Program Tracks

Students can undertake thesis work in a variety of disciplines, from laboratory or patient- or community-focused investigation.

Requirements for the program include completion of eight courses. Coursework begins in year one, with the majority of the course requirements to be completed by the end of the first year of study. Electives may be taken in year one or year two, with the expectation that coursework will be completed by the end of the second year. Electives are chosen in consultation with the student's advisor and the director of graduate studies. To be eligible to take the comprehensive qualifying examination, students must achieve a grade of Honors in two courses, have a minimum grade average of High Pass, and have completed a minimum of six courses. When these requirements are met (typically by the end of the spring term year one), students submit their thesis proposal and undertake the comprehensive qualifying examination. To be admitted to candidacy, students must submit a thesis prospectus which has to be approved by their qualifying committee and pass both the oral and written comprehensive qualifying examinations. The remaining degree requirements include completion of coursework and the dissertation project and writing of the dissertation and its oral defense.

• Required course work (years one and two)
• Comprehensive qualifying examination and admission to candidacy by end of the spring term year one, no later than end of the fall term, year two
• Thesis completion and oral defense

Admission to Candidacy indicates that the student is prepared to conduct original and independent research. It is expected that students be admitted to candidacy by the end of the spring term year one and no later than end of the fall term, year two. The student will be admitted to candidacy upon fulfilment of the requirements below. The qualifying (thesis) committee will vote to admit the student to candidacy during the comprehensive oral examination. Once the student has been admitted to candidacy, the qualifying committee will then become the thesis committee.

• Course Requirements
• Honors Requirement
• Pre-Qualifying Committee Meeting
• Thesis Prospectus
• Comprehensive Oral and Written Qualifying Examinations
• Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research (IMED 630)

By January 31 of year one, the student presents their research project to the thesis committee. Before the meeting, the student prepares a one-page single-space preliminary research (pre-prospectus) proposal, sent to the thesis committee and the IMP office at least one week prior to the meeting. The proposal should be reviewed by the primary mentor. The student meets with the committee to present and discuss the research proposal (the meeting should be for one hour). Assuming committee agreement after discussion, the student and committee decide upon a list of reading topics on which the student will be examined during the comprehensive qualifying examination, with subsequent selection of approximately 10-12 primary and 2-3 review papers on the topic. Before the comprehensive qualifying examination, the student will meet with each committee member at least once to discuss the papers (reading topic).

By the end of the spring term year one, or no later than the end of fall term year two, students are expected to take their qualifying examination. The qualifying examination is comprised of two components:

1. preparation and discussion of thesis prospectus and oral examination, and
2. written examination.

The student must prepare a written prospectus using the format of a grant proposal. It should not cumulatively exceed 13 pages (single-spaced, 1-inch margins, 11-point Arial or Helvetica font) in length. The prospectus is to be submitted to the IMP office at least one week before the date of the oral examination and simultaneously distributed to all members of the thesis committee; it should be reviewed with the primary mentor before submission. The written proposal should have the following sections:

1. Title Page (also include student’s and mentor’s names)
2. Specific Aims (1 page or less): A concise statement of the general problem under study and the explicit goals of the project.
3. Significance (3-4 pages): This section should place the proposal in context, highlighting its significance and describing the system in a manner intelligible, including to a non-specialist. This should include a brief, but critical, evaluation of the relevant literature and a description of how the research project will advance knowledge in the field.
4. Progress to date (3-4 pages): Description of the preliminary data (if any) and interpretation of the data generated.
5. Proposed research Plan (3-4 pages): Outline the research envisioned at this time and indicate how it will help you attain the overall goals of the project. Acknowledge pitfalls and limitations of experimental approach, and if possible, suggest alternative strategies.
6. References: Should be included at the end (not counted in the page limit). Figures, tables, and diagrams should be included in the text as needed for explication; figure legends can be 10-point font.

The goal of the oral examination is to assess knowledge specific to the proposed thesis work as detailed in the written prospectus. It is expected to last 90 minutes. At outset, the committee chooses a chair (not the mentor) who the leads examination. The thesis advisor is present but is asked to not participate unless called upon. For the oral examination, students must present the preliminary hypothesis and direction of their proposed research project over 30 minutes and address any questions (interruptions) from the qualifying (thesis) committee during the presentation. After the presentation, each committee member will ask at the least two questions based upon the topic of the presentation and the reading topics assigned at time of the pre-prospectus meeting. Upon completion of the exam, the student is excused and the committee assesses performance, after which the student is asked to return and results of the oral exam provided by the committee chair.

The grade for the oral qualifying examination will be a Pass or Fail. For a truly outstanding performance, a pass with Distinction shall be given. Students who receive a grade of Fail will be given one further opportunity to retake the qualifying examination. Unacceptable performance on the re-examination will result in a review of the student’s candidacy. Students may receive a conditional pass if the qualifying committee feels there is one particular area from the examination that needs additional work although the student demonstrates competency in all other areas. Correction of a deficient area will be accomplished, for example, by a written paper from the student or repeat oral questions by the committee chair within 2 weeks following the examination. Upon successful completion, the student will be granted a pass.

The goal of the written examination is to evaluate the student’s ability to investigate a topic using the available knowledge base. Students will be given several questions (two from each committee member). The student will select two questions and will have 10 working days to prepare a written response. The questions will require the student to formulate a hypothesis, and then write a 6-page proposal in the format of an NIH application, including specific aims, background and significance, preliminary data, research design and methods, and bibliography (the latter will not count towards the 6-page limit). The response to each question is to be reviewed by the committee member that wrote the question and will be either pass/fail.

Students should meet at least twice in the first year with their committee. Additional meetings may be needed at the discretion of the committee. It is expected that by January 31 students are to hold their pre-qualifying committee meeting at which time the student will present a preliminary (pre-) prospectus. The qualifying meeting should be held by end of spring term, year one or no later than end of fall term year two.

Students who have been admitted to candidacy must meet with their thesis committee at 6-month intervals (at a minimum) throughout the duration of their training. The meetings will be scheduled in advance. The thesis advisor serves as chair of the committee and all committee meetings, except for the prospectus meeting. The thesis advisor will report to the program registrar and the director of graduate studies about the outcome of each meeting, including progress of the student and any recommendations by the committee.

Years Two through Completion

• Completion of coursework
• Meeting of thesis committee at least every 6 months
• Written dissertation and its oral defense