons must have a total of four members on their MS or Ph.D. advisory committee. When putative committee members have agreed to serve, the student is responsible for submitting a Committee Form to the Graduate School. Electronic forms are available at the Graduate School Web Site www.grad.uga.edu.

MANDATORY COMMITTEE MEETINGS

The graduate affairs committee, the dean of the Graduate School, and the head of BCMB all feel strongly that students should meet with their advisory committee at least once every year. The meetings may take different forms and in some years may consist of individual meetings with each committee member to discuss progress and plans for the next year. All meetings that you have with your committee should be documented and placed in your permanent file. With this in mind, the graduate affairs committee has determined the MINIMUM number of advisory meetings that a graduate student must convene with his/her committee and document in writing for his/her permanent file.

1. The first MANDATORY meeting will be as soon as the student has chosen a major professor and advisory committee. The purpose of the meeting will be to review the student's program of study and recommend additional course work or elective courses to complete the preliminary program of study. A student cannot be advanced to candidacy until the course work on the program of study is completed. This meeting MUST be programmed before the end of the first summer in residence. To document this meeting, a student should submit a Preliminary Program of Study (PhD candidates) or a program of study (MS candidates) signed by the members of the advisory committee. The Forms are available on the Grad School Web Site www.grad.uga.edu. Go to Student forms and then to Enrolled Students.
   
   
2. The second MANDATORY meeting will be before the student takes his written comprehensive examination (before the end of the second summer in residence). The purpose of the meeting will be for the student to give a progress report on his research project and to determine the areas to be tested in the written exam. The meeting should be at least six weeks prior to the exam to allow sufficient preparation time. The meeting MUST be documented for the student's file in a short, signed letter from the major professor describing the proceedings. Following the written examination the Major professor must submit a short memo to the graduate coordinator stating that the student has passed or failed the exam.
   
   
3. The third MANDATORY meeting of the advisory committee will be for the oral exam (after the written exam and prior to the end of the third Fall semester in residence). Documentation (in addition to a copy of the one page form submitted to the Graduate School) will include a one-page description of performance and progress submitted by the major professor.
   
   
4. The fourth MANDATORY meeting will be before the end of the student's fourth year in residence IF the student is not defending a thesis or dissertation. Documentation will include signatures of the Advisory Committee and a written report from the major professor indicating that acceptable progress has been made toward completion of a doctoral dissertation.

All requests to exempt or extend any of these deadlines should be addressed to the Graduate Affairs Committee and should carry the endorsement of a student's major professor. The department will track these deadlines so each student is required to notify the graduate secretary or graduate coordinator of each milestone and be sure that the documentation is filed with the graduate secretary. Students who fail to meet any of the deadlines will not be cleared to register for the following semester.

Guidelines for the Second Mandatory Meeting:

As stipulated in the revised policy of the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, students must meet with their committee six weeks prior to the written examination. (This meeting must occur no latter than the end of the second year for students who matriculated during a Fall semester and by the end of the third year for students who matriculated during a Spring semester.) The graduate affairs committee recommends that students hold this meeting as soon as possible. While the policy states that students can meet with the committee or with members individually, it is highly recommended that students schedule a meeting with the full committee. This meeting does not represent an examination; there is no pass/fail. Rather, it is an opportunity for the committee members to become acquainted with the student's course of study and to gain an overview of his/her proposed doctoral research program. The student should provide the committee members with a transcript of graduate courses taken and grades received, and suggest other possible electives (optional). A short presentation (15-20 minutes suggested) should be given of the major research goals and any critical preliminary data. A detailed presentation of the student's data is not warranted at this meeting; rather, that will be given during the oral examination. The student should also suggest a time for the written examination.

After meeting with the student, it is advised that the committee members meet in executive session to discuss the specific area(s) that each will develop on the written examination and the time frame for submission of questions to the major professor. The student should be informed of areas to be covered and be given suggested reading in the area.

The major professor should collect all questions and circulate them to the committee members for review before the written examination is administered. It is the major professor's responsibility to revise questions as requested by any committee member after reviewing the other questions. The major professor is then responsible for administering the examination on alternate days, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, i.e., one day per committee member, and distributing the papers to the committee members for grading. The committee members will submit their grade to both the major professor and the Graduate Coordinator.

