Bioinformatics
Ph.D. Degree Requirements
The PhD degree in Informatics is a 90 credit hours program including an appropriate minor from outside or partially inside the school. A Sample curriculum for bioinformatics track includes 15 credit hours in core courses, 9 credit hours in advanced bioinformatics courses, 6 credit hours in seminar courses, and at least nine credit hours of electives including the credit hours towards the minor degree. In addition, the students have to take research credits towards their PhD thesis including rotation credit hours.
Core Courses (Core A: 15 credit hours)
Every student will take five courses (15 credit hours) from the following list as recommended by his/her advisor:
Advanced Courses (Core B: 12 credit hours)
Required Seminar Courses (6 credit hours)
Required Independant Study/Rotation (6 credit hours)
Sample Electives (No minimum or maximum credits)
Minor: All students will be required to have an appropriate minor outside or partially inside the school. Minors will be selected with the advisor’s recommendation. The selected minor should be appropriate to the student’s choice of sub discipline within Informatics. Some appropriate minors would include: biology, chemistry, cognitive psychology, computer science, history and philosophy of science, information science, or sociology. In all cases the number of hours to be included in the minor will be consistent with the requirements of the unit granting the minor. Some of the courses included in the minor may also count toward the student’s methodology or other requirements.
Qualifying Examination - Written (Required)
All students will take a written qualifying examination that covers the core courses (CORE A and B). The examination will be set by a group of faculty who are familiar with the content of the core courses. Examinations will be offered in August. Examinations must be completed by the beginning of the student’s fourth year in the program but can be completed before that time when the core courses are completed. Students who do not successfully complete the examination can retake the examination a second time.
Qualifying Examination – Oral (Required)
- The oral examination will take place after the student successfully passes the written exam. Students must pass both the written and oral exam before passing on to candidacy. Only two attempts to pass the oral examination will be allowed.
- The oral exam will be based on the student’s response to the written exam and any material from the core courses.
Dissertation Proposal (Required)
This is an oral review that covers in-depth knowledge of the student’s primary research area and dissertation proposal. The research proposal for dissertation must be approved by the student’s research committee. That committee may have the same membership as the program committee or the students may choose different members. The advisor for the dissertation will be a faculty member in the School of Informatics and a member of the Graduate Faculty. At least one the three members of the committee will be based outside of the school. The student will defend the thesis proposal at a public colloquium in the school. The review should be completed within one-year after passing the Qualifying Examinations.
Dissertation ( at least 30 credit hours)
Rotation: students are required to take 6 credit hours rotation as part of the thesis research credits. It is recommended to take these credit hours early in the PhD studies by enrolling in INFO 790.
