Guidelines for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree
(Please also consult the CMIB handbook. )

The program leading to the degree of doctor of philosophy is designed to develop an integrative approach to research in clinical, cellular, and molecular problems in comparative medicine and biology. The program emphasizes development of a firm scientific background in clinical and basic biomedical sciences and the conduct of in-depth original research.

Guidance Committee

Upon admission to the program, the CMIB-AC will appoint a temporary advisor from the CMIB faculty. Within six months after entrance into the program, the student must select a major advisor from the CMIB faculty, after consultation with the CMIB director. The student, in consultation with the major advisor, will then select a guidance committee consisting of at least four members: the major advisor and at least two other faculty members must be from CVM; the fourth faculty member may be from CVM, another college at MSU, or another institution; and at least two of the committee members must be from the CMIB program. The guidance committee will serve throughout the student's PhD program. Substitutions, replacements, or additions to the committee may be made upon written approval of the CMIB director.

Program Description

The doctoral program is divided in two phases:
A. Phase I culminating with a comprehensive examination.
B. Phase II culminating with completion and defense of a dissertation.

The doctor of philosophy degree program in comparative medicine and integrative biology consists of: (1) course work to develop an understanding of major concepts in comparative medicine and integrative biology as well as to acquire comprehensive knowledge of a major field and related subjects, (2) a comprehensive oral and written examination, (3) original research of an important problem in human and animal health or biology, (4) a dissertation, and (5) a final oral examination. The program of study is planned by the student and the major advisor in consultation with the guidance committee.

Course Requirements
A minimum of 18 credits of non-research courses is required, with at least 12 of these credits at the 800 level or above. All students are required to take the following 2 courses. VM 820 must be taken at least twice for 2 credits each time.

Course # Title When Offered # of Credits
EPI 827* The Nature and Practice of Scientific Integrity Spr; every year
3
VM 820 Current Topics in Comparative Medicine and Integrative Biology Spr; every year
2
* With permission from the program director, the student may substitute another course or a seminar series focusing on the responsible conduct of research, such as the one offered by the Graduate School to meet this requirement. See the Responsible Conduct of Research section on the Graduate School website.

To develop a depth of understanding across disciplines, all students are required to take at least one course from each of the 4 major areas as defined below as well as a set of elective courses as recommended by their guidance committee. Suitable courses for each area are indicated below. Other courses may be incorporated into each area in the future as they are developed or as deemed appropriate by the guidance committee.

1. Molecular sciences
The list below serves as a general guide and other courses may be appropriate to include in this section. Students should check with the program director for suitability of other options for this section.
Course # Title When Offered
# of Credits
BMB 801 Molecular Biology Fall; every year
3
BMB 802 Metabolic Regulation and Signal Transduction Spr; every year
3
BMB 831 Physiological Biochemistry Spr; even years
4
BMB 960 Selected Topics in Biochemistry Fall, Spr; every year
1-2
MMG 825 Cell Structure and Function Spr; every year
3
MMG 835 Eukaryotic Molecular Genetics Spr; every year
3

2. Integrative Biology
The list below serves as a general guide and other courses may be appropriate to include in this section. Students should check with the program director for suitability of other options for this section.

Course #

Title

When Offered

# of Credits

PSL 828

Cellular and Integrative Physiology

Spr; every year

4

PSL 511

Veterinary Physiology

Spr; every year

5

PSL 980

Problems in Physiology

Fall, Spr, Sum; every year

1-4
PHM 819 Principles of Drug-Tissue Interaction Sum, every year
1-2

PHM 821

Principles of Systemic and Integrated Pharmacology and Toxicology

Spr; every year

2

KIN 812

Cardiovascular, Respiratory, and Metabolic Responses to Exercise

Spr; even years

3

KIN 813

Neuromuscular and Endocrine Responses to Exercise

Spr; odd years

3

PSL 827

Physiology and Pharmacology of Excitable Cells

Fall; every year

4

PSL 839

Systems Neuroscience

Spring; every year

4

PSL 841

Advanced Endocrine Physiology and Pharmacology

Fall; every year

4

PSL 885

Vertebrate Neural Systems

Spring; odd years

3

3. Pathology
The list below serves as a general guide and other courses may be appropriate to include in this section. Students should check with the program director for suitability of other options for this section.

