G&D Ph.D. Candidacy Exam Updated 6/25/15

Transcription

1 G&D Ph.D. Candidacy Exam Updated 6/25/15 Section Topics Overview Petition for Ph.D. Candidacy Exam Exam Timeline Examining Committee Reserving Conference Rooms for the Exam Preparation of Off-Topic Abstracts Written Research Proposal Proposal Writing Tips Examination Day Process Examination Results GSBS Exam Evaluation Rubrics M.S. Bypass and Registration for Ph.D. Dissertation GSBS Candidacy Forms BSRB Conference Rooms Overview The G&D candidacy exam follows most of the GSBS candidacy exam guidelines, and all G&D students must pass it in order to advance to candidacy. The exam consists of writing three onepage off-topic specific aims pages, writing an NRSA F31 Fellowship-style original research proposal, and presenting an oral defense of the proposal to the Examining Committee. The subject of the research proposal is selected by the student s Advisory Committee from one of the three off-topic specific aims pages. The candidacy exam is meant to be an evaluation of the student s ability to construct a hypothesis, to design the means by which to test it, and to critically analyze obtained results based on their own ideas. Prior to petitioning for candidacy, the student s Advisory Committee must meet to recommend that the student is ready to take the exam, approve the student s three off-topic specific aims pages, and select the abstract for the student s exam proposal. This final pre-exam Advisory meeting must take place by June 30 th of the year in which the student will take the exam; this is a G&D Program requirement. Per GSBS requirements, students who matriculate in the Fall 2008 term or thereafter must petition for Ph.D. candidacy by the end of the second year following matriculation (i.e. the end of the Summer of the second year). The oral exam must be scheduled no later than the end of the first term of the third year of study (i.e. end of the Fall semester of the third year). The deadlines for students who matriculate in the Summer term are one term earlier respectively. Students who completed a M.S. degree at UT GSBS should consult the GSBS exam deadline policy as it may vary for them. M.D./Ph.D. students and D.D.S./Ph.D. students in the G&D Program are required to take the G&D candidacy exam. 1

2 Petition for Ph.D. Candidacy Exam You must petition the GSBS Academic Standards Committee (ASC) for approval to take the candidacy exam. Prior to seeking ASC approval, you must: 1. Write your three off-topic specific aims pages. 2. Write a summary of your dissertation research (see below) 3. Complete three tutorials 4. Complete GSBS Area courses and / or Core Course 5. Complete G&D pre-candidacy requirements courses 6. Complete The Ethical Dimensions of the Biomedical Sciences course and two online ethics modules, Data Acquisition and Management and Responsible Authorship and Publication. 7. Meet with your Advisory Committee, obtain their approval of your three specific aims pages, and be told which one they selected to form the basis of your candidacy exam proposal. 8. Form your Examining Committee; G&D has a special policy on this see later section. 9. Submit the selected specific aims page and petition to the G&D Program Director for approval and signature. 10. Obtain the initials of the G&D Program Administrator (Elisabeth Lindheim) on the petition verifying completion of the necessary G&D requirements and your eligibility to take the exam. 11. Be in good academic standing. You are required to submit your petition to GSBS no later than one week prior to the ASC meeting, which is held the second Wednesday of each month. The candidacy petition, forms and requirements are on the GSBS website under Ph.D. Candidacy Exam : GSBS Petition Documents (see end of this document for sample forms) Petition for the Ph.D. Candidacy Examination, Off Topic (signed by all Advisory Committee members). Ph.D. Examining Committee (initialed/signed by all Examining Committee members, G&D Program Director, and G&D Program Administrator). Your dissertation abstract (see next paragraph). Your selected off-topic specific aims page. Your signed Code of Conduct and Pledge Form. Summary of Proposed Dissertation Research Your one-page summary of your proposed dissertation research will be part of your Candidacy Exam petition. It should include a brief background, a clearly stated hypothesis, specific aims and the methods by which the aims will be carried out. Guidelines for this summary are in the GSBS Template for Abstract of the Dissertation Project, which is part of the Candidacy petition. Please note that your dissertation abstract is separate from your off-topic specific aims page. Exam Timeline Your candidacy exam timeline depends on the term in which you matriculated at GSBS. There are two deadlines to keep in mind: (1) the deadline to petition for Ph.D. candidacy, and (2) the deadline for your oral exam. These deadlines are GSBS requirements, not G&D requirements. As noted previously, students who matriculate in the fall 2008 term or thereafter must petition for PhD candidacy by the end of the second year following matriculation. This means the end of the 6 th term at GSBS. There are three terms per year: fall, spring, summer. So, if you matriculated in the fall 2013 term, you must petition by the end of summer 2015 and take your exam by end of the fall 2015 term. The summer and fall matriculation timelines are outlined on the next two pages. Remember, you can t take the exam until you have completed all GSBS Area course requirements. 2