PRELIMINARY PROGRAM OF STUDY

A program of study developed and signed by the advisory committee at a student's first committee meeting MUST be submitted to the graduate coordinator. The program should contain all completed course work as well as proposed course work. Forms are available on the Graduate School Web Page.

FINAL PROGRAM OF STUDY

A final program of study should be submitted to the Graduate School PRIOR to notification of the oral comprehensive examination. The final program must show all courses relevant to the doctoral program and not just courses satisfying the degree requirement. A minimum of three hours of BCMB9300, doctoral dissertation (MS candidates are required to enroll in a minimum of three hours of BCMB7300, master's thesis) must be included in the program. The required form is available on the Graduate School web page and the advisory committee, the graduate coordinator, and the dean of the Graduate School must sign it.

COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATIONS

The comprehensive exams system consists of the following:

A comprehensive written examination administered by the student's Advisory Committee to determine the depth and breadth of knowledge in biochemistry and a students intended area of research.

A comprehensive oral examination administered by a student's Advisory Committee to assess in depth research readiness and ability.

Both comprehensive examinations must be completed before a student can be admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. MS candidates are not required to take either exam.

WRITTEN EXAMINATION

All PhD students must complete their written comprehensive examination by the end of the second summer in residence. MS students are not required to take the written examination. Since core courses are completed during the first semester of the second year, this allows students to schedule exams from the beginning of the Fall semester of their second year through the end of the Summer semester of their second year. The Graduate Advisory Committee encourages students to complete the requirement as soon as possible. Each student is responsible for arranging a one or two week exam period with his or her Advisory committee. Don't forget faculty often take vacations and go to meetings over the summer semester and it can be difficult to arrange an exam schedule! Be sure that you make arrangements early in the second year of tenure. Each committee member will have one day to examine the student with a "free" day between each test period. The examination can take any form agreed upon by the committee member and the student, but must contain a written component. The Graduate School does not require a Form reporting the outcome of this examination, as it is a component of the Advancement to Candidacy Form submitted to the Graduate School at a later time. STUDENTS WHO FAIL TO COMPLETE THE WRITTEN EXAMS IN THE DESIGNATED TIME PERIOD WILL BE DISMISSED FROM THE GRADUATE PROGRAM.

ORAL EXAMINATION

All students must complete their oral comprehensive examination by the end of the Fall semester of their third year in residence. Since written examinations could be completed as early as the end of the second Spring Semester in residence, this allows students to schedule exams from the end of the Spring semester to the end of the Fall semester (8 months). The Graduate Affairs Committee (And Graduate Dean strongly recommend that students complete the Oral Examination as soon as possible. This schedule provides flexibility for those students whose advisory committees recommend course work outside of the core prior to taking the Oral Exam. Students who take their written exams at the last possible time (end of the second summer) would still have 14 weeks to prepare for and pass the oral exam. And don't forget, students are responsible for scheduling an Oral Exam date with their committee members.

STUDENTS MUST NOTIFY THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THEIR ORAL EXAMINATION TWO WEEKS PRIOR TO THE EXAM. THE GRADUATE COORDINATOR MUST SUBMIT THE ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE STUDENT SHOULD E-MAIL THE COORDINATOR WITH THE DATE, TIME, AND LOCATION OF THE EXAM AS WELL AS A LISTING OF THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND THE STUDENTS I.D. NUMBER.

When a student passes the oral exam, a form stating that the comprehensive examinations have been successfully completed must be submitted to the graduate school. The graduate school mails the form to the Graduate Coordinator who distributes it to the major professor. If your advisor has not received the form a couple of days before your oral exam, please notify the Coordinator. STUDENTS WHO FAIL TO COMPLETE THE ORAL EXAM IN THE DESIGNATED TIME PERIOD WILL BE DISMISSED FROM THE GRADUATE PROGRAM.

The Oral comprehensive exam requires a written proposal, which is to be distributed to the committee members two week prior to the exam. It is expected that the written proposal will be thorough and concise. If the proposal is not satisfactory to the student's advisory committee, he/she will be asked to submit a rewritten manuscript. The format of the proposal is taken from the NIH guidelines for R01 grant applications and a set of guidelines is attached.

