Official Web site of the University of California, San Diego
Copyright ©2008 Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Contact Us
The first year
graduate program is carefully structured to accomplish three distinct
but interrelated purposes:
During their first year, all entering students pursue a rigorous academic program consisting of a sequence of graduate core courses (aimed at providing up-to-date coverage of three large subject areas) and a minimum of two electives. Students take Molecular Biology and Protein Biochemistry during the Fall quarter, Cell Biology during the Winter quarter, and Genetics during the Spring quarter. In addition, they enroll in at least two of the following electives: Immunology, Developmental Biology, Plant Molecular Biology, Neurobiology, Virology, Signal Transduction or Cancer Biology. Students in the evolutionary biology program take one quarter course in evolution and genetics, one in ecology, and one in behavioral biology. Electives are then drawn from three advanced graduate courses whose topics vary annually. For either track, the first year is the only period in which course work is required.
View a chart of first year courses for the graduate program.
The Rotation Program represents a major part of the educational efforts of your first year. Its success depends on thoughtful and conscientious participation by you, the faculty members you rotate under, and your first-year advisor.
The goals of the Rotation Program are to introduce you to our research community, the depth and richness of its ongoing research programs, and to provide you with an introduction to a variety of research methodologies and conceptual approaches. The Rotation Project is designed to introduce you to new concepts and should allow you to organize and conduct creative experiments. Rotation Projects are not just technical exercises designed solely to produce data. A key outcome of the Rotation Program is to provide you with an opportunity to explore potential thesis research projects and advisors.
General guidelines
All students are required to take a First-Year Comprehensive Examination. The exam tests general knowledge in biological sciences with emphasis on material covered in the core curriculum. It is a qualifying exam, which means that performance on the exam, along with performance on rotations and in the core courses, will be used to determine your ability to synthesize ideas, interpret facts, and think logically.
In some cases, after evaluating a student’s performance (class work, rotations, and exam), faculty may ask a student to leave the program or place the student on a probationary status. The probationary period may involve activities such as retaking the exam, defending an oral proposition, additional TA responsibilities, coursework in deficient areas, or other measures the Graduate Committee deems necessary.
Students in all Tracks (except EBE) take an open-book, take-home exam, administered over a five-day period. You will have access to all resources that any scientist has in pursuing a problem except collaboration with others. The division has chosen to use an open book exam to ensure that you will not be simply examined about your ability to recall facts, but that you demonstrate your ability to interpret and synthesize information and integrate your knowledge to arrive at logical solutions.
You must answer a total of five questions: one in each of the required sections (Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, and Genetics), one in an elective area, and one in any area. In this way, you will be accountable for the majority of the areas covered in the First-Year curriculum, but you can focus on two areas of special interest or expertise.
The EBE First Year exam consists of a research proposal on a topic provided to the student and an oral examination conducted by a faculty committee.
The Division of Biological Sciences provides financial support to each Ph.D. graduate student in the form of a stipend, fees, tuition and health insurance. The stipend for the 2006 - 2007 year is $26,000, but will be adjusted to remain competitive with other programs. Students continue to receive financial support as long as they maintain satisfactory academic progress and have not reached the Division support term limit, which is currently seven years.
This support is funded by Federal, State, and private sources and provided in the form of research and teaching assistantships, fellowships, and NIH training grant appointments. Because foreign students are not eligible for support from Federal funds, resources available to support foreign students are limited.
All prospective graduate students are urged to apply for any extramural predoctoral fellowships for which they may be eligible. These include the National Science Foundation, Ford Foundation, and other fellowships - in addition to those that are administered by the University. More information on possible fellowships can be found at this website:
|
2009 - 2010 Support Level: Stipend (non-EBE): |
$28,000.00 |
All examination and committee meeting requirements (with the noted or obvious exceptions) to be completed by the end of Spring quarter of the year indicated.
YEAR 1:
Participate in Boot Camp
Participate in the Orientation Seminar “Graduate School Fundamentals”
Complete Formal Coursework: Core Sequence (3 courses); elective courses (2)
Conduct Four Laboratory Rotations
Take Comprehensive Exam by June 30 of Year 1
YEAR 2:
Select Thesis Advisor and begin Thesis Research
Participate in at least one Graduate Research Colloquium
Participate in Bioethics Course
Fulfill first of three Teaching Experiences (TA for one-quarter)
Select Core Thesis Committee
Schedule Thesis Proposition Examination by July 31 of Year 2
YEAR 3:
Continue Thesis Research
Participate and present in Graduate Research Colloquium for at least 1 quarter
Fulfill second one-quarter Teaching Experience
Conduct annual Evaluation Meeting with Core Thesis Committee, or – some cases-advance to Candidacy
YEAR 4:
Continue Thesis Research
Participate and present in Graduate Research Colloquium for at least 1 quarter
Fulfill last of three one-quarter Teaching Experiences
Select remaining members of Thesis Committee
Advance to Candidacy meeting at Annual Meeting with Thesis Committee
YEAR 5:
Complete Thesis Research
Conduct Pre-Defense Thesis Evaluation Meeting at annual meeting with Thesis
Committee
Prepare Thesis
Defend Thesis
Students act as a teaching assistants for three courses during their graduate careers. Since UCSD is on the quarter system, this equates to one year developing teaching skills. Normally students teach one course a year during their second, third and fourth years in the program. Students are not required to teach during their first year in the program. This teaching requirement provides our trainees with significant hands-on experience in college level instruction, and reinforces their grasp of the basic subject matter (genetics, biochemistry, molecular biology, immunology, microbiology, neurobiology, etc.).
Since 1994, the Division has hosted an annual research oriented retreat to allow all graduate students in the program to present results of their research (poster or slide presentation). The retreat is held during the Fall quarter at southern California facilities such as Idyllwild or Lake Arrowhead. This gathering of students, postdoctoral fellows, and faculty provides a unique opportunity to interact in an informal setting with colleagues in various research groups. Please visit our retreat website.