April, 1998
Department of Biochemistry
Tulane University, Graduate School
Program of StudyThe Department of Biochemistry offers programs of study leading to the Ph.D. and M.S. degrees. The main goal of the Ph.D. program is to develop highly competent scientists capable of conducting independent research at the cutting edge of biomedical science. Combined M.D./Ph.D. and M.D./M.S. degrees are also offered to students enrolled in the School of Medicine. The minimum requirements for the Ph.D. are 48 course credits and successful completion and defense of an independent research project. For the M.S. degree, 30 credits and successful completion of a research project are required. Following the completion of a core curriculum of courses, students are encouraged to develop their own individual interests through elective courses in the Department as well as in other departments. There is no foreign language requirement. The typical curriculum for the 1st and 2nd semesters of a student's first year of study is presented below.
| First Semester | ||
| Graduate Biochemistry | GBCH 601 | 6 credits |
| Physical Principles of Biochemistry | GBCH 721 | 2 credits |
| One Laboratory Rotation | GBCH 711 | 2 credits |
| Seminar | GBCH 709 | 1 credit |
| Second Semester | ||
| Structure and Function of Biomolecules | GBCH 722 | 4 credits |
| Mol. Biol. of Gene Structure and Function | GBCH 718 | 4 credits |
| Two Laboratory Rotations | GBCH 712 | 4 credits |
| Seminar | GBCH 710 | 1 credit |
The graduate program in Biochemistry is designed for students from a variety
of undergraduate backgrounds including biochemistry, molecular biology,
cell biology, chemistry and biology. The prerequisite for admission into
the graduate program is a strong academic record as specified by the following
criteria :
B.S. or B.A. degree with a major in biological or chemical sciences from an accredited college or university
Overall undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0
Cumulative Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores (verbal + quantitative + analytical) of at least 1600 . (A GRE Subject Exam is desirable but not required. )
Students whose native tongue is not English must present satisfactory evidence of competence to read, write, and understand English. The usual criteria are a score of at least 220 on the Test of Spoken English (TSL) or a score of at least 600 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
The selection of graduate students is the responsibility of the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC). The Chair of this committee receives all applications, is responsible for all correspon-dence with applicants, and arranges for review of each application by the GSC. Qualified applicants will be selected by the GSC consonant with the spatial, supervisory and financial resources of the Department.
The GSC will appoint a faculty member of the Department to act as counselor to each student during the student's 1st year in the department. The major functions of the counselor will be to provide advice to the student as to general requirements of the program, course selection, and to assist the student with any problems that may arise related to graduate studies.
During the first year, each student in the program will rotate through the laboratories of three different faculty members of the Department. The purpose of these rotations is to introduce the student to different areas and techniques in biochemistry and to give the faculty an initial opportunity to evaluate the student. To facilitate selection of these rotations, each student will receive a one-page summary of the research interests of each faculty member who is interested in participating in the laboratory rotations. Subsequently, the student approaches the appropriate faculty members and selects laboratory rotations by mutual agreement with them. The student will notify the GSC in writing of the choice for the first laboratory rotation no later than one week after the beginning of the semester. The student's choices for the second and third rotations should be submitted in the same manner no later than the beginning of the second semester. The GSC will make every effort to accommodate the student's choices while at the same time ensuring that each student is exposed to a variety of laboratory experiences. Students should register for Biochemistry 711-712 (Lab Rotations) and will receive two hours of credit for each rotation. Laboratory rotations will be for approximately three months each and will be scheduled as follows:
|
First rotation |
from the second week of September through the end of November |
|
Second rotation |
from the 1st day of the spring semester through March 15th |
|
Third rotation |
from March 16th through the end of May |
If requested by the student, additional rotations (for 1 to 3 months duration) can be taken. Grades for each laboratory rotation will be given by the faculty supervisor who will submit to the GSC and to the student a short evaluation of the student's performance for the rotation based on effort, capabilities, and laboratory notebooks. These evaluations will become part of the students permanent file in the Department.