GUIDELINES FOR WRITTEN PROPOSAL FOR ORAL COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATION

(Adapted from NIH guidelines for the Research Plan of an RO1 application, PHS 398 format, minus the form pages.)

The first page of the proposal should list the student's name, the project title, the date of the oral exam, and the names of the major professor and committee members. The second page should give an Abstract or Summary of the project, not to exceed half a page.

The Research Plan should begin on p. 3 and include sufficient information needed for evaluation of the project, independent of any other document. Be specific and informative, and avoid redundancies.

Organize items a-d to answer these questions: (1) What do you intend to do? (2) Why is the work important? (3) What has already been done? (4) How are you going to do the work? Do not exceed 25 pages for Items ad, including figures and tables. The text should be typed single space (12 point). The following format and page distribution are recommended.

Specific Aims. List the broad, long-term objectives and what the specific research proposed in this application is intended to accomplish. State the hypotheses to be tested. One page is recommended.

Background and Significance. Briefly sketch the background leading to the present application, critically evaluate existing knowledge, and specifically identify the gaps which the project is intended to fill. State concisely the importance and health relevance of the research described in this application by relating the specific aims to the broad, long-term objectives. Two to three pages are recommended.

Preliminary Studies. Use this section to provide an account of the preliminary studies pertinent to the application and/or any other information that will help to establish the credibility of the proposed project. Six to eight pages are recommended for the narrative portion of the Preliminary Studies.

Research Design and Methods. Describe the research design and the procedures to be used to accomplish the specific aims of the project. Include how the data will be collected, analyzed, and interpreted. Describe any new methodology and its advantage over existing methodologies. Discuss the potential difficulties and limitations of the proposed procedures and alternative approaches to achieve the aims. As part of this section, provide a tentative sequence or timetable for the project. Point out any procedures, situations, or materials that may be hazardous to personnel and the precautions to be exercised.

Literature Cited. List all references numerically in the text, and each reference given must include the title, names of all authors, book or journal, volume number, page numbers, and year of publication. The reference should be limited to relevant and current literature. While there is not a page limitation on references, it is important to be concise and to select only those literature references pertinent to the proposed research.

DISSERTATION PROSPECTUS

Prior to admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree, a student must submit a dissertation prospectus to the graduate coordinator to be placed in the student's permanent records and to be forwarded to the graduate school. The prospectus takes the form of a written statement of a student's research project and plans to her/his advisory committee. It may consist of a thorough outline or a more formal report that includes an indication of research expectations and requirements for completion of the Ph.D. degree. The prospectus must be signed by the advisory committee and filed prior to advancement to candidacy.

ADMISSION TO CANDIDACY

A student must file for admission to candidacy using a form found on the Graduate School Web Page. A student may file when she/he has completed the following:

• All prerequisites set as a condition to admission have been satisfactorily completed.
• A final program of study.
• A GPA of 3.0 has been maintained on all graduate courses. No course with a grade of "C" may appear on the final program of study.
• Written and oral comprehensive exams have been passed.
• The advisory committee has been confirmed.
• The residency requirement has been met.

Ph.D. DISSERTATION APPROVAL AND DEFENSE

The dissertation should be approved by the major professor and distributed to the advisory committee two weeks prior to the final defense. A final oral defense should be scheduled and the Graduate School should be notified TWO WEEKS PRIOR to the defense. The graduate coordinator must submit the notification, which must include time, date, place, title, advisory committee and student ID number. The student must request the notification and supply the information by e-mail to the graduate coordinator.

The dissertation must be revised and submitted to the graduate school no later than the last day of classes of the following semester. Dissertations that are not submitted by this time must be redefended by seminar and oral examination.

Please see the Graduate School Bulletin for instructions concerning Dissertation binding, electronic submission of a dissertation, and payment of the microfilm fee to the University treasurer.

MS THESIS

A candidate must submit a thesis showing independent judgment in developing a problem from primary sources. The student's advisory committee must approve the thesis. Following approval, the thesis must be submitted to the Graduate School for approval no later than two weeks prior to graduation.