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PhD Degree Requirements

Students that pursue the PhD degree at GSBS are expected to complete their dissertation research while completing coursework relevant to their scientific interests. Students must reach a number of academic milestones in order to earn their degree. Adhering to the schedule of these milestones ensures a timely progress to completing the program.

Students that are admitted into the Medical Physics PhD Program must achieve the same milestones, but their expected time of achievement may differ. The module below details the milestones required for the PhD degree. Please click on each milestone to expand for more details.

First Year Milestones

  • Complete GSBS Ethical Dimensions course (End of fall term of 1st year)

    Every GSBS student is required to demonstrate knowledge in biomedical ethics by passing a one-credit-hour course entitled The Ethical Dimensions of the Biomedical Sciences. The course, taught by over 12 GSBS faculty, provides students with a framework to recognize, examine, and resolve ethical conflicts in their professional lives. By design, students typically take the Ethical Dimensions of Biomedical Sciences course in their first fall of enrollment so they have critical ethical awareness and conflict-resolution tools for the duration of their education.

  • Complete tutorial rotations (End of spring term of 1st year)
    Tutorial rotations are research projects in which students learn about the scientific research process.
    Each tutorial rotation is worth two credit hours (10 weeks per tutorial, 20 hours per week, or other arrangements resulting in a total of 200 hours in the laboratory).
    All first-year PhD students are expected to take and pass three tutorials with three different GSBS faculty members during their first year.
    Tutorial rotations have two main purposes:
    • Introduce incoming students to a variety of research environments
    • Provide the primary mechanism for students to make an informed choice of the laboratory where they will do their dissertation research
    For specific information, refer to our Tutorial Rotations page.
  • Identify a research advisor (End of spring term of 1st year)

    PhD students must identify a primary research advisor with whom they will complete their dissertation research. Students may begin contacting GSBS faculty once they receive their offer of admission. While some students may identify one or more tutorial rotation advisors during the summer, students have the option to interact with faculty on campus during the fall semester before rotations begin.

    Students that have completed their required tutorial rotations should identify a GSBS faculty member that will serve as their primary advisor.

    Finding the right advisor is probably the most important decision our students make. In fact, when our graduates are asked during exit interviews to give advice for new students, their answers almost always have something to do with finding a good mentor. It's important to get into the right lab, and it all begins with choosing tutorials wisely.  

    PhD student advisors must fulfill these two key requirements:

    1. They must be a Regular Member of the GSBS Faculty. Membership information may be found in our GSBS Faculty Directory.
    2. They're expected to have the financial resources to support the student when the student's GSBS funding ends.

    Students who have chosen their advisor should contact Dr. Natalie Sirisaengtaksin to obtain the Accountable Mentorship Agreement form which formalizes the student-advisor relationship and student's Program affiliation.

    In some situations, students are permitted to have a secondary mentor. Students interested in such a possibility should contact Dr. Mattox or Dr. Sirisaengtaksin for guidance.

    Occasionally, advisors leave UT to work at other institutions, which can cause turmoil for their students. The decision of whether the student will follow their advisor to a new institution or stay at GSBS with a new advisor depends on multiple factors. It is important for students to know that they have options and that GSBS will be there to help them. Students are encouraged to contact Dr. Mattox or Dr. Sirisaengtaksin if they learn that their advisor is leaving their institution or if they are worried about that possibility.

  • Join a GSBS Graduate Program (End of spring term 1st year)

    PhD students that are admitted GSBS must choose a primary area of research concentration by associating with one of our PhD Programs. Each program has a specific set of requirements for students that are in addition to the general curriculum requirements.

    Please visit each individual program page to learn more about their course requirements:

    Biochemistry & Cell Biology

    Cancer Biology

    Genetics & Epigenetics

    Immunology

    Medical Physics

    Microbiology & Infectious Diseases

    Neuroscience

    Quantitative Sciences

    Therapeutics & Pharmacology

  • Obtain approval from ASC for Advisory Committee (End of summer term of 1st year)

    The Advisory Committee bears the primary responsibility for monitoring the student's progress until all degree requirements are met and assists in:

    • Selection of courses
    • Development of a research project
    • Approval of petitions for Candidacy and Defense

    The committee consists of at least five members, including the student's advisor who chairs the committee, chosen to assure representation by faculty competent in the student's major area of research.