3 Fall Matriculation Exam Timeline [for students who matriculate in fall 2008 term or in fall thereafter] Timeline/Deadlines Exam Step Notes 1. June July, Yr 1 Have first Advisory Committee Meeting This is a short meeting (about 30 minutes) to meet your committee, discuss second year classes and your research project. No data presentation is expected. 2. Dec Jan, Yr 2 Have second Advisory meeting At this meeting, ask your committee for their OK to take your exam, briefly discuss your ideas for your 3 off-topic projects, and give a presentation on your research project. 3. Jan April, Yr 2 4. April May, Yr 2 5. May June 30 th, Yr 2 Research your 3 off topic subjects Write your 3 off-topic specific aims pages and abstract of your dissertation project. Schedule final Advisory meeting where your committee will approve your three specific aims pages and select the one that will serve as the topic for your exam proposal. Have 3 rd Advisory Meeting to discuss and obtain approval of off-topic specific aims pages, and give a presentation on your research project. Discuss topics with your advisor as desired. Items are part of your petition for candidacy. June 30 is the deadline to meet with your Advisory Committee to discuss and obtain their approval of your 3 specific aims pages. This deadline is a G&D Program requirement. 6. May July, Yr 2, after Advisory Committee selects proposal abstract Form exam committee Submit candidacy petition to GSBS Academic Standards Committee. Working with your advisor, Advisory Committee and/or G&D Directors, select members for your exam committee, and obtain their signatures on your petition form. Keep in mind the special G&D committee composition requirements. 7. Required by early-aug, Yr 2 (before end of summer term) Submit your candidacy petition to GSBS Academic Stds. Committee (ASC) You must submit your petition no later than one week prior to the ASC meeting. They are held the second Wednesday of each Month. 8. August/September Schedule your exam 9. August September Write your proposal Per GSBS Guidelines, It is the policy of GSBS that students should have a total period of six weeks to prepare for the exam. During the first four weeks of this period the student prepares the written proposal and then forwards it to the Examining Committee. The committee members then have two weeks to review the proposal prior to the examination. (4/22/14) Weeks Before Oral Exam Submit Proposal to exam committee Submit proposal to your Exam Committee two weeks prior to your exam date. At the same time, you must submit your proposal to the GSBS Office of Academic Affairs for analysis by Turnitin. 11. October (but no later than the end of the Fall Term) Take oral exam 3

