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Standards for the Ph.D. Degree in the Molecular Biosciences
This article contains recommendations—developed by the Education Committee of the International Union for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology—for obtaining the Ph.D. degree in the molecular biosciences. Noting the explosive growth and fragmentation into subspecialties of the molecular biosciences in recent years, the Committee revised the Union’s 1989 standards to help ensure that Ph.D. candidates have the requisite skills to succeed in the modern interdisciplinary science environment. The document defines the abilities that should be characteristic of those holding a Ph.D., suggests how those abilities might be acquired and assessed, and proposes criteria for evaluating Ph.D. candidates. In addition to demonstrating both general science knowledge and a detailed knowledge of their field, doctoral candidates should be able to show that they can keep abreast of new developments in research, recognize meaningful research problems, understand and use laboratory techniques (and be able to adopt any new technologies that future investigations might require), communicate effectively, and design and conduct productive, self-directed research. The document also addresses scientific integrity, course work, responsibilities of the principal supervisor and others, proprietary research, duration of studies, and the presentation and defense of a thesis. Developed with the advice of more than 100 academic scientists from more than 36 countries, the guidelines are intended to aid university departments and boards of graduate studies, national organizations that set standards for graduate education, individual scientists who serve as external thesis examiners, and doctoral candidates themselves. The article, “Standards for the Ph.D. Degree in the Molecular Biosciences,” was first published in Biochemical Education 28 (2000) 2-11. It is available free and without copyright.
Standards for the Ph.D. Degree
This document, which provides guidance for individuals and institutions, defines the skills and knowledge candidates for a Ph.D. in the molecular biosciences should be able to demonstrate.
Media: PDFProgram Director: Harold B. White III, Ph.D.
Award Years: 1992, 1998, 2002, 2006
Summary: The University of Delaware is a public research university in Newark, Delaware. Its HHMI-funded initiatives include:
- The establishment of a Quantitative Biology Major in the Mathematics Department—the only Bio-Math program in the country that is offered as a degree program in a department of mathematics;
- A summer undergraduate research scholar program, which includes a weekly interdisciplinary enrichment program devoted to research science topics such as ethics and gender issues;
- A Network of Undergraduate Collaborative Learning Experiences for Underrepresented Scholars (NUCLEUS) program, which provides the support necessary for underrepresented students to successfully continue their education beyond the baccalaureate degree; and
- Programs to train new, current and future faculty in the use of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) through the university's Institute for Transforming Undergraduate Education and through pedagogy courses for undergraduate PBL group facilitators and graduate teaching assistants.