|
|
|
|
|
|
|
General
Requirements
Graduate students in BME must also meet all course requirements of the Graduate School of the University of Nevada, Reno. These requirements include minimum acceptable grades for graduate studies, the number of 600 versus 700 level courses, and the format of thesis and dissertation presentations.
Masters degree - plan B, non-thesis program: At least 32 credits of acceptable graduate courses must be completed, with a minimum of 12 credits in the life and medical sciences, and 12 in the engineering and physical sciences. Plan B students are not eligible for graduate assistantships issued by the Graduate School.
A masters degree requires the demonstration of proficiency in 3 areas related to BME. At least one area of proficiency must be in the life and medical sciences, and 1 in the engineering and physical sciences. Proficiency will be assessed based on course work (generally 2 semesters of course work at the graduate level in each area) and a comprehensive exam (usually upon completion of required course work) administered by the student's examining committee. If a student's performance does not satisfy examiners, the student will be required to re-take the comprehensive exam (allowed once) and it may be recommended by the committee that the student pass additional classes.
At the doctoral level, proficiency must be demonstrated in 4 areas related to student research activities. At least 1 area of proficiency must be in the life and medical sciences, and 1 in the engineering and physical sciences. Proficiency will be assessed based on course work (generally 2 semesters of course work at the graduate level in each area) and a comprehensive exam. The comprehensive exam will focus on advanced topics covered in graduate level courses and research papers. Typically, the student committee will administer this exam after the completion of most or all of the courses included in the doctoral program. The exam will cover the 4 areas of proficiency and take into account the student's proposed research plan as outlined in their grant-writing exercise. Students can submit a progress report if significant changes have occurred to the research plan, or if a significant time has elapsed between the grant-writing exercise and the comprehensive exam. A student can re-take the comprehensive exam once if performance is deemed unsatisfactory by the examining committee. Students who fail to satisfy the requirements of the examining committee after a second exam must drop out of the doctoral program. These students will be allowed to apply to the BME Admissions and Recruitment Committee for re-admission to complete a Masters degree.
(i) Research Rotation (BME 770)
Once a primary mentor has been selected, doctoral students are
required to perform a "research rotation" (similar to independent study)
in a laboratory that complements the background of the primary mentor.
In other words, if the primary mentor's laboratory focuses on the life/medical
sciences, a research rotation must be performed in engineering (and vice
versa). This research rotation can be conducted in the laboratory of the
secondary advisor. The purpose is to help expose students to the broad
range of BME activities.
(ii) Communications Courses (BME 790 & 794)
Traditionally, doctoral training programs in scientific disciplines
concentrate on mastery of the content of a discipline. While this is appropriate
in many respects, it is also true that those trained in BME often become
leaders in industry and teachers in academic institutions. In order for
training to be well-rounded, students will utilize skills required for
professional level teaching and scientific presentations. BME faculty offer
courses in which students begin by presenting critical reviews of up-to-date
scientific articles. These presentations will be accompanied by open discussions
involving faculty and other graduate students. Students will progress to
presenting seminars in their chosen field of interest. Finally, prior to
graduation, students will be required to present results of their original
research to at least one national or international scientific meeting.
(iii) Grant-writing Exercise
In order to qualify to proceed in the doctoral program, each student
must write a research grant application on their proposed dissertation
research. This grant should be submitted to the BME Graduate Program prior
to initiating semester 3 of the Ph.D. schedule (i.e. typically semester
5 counting 1 year of work at the masters level). Under unusual circumstances,
the time of submission can be adjusted with the approval of the Director.
The form of the grant will be consistent with the format used by one of
the major national funding agencies, such as the National
Science Foundation or the National
Institutes of Health. A student's examining committee and any other
interested faculty will formally examine the student on the grant. This
will include an oral examination within 1 month of the grant's submission.
If the grant proposal is not considered acceptable by the student's committee,
a second grant proposal will be due 4 months from the date of the first
examination. (Submission of the grant exercise to the BME program does
not preclude its submission [in whole or in part] to any granting agency,
for example, for the purposes of obtaining a pre-doctoral fellowship.)
There are a number of anticipated benefits from this component of a student's training: 1) To successfully pass the exercise, students will need to be well-versed in the current literature in their field, and be able to formulate and defend their research plans and methodology. 2) Students will be introduced to the style, complexities and nuances of the grant proposal process and will begin to develop those skills necessary for successful grant acquisition. 3) Students will be forced to "think through" their proposed thesis project. This is not intended to limit areas of investigation as new discoveries are made, but a great deal of time and effort can often be saved if research protocols are well-planned. 4) Finally, and perhaps most importantly, an open discussion of research proposals among faculty with diverse backgrounds frequently leads to much stronger courses of action to achieve the proposed scientific goals.