Following completion of his/her laboratory rotations, usually by the beginning of the second academic year, each student will select a research director from among the members of the full-time Biochemistry faculty. The student will provide to the GSC written notice of his/her selection. Following approval by the GSC, and appointment by the Departmental Chair, the research director will assume advisory functions and, in conjunction with the appropriate committees (see below), will be responsible for planning and directing the student's research and all other aspects of the student's training within the graduate program. In consultation with the student and the GSC, the research director will select the members of each of the required committees (see below).
At the end of each scholastic year until the Preliminary Examination is passed, the overall performance of each student will be evaluated by the GSC. Emphases will be on grades (which must be at least a B in each course) and the ability to do laboratory research. The Chair of the GSC will prepare a written summary of this evaluation for inclusion in the student's permanent file with the department. A copy of this summary will also be provided to the student. If, after careful consideration of all relevant factors, a majority of GSC members conclude that further graduate training in the Department is not justified, a special meeting of the entire full-time Biochemistry faculty will be called to further evaluate the student. The Chair of the Biochemistry Department will notify the student of the decision of the faculty in writing and, if appropriate, the student will be dropped from the program. The reasons for the dismissal will be detailed in the Chair's letter. A student may appeal the decision of the faculty as outlined in the Appendix.
The Preliminary Examination
The Preliminary Examination Committee will consist of at least five members, the Research Director, at least three additional members of the full-time Biochemistry faculty and at least one member from outside the Department. The members will be selected by the student's research director in consultation with the student. The Research Director will submit in writing to the Graduate Studies Committee and Departmental Chair the suggested members of the Preliminary Examination Committee. The Departmental Chair will then appoint the Preliminary Examination Committee with the student's research director as Chair of the committee.
The Preliminary (or General) Examination for Ph.D. candidacy will consist of an oral defense of an original research proposal prepared by the student independent of significant help from his/her advisor or other members of the faculty or graduate student body. The purpose of this proposal is to determine the student's ability to define a meaningful problem and to apply fundamental principles of research to its solution. The subject of this proposal should originate independently with the student. It may be related to the student's dissertation research but must be significantly different from all ongoing research projects in the Department. The specific topic must be approved by the Preliminary Examination Committee. The student will notify, in writing, the Preliminary Examination Committee of the specific title of the proposal and suggest a date for its completion and defense. The completed proposal must be submitted to the members of the Preliminary Examination Committee at least two weeks prior to the oral defense of the proposal.
The research proposal should take the form of a grant proposal similar to the Research Plan section of an NIH postdoctoral fellowship and should include the following sections: Summary, Background and Significance, Research Design and Methods, and References. Forms and sample proposals are available in the Biochemistry office.
The defense will consist of an oral presentation (approximately 30 minutes) followed by questions from the Committee. Originality, feasibility, reliability of conclusions, adequacy of controls, and the ability of the student to critically evaluate the proposed methods and probable results will be the major criteria by which proposals are evaluated. In addition, the student may be examined on fundamental concepts of Biochemistry. The Preliminary Examination must be successfully completed prior to beginning the sixth semester of graduate studies. In order to help prepare for the Preliminary Examination each student will be required to register for a two-credit tutorial offered by his/her advisor in the area of the proposal. Grading of the oral defense will be on a pass/fail basis by a simple majority of the Preliminary Exam Committee. At the end of the examination the results are to be communicated to the student by the Research Director in front of the committee. If a student's oral defense is unsatisfactory the committee may allow a re-examination. The nature and time of the re-examination will be determined by the Preliminary Examination Committee. The research director will notify, in writing, the student and the Chair of the GSC of the result of the Preliminary Exam and a copy of same will be included in the student's file.
Prospectus and Dissertation
The Prospectus-Dissertation Committee will consist of at least five members including at least three members of the full-time Biochemistry faculty and at least one member from outside the Department. The Research Director will serve as chair of the Prospectus-Dissertation Committee and will select its members in consultation with the student. The research director will be responsible for assuring the willingness of each faculty member to serve on the committee and will notify, in writing, the GSC of the composition of the Prospectus-Dissertation Committee. The Chair of the GSC will then request formal appointment of the Prospectus-Dissertation Committee by the Departmental Chair.
