Coursework Requirements
Personalized Learning Plan
The concept of a Personal Learning Plan (PLP) is to tailor educational experiences to meet individual needs. Courses are selected in consultation with the student's supervisor, dissertation committee, and the graduate advisor to ensure adequate breadth and depth.
26 credit hours are required (approximately 8 technical 3-credit hour courses + 2 seminar 1-credit hour courses). All eight of the technical courses must be graduate level and taken for a letter grade.
Five of the eight technical courses (3-credits each, 15 credits total) MUST meet the following requirements:
- Biological or Clinical Sciences
- Basic or Applied Mathematics
To meet this requirement, a statistics course is encouraged, but another mathematics topic may be approved in some circumstances.
- Students must take a course from three of the four technical areas below:
- Technical Area 1: Biomedical Imaging and Instrumentation
- Technical Area 2: Cellular and Biomolecular Engineering
- Technical Area 3: Computational Biomedical Engineering
- Technical Area 4: Biomechanics
Qualifying Exam
Students must pass a qualifying exam, typically at the end of their first year. This is required for students to continue in the Ph.D. program. This exam has both written and oral components. Detailed instructions for the qualifying exam are available at the graduate office and are provided to students in advance. Students advance to candidacy following successful completion of the qualifying exam, which involves forming a doctoral dissertation of committee of at least four faculty members in consultation with their supervisor and the graduate advisor.
Dissertation Proposal
Students complete their dissertation proposal typically at the end of their second year. The proposal exam includes both a written and an oral component. The written component involves submitting an NSF- or NIH-style proposal (maximum 15 pages) to the student’s dissertation committee no less than two weeks prior to defending it orally to the same committee.
Dissertation Final Oral Defense
Students complete their final oral defense typically at the end of their fifth year. The Graduate School provides critical information regarding deadlines, paperwork, and scheduling. Students file to graduate at the beginning of their final semester.
Teaching Assistant Service
All Ph.D. students are expected to participate as a teaching assistant (TA) for two semesters. The department recommends that students participate as a TA sometime between their first and third years, but the timing of this service will depend on the needs of the department and the recommendation of the student's research supervisor.
