Students are required to successfully complete nine graded courses to fulfill the PhD degree requirement; note that two lab rotations are counted towards the total nine. A summary of the course requirements for each program in Molecular Biosciences is below; please consult your program handbook for complete details on degree requirements and structure.
Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics
- Three required courses: Protein Fundamentals, Molecular Biophysics: Theory and Applications, and Current Seminar Topics in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
- Plus one course in Cell Biology
- Plus one course in Molecular Biology
- Additional recommended courses: Nucleic Acids Structure & Function and Structure & Function of Membrane Proteins
- Plus four electives
- Plus two lab rotations
Developmental Biology
- One course in Cell Biology
- One course in Genetics
- One course in Molecular Biology
- Three courses in the field of Developmental Biology.
- Plus two electives
- Plus two lab rotations
Genetics, Genomics & Systems Biology
- Three required courses: Genetic Analysis, Genetic Mechanisms, Molecular Biology I or Fundamentals of Molecular Biology
- And one of the following courses: Population Genetics, Molecular Evolution or Human Variation and Disease
- Plus four electives
- Plus two lab rotations
Human Genetics
- Three required courses: Human Genetics I, Genetic Analysis, and Human Variation & Disease
- And one course from the following menu: Molecular Evolution, Introductory Statistical Genetics, Population Genetics I, Molecular Biology I, Fundamentals of Molecular Biology, Statistical Genetics, Molecular Biology II, or Vertebrate Developmental Biology.
- Plus four electives from a prescribed list
- Plus two lab rotations
Cell and Molecular Biology
- One course in Cell Biology
- One course in Genetics
- One course in Molecular Biology
- And an additional course in one of these areas.
- Plus three electives
- Plus three lab rotations
Undecided about which department or committee to join?
Students who are unsure which program they will join are advised to take the following courses during their first two quarters in the PhD program. The courses listed below are degree requirements shared by each Molecular Biosciences unit and thus satisfy degree requirements in all unitsmore than one program, and will facilitate transition from one program to another.
Autumn Quarter:
- Cell Biology
- Genetic Analysis
- Protein Fundamentals
- Human Genetics I
Winter Quarter:
- Molecular Biology I