The Prospectus-Dissertation Committee will form the nucleus of the final examination committee (see below) and it will have its first meeting within three months of the successful completion of the Preliminary Examination. .
In addition to approval of the prospectus (see Graduate Catalog) by a formal meeting, the function of the Prospectus-Dissertation Committee is to regularly review the scholastic and research activities of the student in order to provide advice and guidance throughout the course of the student's research. The Prospectus-Dissertation Committee will meet as often as necessary to fulfill its function but not less than once every academic year. The student will be responsible for scheduling each meeting of the committee. Prior to the first meeting of the committee, the student will submit a brief outline of the research plan. For all other meetings, the student will prepare and distribute to each member of the committee, at least two weeks in advance of the meeting, a written summary of his/her work since the last meeting of the committee. Following each meeting, the research director will prepare a written summary of the meeting; one copy of which will be given to the student and one copy to the Graduate Studies Committee for inclusion in the student's permanent file.
The Final Examination
The final examination committee is appointed by the Departmental Chair and approved by the Dean of the Graduate School; it must include the members of the Prospectus-Dissertation Committee but it may include any other members of the Graduate Faculty and faculty members of other departments or other universities. The maximum number of voting members of the Final Examination Committee will be seven. The Chair of the GSC will serve as Chair of the Final Examination Committee, except for his/her own students or when he/she is already a member of the Prospectus-Dissertation Committee. In either of these cases the Chair of the Final Examination Committee will be chosen by the GSC from the members of the full-time Biochemistry faculty.
At least three weeks prior to the Final Examination, the student will submit to each member of the committee a complete copy of the dissertation. The final examination will consist of a departmental seminar by the student summarizing his/her work followed by questions from the Final Examination Committee and other members of the Department. The Final Examination Committee will then determine by a written ballot whether the student passes or fails. At least 70% of the committee members must vote "pass" for the dissertation to be accepted. (This means that for five and six member committees, the student must receive at least four and five "pass" votes, respectively, to pass; for seven member committees, the student must receive at least five "pass" votes to pass. Abstentions will be considered negative votes.) With the exception of the Chair, all members of the Final Examination Committee will be considered voting members.
Appendix
1. At the Department's discretion, the group making the original judgment may convene for reconsideration.
2. If it chooses not to reconsider, or if reconsideration affirms the original judgment, the student may appeal, in which case one of the following procedures should be followed:
If the Department is large enough, an appellate committee may be formed from members of the Department's graduate faculty who were not involved in the original judgment. Further appeal may be referred to the Graduate Dean or the Academic Performance Committee.
If the Department is small, or if the whole Department makes a consensus judgment of academic performance, the appeal should be referred directly to the Graduate Dean and the Academic Performance Committee.
3. The departmental student representative may not sit on cases of reconsideration or appeal.
Addenda
March 13, 1998
A. The following procedure must be followed at all Preliminary Examination, Prospectus Approvals, and Final examinations. After presentation and questioning, each voting member of the committee will receive a ballot which will provide three options: pass, table, or fail. If all members vote to pass, no discussion is required. If any member voted to table or to fail, discussion is mandatory. The charge of the committee is to strive for a consensus as to the areas of weakness that the candidate needs to address before a pass can be awarded. Following discussion, each member will fill out a final signed ballot. The chairman of the committee and the student's thesis advisor together will communicate any requisite changes to the student. A conditional pass will be entered into the student's record as "tabled" until the student corrects the specified weaknesses to the committee's satisfaction.
B. The Department requires that a Prospectus-Dissertation Committee be composed of five members with at least three from the Department and one from outside the Department. The Department also requires that the Chair of the GSC act as Chair of the Final Examination Committee. Thus, at least six persons must participate in the Final Examination (although only five of these six can vote). In view of the substantial time and effort required to evaluate a dissertation and participate in an examination, and in view of the difficulty of organizing a meting of this number of persons, the Graduate Studies Committee has recommended to the Departmental Chairman that no more than one person, other than those requested by the Chair of the Prospectus-Dissertation Committee (the Advisor), be appointed to a Final Examination Committee.