    • Up to two members of the committee may be faculty who are not part of GSBS. They can be from other institutions.
    • One member must be part of the GSBS faculty and have research interests that are outside the student's major discipline.
    • Some programs may require a certain number of program-associated faculty on each student committee. Please visit your program page for further details.

    Required Forms:

    Selection of Advisory Committee

Pre-Candidacy Milestones

  • Hold first advisory committee meeting (End of fall term of 2nd year)

    Once your committee is approved, you are expected to hold your first meeting soon after.

    • At least 4 members must be present at the meeting or attend via video/call-in. Students must meet individually with any members that are not present at the meeting.
    • You must provide your committee with a pre-meeting progress update at least 5 days before the meeting
    • During the meeting, the committee will complete part of the committee meeting report and each member will sign, whether they are present or not for the meeting.
    • After the meeting, you will complete the student response to the committee’s recommendations section of the committee meeting report.
    • The committee meeting report, which includes the student's progress update and the student's response to the committee's recommendations, should be submitted to the student, all members of the Advisory Committee and to [email protected] within 10 business days from the date of the meeting. The meeting will be recorded only if a report is received.

    Goals of your first Advisory Committee Meeting – The primary goal of your first meeting is to introduce yourself and describe your plan (rationale, significance, hypothesis, and aims) for your project so that the committee members can actively give you input. If you have preliminary data, it should be presented but should not be the primary focus of the meeting. You are looking for high-level advice from your committee on the planning of the project.

    DO be sure to explain all aspects of your project and ask the committee for their advice on it.

    DON’T start off the meeting by presenting data without first providing a sound rationale for the project and experiments.

  • Hold subsequent advisory committee meetings (Every six months)

    Students are expected to hold an advisory committee meeting every 6 months, and MS students must hold a minimum of 2 meetings to be eligible to defend their thesis.

    • At least 4 members must be present at the meeting or attend via video/call-in. Students must meet individually with any members that are not present at the meeting.
    • You must provide your committee with a pre-meeting progress update at least 5 days before the meeting
    • During the meeting, the committee will complete part of the committee meeting report and each member will sign, whether they are present or not for the meeting.
    • After the meeting you will complete the student response to the committee’s recommendations section of the committee meeting report.
    • The committee meeting report, which includes the student's progress update and the student's response to the committee's recommendations, should be submitted to the student, all members of the Advisory Committee and to [email protected] within 10 business days from the date of the meeting. The meeting will be recorded only if a report is received.
  • Complete all pre-candidacy course requirements (End of summer term of 2nd year)

    All GSBS PhD students must petition for Ph.D. candidacy by the end of their 2nd year of enrollment. Before submitting the petition, the student must be in good academic standing and have completed the following requirements:

        • Three tutorials

        • Core Course or Program-specific Area Courses

        • Ethical Dimensions of the Biomedical Sciences

        • Two online ethics modules, namely 1) Responsible Authorship and Publication and 2) Data Acquisition and Management (instructions for completing the modules will be emailed during the spring semester to all students who completed the Ethics course from the previous fall term)

        • A course that satisfies the GSBS scientific writing requirement

        • Program-specific pre-candidacy course requirements

    The purpose of the candidacy examination is to test the student's breadth and depth of knowledge in the biomedical sciences

    The examination is meant to be an evaluation of the student’s ability to construct an hypothesis, to design the means by which to test it, and to critically analyze obtained results

  • Complete online ethics modules (End of summer term of 2nd year)

    Because students complete The Ethical Dimensions of the Biomedical Sciences at the start of their graduate training, students are also required to complete two on-line modules – Data Acquisition and Management and Responsible Authorship and Publication – prior to submitting their petition for candidacy, as a “just-in-time” supplemental review of key ethical issues.

    Instructions for completing these modules are sent to students via email after completion of the ethics course. Once complete, please email the two completion reports showing the final score you made for each module to Bunny Perez in the GSBS Office of Academic Affairs.

     

  • Complete a scientific writing course (End of summer term of 2nd year)

    Students may take either Scientific Writing or any Program-specific scientific writing course.

    Currently, the Program-specific courses approved to meet the requirement are:

    • GS03 1111 Scientific Writing for Grant Proposals
    • GS04 1811 G&E Scientific Writing
    • GS07 1092 Topics in Microbiology and Infectious Diseases

    Students must satisfy this requirement prior to petitioning for PhD candidacy.