Course #

Title

When Offered

# of Credits

ANS 807

Advanced Food Toxicology

Fall, even years

3

HNF 840

Human Nutrition and Chronic Diseases

Fall, odd years

3

MMG 461

Molecular Pathogenesis

Spring, every year

3

MMG 813

Molecular Virology

Spring, even years

3

MMG 851

Immunology

Fall, odd years

3

MMG 861

Advanced Microbial Pathogenesis

Spring, oddyears

3

PDI 812

Advanced Clinical Chemistry

Spr, even years

2

PDI 820

Advanced Human Hematology

Fall, even years

2

PDI 851

Advanced General Pathology

Fall, even years

3

PDI 852

Advanced General Pathology Laboratory

Concurrently with PDI 851

1

PDI 856

Concepts in Toxicologic Pathology

Sum, odd years

2

4: Statistics and Epidemiology
The list below serves as a general guide and other courses may be appropriate to include in this section. Students should check with the program director for suitability of other options for this section.
Course # Title When Offered # of Credits
STT 421 Statistics I Fall, Spr, Sum; every year
3
STT 422 Statistics II Fall, Spr, Sum; every year
3
PHM 980 Problems Fall, Spr, Sum; every year
2-5
LCS 829 Design and Conduct of Epidemiological Studies and Clinical Trials Spr; every year
3
EPI 810 Introduction to Descriptive and Analytical Epidemiology Fall; every year
3
VM 533 Veterinary Epidemiology Fall; every year
3

Electives

Electives including non-research and seminar courses will be determined by the guidance committee.

The doctor of philosophy degree program in comparative medicine and integrative biology is conducted in two phases:

Phase I

Phase I of the PhD program consists of acquiring and documenting a high degree of competence in fundamental and basic biomedical sciences and developing and documenting research skills. Specific courses to be taken will be determined by the guidance committee, taking into account the background of the student and the potential doctoral project. Preliminary research studies will be performed that will constitute the basis of the dissertation proposal. Phase I culminates with a comprehensive examination, submission of research proposal, and presentation of a research seminar outlining the research proposal with presentation of preliminary data.

Each student will take a comprehensive examination given by the student's guidance committee toward the end of Phase I. Students may take their comprehensive exam after completion of at least 12 credit hours of course work. This exam will have the following components:

  1. A written research proposal prepared by the student (following the guidelines for a National Research Service Award proposal), which should be submitted to the guidance committee members at least 2 weeks in advance of the exam.
  2. A research seminar outlining this proposal and presenting preliminary data (the seminar will be 50 minutes in length and be open to the public, and allow 5-10 minutes for time for questions from the public at the end).
  3. A closed question session following the presentation where the student will answer questions from the guidance committee on the proposal and any related matter or basic concepts. Both the depth and the breadth of knowledge of the candidate will be tested.

The student's performance on this examination must be approved by at least 3/4 of the members of the guidance committee, with not more than one dissenting vote from among the Michigan State University regular faculty members of the guidance committee. If there is a unanimous vote that the student failed all parts of the exam, the student will be dismissed from the program. Alternatively, the guidance committee can recommend further work, revision and resubmission of written pre-proposal, and/or the repetition of the oral examination, and/or the oral presentation. All of these must be conducted within six months of the original examination. Two attempts at passing the examination are allowed. Failure on the second attempt will result in dismissal from the program.

Phase II

Phase II of the PhD program consists of conducting research, continuing to expand knowledge base by taking additional courses and seminars as necessary, and completing the research and defending the PhD dissertation. Research will consist of a minimum of 24 research credit hours (VM 999). The written dissertation must be based upon original scholarly research. It must contribute new knowledge to the scientific community and result in, or be deemed by the student's guidance committee to have data sufficient in quantity and quality for, one or more research papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals.

It is the student's responsibility to meet calendar schedules and regulations established by Michigan State University and provide members of the guidance committee ample time, no less than 4 weeks, for a review of the dissertation prior to the defense.

The defense will consist of a public lecture followed by an oral examination in which the candidate will defend the dissertation and knowledge of related scientific areas. Three-fourths majority approval of the examination committee is required, with not more than one dissenting vote from among the Michigan State University regular faculty members of the guidance committee. At the conclusion of the defense, the examination committee can recommend further work and determine a timetable for the completion of its requirements. Failure to meet the requirements specified at the defense will result in termination of the candidate's program.

Academic Standards

Each student must adhere to the university and college regulations regarding his or her graduate program as outlined in the university's academic programs catalog. A 3.00 cumulative grade-point average for all courses counted toward the PhD degree is required. In addition, three grades below a 3.0 in courses counted toward the PhD degree will remove the student from degree candidacy.

Unsatisfactory Progress

If a student does not show satisfactory progress toward meeting academic, research, or dissertation requirements, the guidance committee may recommend a change in the student's program or recommend that the student be dismissed from the degree program. Dismissal recommendations will be forwarded to the CMIB director.

Preparation of Doctoral Dissertation

Guidelines for the preparation of the dissertation are outlined in the Graduate School's booklet entitled "Formatting Guide: Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations" which is available in departmental offices, the Dean's Office, and the Graduate School office. All guidelines outlined in this booklet must be followed. In addition, the guidance committee may require a specific method for organizing a dissertation. The student will submit a bound copy of the completed dissertation to each committee member and to the CMIB director.

Time Limit

It is recommended that each student complete Phase I within the first two years and Phase II by the end of the fifth year. However, recognizing the different rates of progress possible, a student is allowed up to 3 years to complete Phase I and up to 8 years from the time of a student's first enrollment for degree credits at Michigan State University to complete all of the degree requirements.
 
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