4 Summer Matriculation Exam Timeline [for students who matriculate in Summer 2009 term or in Summer thereafter] Timeline/Deadlines Exam Step Notes 1. April May, Yr 1 Have first Advisory Committee Meeting This is a short meeting (about 30 minutes) to meet your committee, discuss second year classes and your research project. No data presentation is expected. 2. Oct. November, Yr 2 Have second Advisory meeting At this meeting, ask your committee for their OK to take your exam, briefly discuss your ideas for your 3 off-topic projects, and give a presentation on your research project. 3. Nov. January, Yr 2 4. January February, Yr 2 Research your 3 off topic subjects Write your 3 off-topic specific aims pages and abstract of your dissertation project. Schedule final Advisory meeting where your committee will approve your three specific aims pages and select the one that will serve as the topic for your exam proposal. Discuss topics with your advisor as desired. Items are part of your petition for candidacy. 5. February March 30 th, Yr 2 Have 3 rd Advisory Meeting to discuss and obtain approval of off-topic specific aims pages, and give a presentation on your research project. March 30 th is the deadline to meet with your Advisory Committee to discuss and obtain their approval of your 3 specific aims pages. 6. March May, Yr 2, after Advisory Committee selects proposal abstract Form exam committee Submit candidacy petition to GSBS Academic Standards Committee. Working with your advisor, Advisory Committee and/or G&D Directors, select members for your exam committee, and obtain their signatures on your petition form. Keep in mind the special G&D committee composition requirements 7. Required by early-may, Yr 2 (before end of Spring term) Submit your candidacy petition to GSBS Academic Stds. Committee (ASC) You must submit your petition no later than one week prior to the ASC meeting. They are held the second Wednesday of each Month. 8. May/June Schedule your exam 9. May June Write your proposal Per GSBS Guidelines, It is the policy of GSBS that students should have a total period of six weeks to prepare for the exam. During the first four weeks of this period the student prepares the written proposal and then forwards it to the Examining Committee. The committee members then have two weeks to review the proposal prior to the examination. (4/22/14) Weeks Before Oral Exam Submit Proposal to exam committee Submit proposal to your Exam Committee two weeks prior to your exam date. At the same time, you must submit your proposal to the GSBS Office of Academic Affairs for analysis by Turnitin. 11. July/August (but no later than the end of the Summer Term) Take oral exam Per GSBS policy, students who matriculate in the Summer Term must have their exam no later than the end of the first term of the third year of study, which means the Summer Term. 4

5 Examining Committee Your Examining Committee must be approved by the G&D Program Director and then by the GSBS Academic Standards Committee. Paperwork should be initiated early to avoid unnecessary delays in forming this committee. Please keep in mind the following GSBS and G&D requirements when selecting your members: 1. Your Examining Committee consists of five faculty members, with at least two who have not served on your Advisory Committee. 2. Three of your Exam Committee members, including the Chair of your committee, must be selected from the G&D Candidacy Exam Standing Committee. This committee is composed of ten G&D faculty. The composition of this committee changes on January 1 st of each calendar year. (This is a G&D requirement.) The 2015 G&D Candidacy Exam Standing Committee Faculty: Russell Broaddus, MD, PhD Elsa Flores, PhD Michael Galko, PhD Les Krushel, PhD Li Ma, PhD Pierre McCrea, PhD Nicholas Navin, PhD Xiaobing Shi, PhD Eric Swindell, PhD Bin Wang, PhD 3. One member must be knowledgeable in the field of your exam proposal (this is a G&D requirement.) 4. All members may not come from the same department or the same GSBS program. 5. At least one member must have research interests, which lie outside your major discipline. 6. The same person may meet all "outside member" requirements. Individuals outside the GSBS Faculty may serve on a student's committee when their particular areas of expertise are not represented on the GSBS Faculty, but there may be no more than two such members on the committee. 7. If four of the members are from the same Department/Program, the fifth member outside the Department/Program must be a GSBS faculty member. 8. Per GSBS policy, The Advisor (Chair of the student s Advisory Committee) may not serve in any capacity on the Examining Committee, and is not permitted in the exam room. 9. Per GSBS policy, The spouse, domestic partner, parent or child of the Advisor may not serve in any capacity on the Examining Committee. Reserving a Room for the Exam You are responsible for scheduling a room for your exam, which should be reserved for a fourhour block of time (includes set-up time). Schedule a three-hour block of time with your Examining Committee. Options include Mitchell BSRB conference rooms (Floors 7, 9, 11, 13, 15), GSBS rooms, and other conference rooms managed by MD Anderson s Conference Support Services Department. You will find a list of most of these rooms, and information on how to reserve them, at the end of this document. You can check GSBS room availability and submit a room reservation request via the following link. 5