     

  • Petition for PhD Candidacy (End of summer term of 2nd year)

    Please visit our Candidacy Exam page for information on the timing and requirements to petition for candidacy.

  • Take candidacy exam (End of fall term of 3rd year)

    Please visit our Candidacy Exam page for information on the following topics

    • On-Topic Exam and Proposal Guidelines
    • Examining Committee
    • Exam Results/MS Bypass
    • Helpful Information
    • Guidelines for Faculty Service on Exam Committees

Post-Candidacy Milestones

  • Complete all Program-specific requirements (Before defense)

    Each student must complete all program requirements before they hold their defense. Please note that if you have designated a secondary program/area of research concentration, these requirements must also be complete.

    Please visit each Programs' requirements page for more details:

    Biochemistry & Cell Biology

    Cancer Biology

    Genetics & Epigenetics

    Immunology

    Medical Physics

    Microbiology & Infectious Diseases

    Neuroscience

    Quantitative Sciences

    Therapeutics & Pharmacology

  • Submit at least one first author scientific paper for publication in a peer-reviewed journal (Before defense)

    First-author Publication GSBS Minimum Standard for PhD students

    A requirement of the PhD degree is for the student to demonstrate the development of an original and significant body of dissertation research.  The quality, scope and depth of the research necessary to complete a PhD dissertation is determined primarily by the student's Advisory Committee which must approve the dissertation prior to graduation.  As a minimum standard, the GSBS requires all PhD students to produce at least one first-author peer-reviewed research publication based on their dissertation work.  As this is intended only as a minimum standard, the Advisory Committee may require a student to complete more research, including additional first-author publications, as part of the body of work necessary to complete the PhD degree. 

    PhD students who entered GSBS in the Fall semester of 2014 or after:

    Must submit one first-author research paper for peer-review prior to defending their dissertation and the paper must be accepted for publication before graduation.

    Papers with multiple "first authors" 

    A student who is designated as a co-first-author on a submitted or published paper is considered as the first author for the purposes of meeting the above minimum standards.

    Review articles

    Articles that review the scientific literature, conferences, or the recent findings of others, but do not include original presentations of research carried out by the student, do not meet the above minimum standard even if the article is peer reviewed. 

    Exceptions to the GSBS Minimum Standard Publication Requirement

    In cases where a student has clearly completed an original and significant body of research but unusual delays in the peer review process, or other causes, have prevented the publication of a first-author paper, the student may petition to the Advisory Committee for an exception to the minimum standard.  If the student's Advisory Committee agrees that an exception is warranted, it may recommend this to the GSBS Academic Standards Committee (ASC) for approval.  The Advisory Committee Chair should submit the recommendation in writing  to the GSBS with a rationale for why an exception should be made.  Considerations in making such exceptions will include unusual delays in peer-review, co-authored publications, the originality/quality of the unpublished work, and the best interests of the student.

  • Submit a signed petition to defend dissertation (At least two weeks before defense)

    All students must submit their Petition for Defense at least two weeks before their defense date.

    Please visit our Graduation Page for a list of documents required for a complete petition.

     

  • Defend dissertation (Before graduation)

    Guidelines for the PhD Dissertation Defense

    The purpose of the dissertation defense is to provide a consistent and complete evaluation of the dissertation and the student's understanding of the research, as well as the student's ability to report information to the scientific community in a well-organized and interesting form.
    An announcement of the defense will be distributed by electronic mail to all GSBS students and faculty.
    Guidelines for the defense are:

    • The student will deliver a 45- to 60-minute public presentation, including a detailed description of the background, rationale, materials and methods, results, and conclusions appropriate to the research. Following the presentation, the student will respond to questions from the audience.
    • Immediately thereafter, and at a location announced at the end of the seminar, the Advisory Committee will examine the student on the dissertation. Any member of the GSBS Faculty who attends the public presentation may participate in the examination to the extent described below. Others wishing to attend must be approved by the Advisory Committee.
    • The student's Advisor will serve as moderator of the examination. The student will be expected to respond to questions from those attending on any aspect of the written dissertation or the material presented at the public presentation.
      After the examination, the student will meet privately with the Advisory Committee to discuss the results. Finally, the Advisory Committee will determine what recommendation to make to the Dean and the Academic Standards Committee. The Committee may conclude that the student has passed, or it may require additional research, modifications to the dissertation, and/or another defense. The results of this meeting will be communicated through the GSBS Office of Academic Affairs to the Dean and the Academic Standards Committee for their information and approval.

