Plant Biology Graduate Track

PhD program:

Curriculum: 9 credits from the following list of courses

Biol 523 (3 credits) Plant Development

Biol 528 (3 credits) Spring Flora

Biol 627 (3 credits) Phytoplankton Ecology

Biol 671 (3 credits) Plant Responses to the Environment

Biol 702 (1-3 credits) Selected Topics in Plant Biology

Biol 762 (3 credits) Wetland Ecology

Biol 764 (3 credits) Advanced Plant Physiology

Students are strongly encouraged to enroll in a seminar course each semester (either Biol 801, 802, 803 or 804) and are required to do so every semester they are on campus following their first year.

Qualifying Exam: The Qualifying Exam consists of a written research proposal followed by an oral defense of the proposal. Students will prepare and defend their research proposal by the end of the third semester of study. The exam will be administered by a provisional committee. The student will write a grant proposal in NSF format based on their planned dissertation work. The student will submit the written proposal to their committee and, if the written version is acceptable, the student will subsequently defend the proposal orally. Students may wish to take a grant writing course to learn about the details/mechanics of writing a grant proposal.

Advancement to Candidacy: Students will be advanced to candidacy following the successful completion of the Qualifying Exam and the submission of the Program of Study. Once a student has advanced to candidacy, a dissertation committee will be formed.

Comprehensive Exam: Students must complete the Comprehensive Exam by the end of their fifth semester. The exam will be administered by the dissertation committee. The student will write a grant proposal in NSF format on a topic not related to their dissertation work. The student will submut the written proposal to the committee and will subsequently defend the proposal orally.

Written dissertation and oral defense

MS Program:

Curriculum: Same as for PhD

Comprehensive Exam: Students must complete a Comprehensive Exam that includes a written and oral component. This exam may be in the form of an oral defense of a written research thesis.

Written thesis

Go to Graduate Studies in the Department of Biological Sciences