6 Preparation of Three Off-Topic Specific Aims Pages Specific Aims Pages and Selection of Written Research Proposal Topic Students will write three one-page off topic specific aims pages (see below) that could be developed into a full written proposal. At the final Advisory Committee meeting, the committee will consider the three specific aims pages (along with other factors) in deciding if the student should petition for candidacy, and they will select the specific aim that will serve as the subject for the main written proposal. The G&D Program Director and the Academic Standards Committee (ASC) must also approve the selected specific aim after it is chosen by the Advisory Committee. Students should do sufficient reading on the three topics so as to be certain that they can develop a full proposal based on the specific aim selected. It is recommended that students begin thinking about topics during the winter of the second year. This can include reading reviews in scientific journals such as Cell, Science and Nature, attending seminars, and thinking about scientific questions that are outside the student s specific area of research. Format of Specific Aims Pages The three specific aims pages will each be one page long (plus references) that follows the standard format for Specific Aims in NIH grant proposals. It will include Background, Hypothesis and Specific Aims with a brief description of the approach/methodology to be used in accomplishing each aim. It will be an original experimental hypothesis addressing a current gap in knowledge. The hypothesis should be the student s own idea and not taken from any other person. It should be possible for the student to write an original research plan based on each of the specific aim pages. Each actual specific aim can be one sentence long in the three documents and can be in a somewhat unpolished state, but should indicate the approaches that will be used and the question to be answered in that Specific Aim. However, the one specific aim page selected by the Committee for the exam proposal, must contain polished specific aims when it is submitted to the GSBS Academic Standards Committee with the student s candidacy exam petition. What is Off-Topic? The topic of each specific aims page and the written proposal must be on a topic different from the student s planned dissertation work. The goal is to allow the student to devise their own original research plan and to learn about other areas, including areas completely unrelated to their mentor s scientific objectives, using technical approaches that are distinct from those that have been used or are planned to be used in the thesis research. The background and central hypothesis of each specific aims page should NOT: Include work the student has already done or is planned in the dissertation project. Overlap projects the student completed as part of a previous thesis or dissertation (if you have another degree). Overlap projects that are being worked on by others in the mentor s lab, projects known to be planned by the mentor, or projects the student worked on during their tutorials. Be based on trivial variations of published work or of the student s dissertation project (i.e. the same experiments in another organism or the exact same approach applied to a different gene). Simply repeat experiments that have already been published or presented publicly by others. If a specific aims page is deemed by your advisory committee to be not off-topic, the student will be required to submit another one. If students have questions about whether a particular idea is off-topic, they can ask the G&D program director and/or members of their advisory committee. 6