    Within one week of the dissertation defense, any member of the GSBS Faculty who has read the student's dissertation and has attended the defense may write directly to the Dean to provide an evaluation of the student's performance. In reaching a final decision on whether to award the PhD or require further work and/or another defense, the Dean will take into consideration the recommendation of the Advisory Committee and other comments received from GSBS Faculty.

    In particular cases, the Dean may solicit additional evaluations of the dissertation from experts in the field either within or outside the GSBS Faculty. Should a concern be raised by a GSBS faculty member about a student’s performance, the decision of the Dean will be communicated to the student and the Advisory Committee within one month of the dissertation defense.

  • Publish at least one first author scientific paper in a peer-reviewed journal (Before graduation)

    First-author Publication GSBS Minimum Standard for PhD students

    A requirement of the PhD degree is for the student to demonstrate the development of an original and significant body of dissertation research.  The quality, scope and depth of the research necessary to complete a PhD dissertation is determined primarily by the student's Advisory Committee which must approve the dissertation prior to graduation.  As a minimum standard, the GSBS requires all PhD students to produce at least one first-author peer-reviewed research publication based on their dissertation work.  As this is intended only as a minimum standard, the Advisory Committee may require a student to complete more research, including additional first-author publications, as part of the body of work necessary to complete the PhD degree. 

    PhD students who entered GSBS in the Fall semester of 2014 or after:

    Must submit one first-author research paper for peer-review prior to defending their dissertation and the paper must be accepted for publication before graduation.

    Papers with multiple "first authors" 

    A student who is designated as a co-first-author on a submitted or published paper is considered as the first author for the purposes of meeting the above minimum standards.

    Review articles

    Articles that review the scientific literature, conferences, or the recent findings of others, but do not include original presentations of research carried out by the student, do not meet the above minimum standard even if the article is peer reviewed. 

    Exceptions to the GSBS Minimum Standard Publication Requirement (updated September 1, 2022)

    In cases where a student has clearly completed an original and significant body of research and has submitted it for publication, but unusual delays in the peer review process have prevented the publication of a first-author paper prior to graduation, or where the student has an urgent need to graduate prior to publication for other causes,  the student may request that their Advisory Committee support an exception to the minimum publication requirement.  If the Advisory Committee agrees that an exception is warranted, then the Committee Chair should submit the recommendation in writing to the GSBS Office of Academic Affairs (copied to all advisory committee members) with a rationale for why an exception should be made. The request will be reviewed by the Academic Standards Committee who will make a recommendation to the dean.  Criteria for reviewing exceptions will include the length of delay during peer-review, other published work by the student, the originality/quality of the submitted paper, likelihood that the paper will be published, evidence for clear and urgent need of the student to graduate before publication, and whether the exception is in the student’s best interest.   

    Please note that the ASC will only consider exception requests caused by the length of the review process if the following conditions have been met.

    1. All advisory committee members agree that the exception is warranted and have been copied on the email request from the advisor.

    2. The manuscript was submitted for peer review >60 days prior to the ASC meeting date (ASC meets on the second Wednesday of each month).

    3. Evidence is provided of a clear and urgent need for the student to graduate prior to acceptance of the manuscript for publication.

    4. A plan is provided for completing any needed experiments/revisions of the paper after the student’s graduation that will maintain their position as a first-author.

     Exception requests made for other causes, may be submitted to the ASC for consideration prior to meeting all the above conditions. 

  • Submit final signed dissertation & complete all exit paperwork (Before graduation)

    Approval of the Dissertation

    All members of the Advisory Committee are expected to sign the student’s dissertation to demonstrate their approval of the document. If any member refuses to sign the dissertation, the Academic Standards Committee will consider the matter and provide a recommendation to the Dean. In deciding whether to approve the dissertation, the Dean will take into consideration the recommendations of the Advisory Committee and the Academic Standards Committee. In particular cases, the Dean may solicit additional evaluations of the dissertation from experts in the field either within or outside the GSBS Faculty.

  • Complete all degree requirements

    Expected time of achievement:Within 7 years of admission