7 Guidelines for the Written Research Proposal Based on the selected abstract, the student will write an NRSA F31 Fellowship-style research proposal. This proposal should be based entirely on the student s own ideas without any input about the research plan from the advisor. The written proposal should be given to the exam committee two weeks in advance. At the same time, the proposal should be submitted to the GSBS Office of Academic Affairs for analysis by Turnitin. (The GSBS reserves the right to check proposals using other databases as they become available). The written proposal shall consist of the following components. One page for Specific Aims. Clearly state a hypothesis, and specific aims that will experimentally test the hypothesis. Six additional pages for research strategy (including Background and Significance, Innovation and Approach sections). Students are encouraged to use figures embedded into their proposals wherever they feel it will help the reader to better understand the application. Images taken directly from others should be used only when necessary to illustrate previous findings and should be accompanied by a clear citation of the source. Schematic diagrams should be generated by the student. Bibliography. This section is not included in the page count. The student should cite the literature used in the development of the proposal. All citations should be complete, containing authors, article title, journal name, volume and pages. Assistance Guidelines The proposal should be prepared by the student without assistance from any faculty member. However, after you have prepared your first draft, you may seek comments from senior students and/or postdocs from your lab and/or other labs. It is suggested that you give them a copy of your proposal to review approximately three weeks before your oral exam so that you will have enough time to make revisions and then distribute it to your committee two weeks prior to your exam. The G&D Program has a student-run Candidacy Exam Mentoring Program to support G&D students taking their exam. Please contact the G&D Program Manager for more information. Proposal Writing Tips Keep in mind, you are not required to produce preliminary data in support of your proposal. However, you are expected to provide evidence from the literature, or your own work, that the approach to be used is feasible. MD Anderson Scientific Publications Writing Tips There is an outstanding, online proposal-writing resource called Writing Grant Proposals from the MD Anderson Scientific Publications office. This page can only be access from within MD Anderson: Sample Student Exam Proposals To be posted on the G&D Program website. 7

8 The Examination Day Process Evaluation of Written Proposal At the start of the examination, the student will be excused from the room for 10 to 15 minutes. During this time the faculty will discuss the written proposal and determine if the document is suitable enough to continue with the oral examination. A satisfactory proposal is one that is well written, and contains all the components described previously. If the written proposal is satisfactory, the student will be asked to go ahead with an oral defense of the research plan at the same meeting. Note that it is possible to receive a conditional pass based on some deficiency in the proposal that would not prevent going ahead with the oral examination. One example would be if the student does not give sufficient background and significance to define why the proposed experiments will advance the field. This could easily be corrected by a rewrite and the examination could continue. If the proposal is not deemed suitable, then the student will not present an oral defense until the proposal is revised. This is considered a retake. The committee will discuss with the student the deficiencies and how they can be corrected. The chair will prepare a written summary of the committee s recommendations. This report will be provided to the student within two days. The time allowed for revision will be decided by the committee but will be a maximum of three weeks. During this period the student may seek advice from the exam committee members. If the revised proposal is found to be unsatisfactory the student will have failed the written exam. Oral Defense of the Written Proposal The student will make a 30-minute oral presentation describing the proposed project, during which he/she can expect interruptions only for questions of clarification. The committee will then ask questions about the research plan, alternate strategies, significance and background relevant to the research proposal in order to evaluate the student s depth of knowledge on the subject. Following questions focused on the research proposal, more general questions that are intended to test the depth and breadth of the student s knowledge may be asked. Your Ph.D. advisor is not present at the oral exam. You should practice giving your oral presentation to other students and/or postdocs at least a week or two before your exam. Specific areas you should be prepared to address at your oral defense The existing body of knowledge on the subject of your proposal, including work done in different experimental systems relevant to the project. Details of the experimental techniques to be used for the proposed research. If a technique is cited in the proposal, you should be able to explain it in detail, and draw a diagram of the expected results. A clear statement of the central hypothesis of the proposal. Likely outcomes of the proposed experiments and their interpretation. Difficulties and limitations of the proposed procedures. Alternative approaches to achieve the specific aims. The biological significance of the project. Relevant details of any literature cited in the proposal. Future directions of the proposed research beyond the specific aims. 8

9 Examination Results At the end of the exam, the committee will discuss the student s performance and inform the student of the outcome of both the written and oral components. The possible outcomes are: Unconditional Pass, Conditional Pass, Re-examination, and Fail. The exam may seem intimidating, but keep in mind that advisory committees give their approval for students to take their exams based on their belief that the students are adequately prepared and will pass it. Unconditional Passes are given to students that perform exceptionally well. Conditional Passes are the most common outcomes. Please do not be discouraged if you receive this outcome. The exam is an exercise used as a tool to improve your critical thinking skills and your ability to communicate effectively in your written proposal and oral presentation. Conditions attached to a Conditional Pass usually involve rewriting part or all of the proposal, writing a literature report on an area of deficiency, enrolling in a course specified by the committee that will benefit your education, or orally defending an Aim in your proposal. A student receiving a Reexamination result is required to take the exam again. With guidance from the Examining Committee, students always perform much better on the second try. Please see the GSBS guidelines for details on resolving conditional passes and re-examinations, and for the consequences of receiving a fail on the exam: GSBS Rubric for the Evaluation of Exam Performance Your examining committee will provide you with a completed GSBS rubric for the evaluation of your candidacy exam. See the rubric attachments at the end of this document. M.S. Bypass Once you successfully pass your candidacy exam, your examining committee may recommend a bypass of the M.S. degree for you. This means that you will proceed directly on to your postcandidacy Ph.D. studies without writing and defending an M.S. thesis. 9

10 Registration for Ph.D. Dissertation Per GSBS guidelines, students are recommended to candidacy by the Academic Standards Committee and admitted to candidacy by the Dean only after review an approval of the examination results. After being admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree, you are permitted to register for Dissertation for Doctor of Philosophy (GS000920). You must register for at least one semester of Dissertation before becoming eligible for the Ph.D. defense. You must be registered for Dissertation in the final semester in which requirements are completed. GSBS Candidacy Forms The GSBS candidacy exam forms are provided here as examples only. The actual forms are available on the GSBS website at: Always use original GSBS forms to ensure that you are using the most up-to-date versions. Petition for the Ph.D. Candidacy Examination, Off-Topic o Petition form o Template for Summary of the Dissertation Project or Off-Topic Exam Proposal Summary o Ph.D. Candidacy Examining Committee Form o Code of Conduct and Pledge Form Evaluation of the Candidacy Exam Performance Results of the Ph.D. Candidacy Examination BSRB Conference Rooms This is a list of some of the conference rooms in BSRB you can use for your candidacy exam and committee meetings, and how to reserve them. 10

11 11

12 12

13 13

14 14

15 15

16 16

17 17

18 18

19 19

20 BSRB Conference Rooms & Classrooms Revised 10/17/14 Location Room No. Capacity Reserve Through 3 rd Floor Conference Room S GSBS 3 rd Floor Library S GSBS 3 rd Floor Small Classroom S GSBS 3 rd Floor Large Classroom S GSBS 7 th Floor Conference Room S Dept. of Genetics 9 th Floor Conference Room S Dept. of Genetics 11 th Floor Conference Room S Dept. of Genetics 13 th Floor Conference Room S Dept. of Genetics 14 th Floor Conference Room S Dept. of Genetics 15 th Floor Conference Room S Dept. of Genetics 1 st Floor Conference Room S MD Anderson Conf Support Services 3 rd Floor Classroom S MD Anderson Conf Support Services 5 th Floor Classroom S5.8005A/B 25 (can be split into 2 rms) MD Anderson Conf Support Services 5 th Floor Classroom S5.8004A/B 35 (can be split into 2 rms) MD Anderson Conf Support Services Onstead Auditorium S MD Anderson Conf Support Services Who to Contact to Reserve a Room GSBS Rooms All GSBS room reservation requests must be submitted by using a GSBS interactive PDF form. If you have any questions, please contact the room reservations coordinator at: GSBS_classrooms@uth.tmc.edu To reserve a GSBS room or view the reservation schedule go to: Department of Genetics Conference Rooms If you are a Genetics student, please check with your advisor s support staff. If you are an Epigenetics and Molecular Carcinogenesis student, please check with Doris Green All other G&D students can check with Elisabeth Lindheim: elindheim@mdanderson.org MD Anderson Conference Services You can check room availability for conference rooms managed by MD Anderson s Conference Support Services Department via this link: If you wish to reserve one of these rooms, please contact your advisor s support staff for assistance. 20