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Program of Study

BMB Graduate Studies

The BMB program of study is designed to provide students with a strong foundation of knowledge in the disciplines of biochemistry and molecular biology, while at the same time, allowing the flexibility to design a course of study to fit individual research interests. All entering IDP students enroll in the same curriculum in the fall semester of the first year which prepares students to participate in graduate-level research in any one of the six graduate programs including BMB. After the first semester, students have the freedom to select courses that meet their research interests. Examples of Individual Curricula are provided below. The BMB program offers a wide range of courses, and in addition to these, students can select advanced courses from other disciplines. Many of these 3-hour courses have been divided into modules so that a student can take part of the course for credit. For example, a student could take the third section (BCH 6209) of the 3-credit metabolism course (BCH 6206) for 1 credit. Links to course listings are provided below. Students typically take 6 hours of advanced courses in the spring of their first year and 3 hours in the fall and spring semesters of their second year for a total of 12 credits to complete the formal course requirements. Every semester, starting in the second year, students must register for the BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936). This coursework along with work on the research project prepares students for taking a qualifying exam for admission to candidacy for a Ph. D. degree. The qualifying exam must be completed by November of the third year. An Overview of BMB Program and Course Requirements is provided below. Specific questions can be answered by the graduate coordinator, Linda Bloom, or the graduate secretary, Elise Feagle.



Overview of BMB Program and Course Requirements


First Year
Fall Semester
  • "Core Course" (GMS 6001) - 5 credits
  • IDP practical laboratory (GMS 6004) - 2 credits
  • IDP Seminar (GMS 6901) - 1 credit
  • Lab Rotation (GMS 6090) - 1 credit
Spring Semester
  • Advanced Courses - 6 credits
  • Lab Rotations (GMS 6090) - 2 credits
  • IDP Seminar (GMS 6901) - 1 credit
Summer Semester
  • Research (GMS 7979) - 5 credits
  • Responsible Conduct of Biomedical Research (GMS 7003) - 1 credit
Requirements After the First Year
  • 6 credits of formal coursework - After completing the courses required in the Fall semester of the first year, a total of 12 credits of Advanced Courses must be taken. Typically, 6 of those 12 credits are taken in the spring of the first year, and the remaining 6 are taken in the second year. At least 6 (starting with the class of 2007) of the 12 credits must be from the BMB Advanced Courses and at least 3 credits must be from another advanced concentration. Students are not required to take the Spring Semester "Core Course", however, a student may take some or all of the spring semester Core Course modules to satisfy the advanced course requirements. These core course modules can be taken in any year not only the spring of the first year.
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit each fall and spring semester
  • Qualifying Exam taken by Nov. 1 of the 3rd year
  • Supervised Research - After the first year, supervised research is the major focus of the BMB graduate curriculum. Successful completion of a Ph.D. degree requires students to carry out an independent research project, write a dissertation describing this work, and defend the work in a public presentation.
  • Supervisory Committee Meetings- After passing the qualifying exam, students have regular meetings (twice a year) with members of their supervisory committees. The purpose of these informal meetings is help students with their research projects and to help students stay on target for graduation.


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Examples of Individual Curricula


1.   Student Interest in Molecular Biology

First Year
Fall Semester
  • "Core Course" (GMS 6001) - 5 credits
  • IDP practical laboratory (GMS 6004) - 2 credits
  • IDP Seminar (GMS 6901) - 1 credit
  • Lab Rotation (GMS 6090) - 1 credit
Spring Semester
  • Advanced Molecular and Cell Biology (BCH 6415) - 3 credits
  • Electives from Advanced Courses - 3 credits
    (genetics, virology, immunology, cell biology, neuroscience, etc.)
  • Lab Rotations (GMS 6090) - 2 credits
  • IDP Seminar (GMS 6901) - 1 credit
Summer Semester
  • Research (GMS 7979) - 5 credits
  • Responsible Conduct of Biomedical Research (GMS 7003) - 1 credit
Second Year
Fall Semester
  • Any combination of the following (2 - 3 credits)
    • Advanced Gene Regulation (BCH 7410) - 1 credit
    • Epigenetics of Human Disease and Development (BCH 7412) - 1 credit
    • Advanced Metabolism (BCH 6206) - 3 credits
  • Elective Advanced Course Module - 1 credit
  • Research (GMS 7979) - 4 - 5 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
Spring Semester
  • Electives from Advanced Courses - 3 credits
  • Research (GMS 7979) - 5 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
Summer Semester
Third and Fourth Years
Fall Semester
  • Research (GMS 7980) - 8 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
Spring Semester
  • Research (GMS 7980) - 8 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
Summer Semester
  • Research (GMS 7980) - 6 credits
Fifth Year
Additional Semesters (if needed)
  • Research (GMS 7980) - 8 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
  • Write dissertation and defend!!!


2.   Student Interest in Structural Biology

First Year
Fall Semester
  • "Core Course" (GMS 6001) - 5 credits
  • IDP practical laboratory (GMS 6004) - 2 credits
  • IDP Seminar (GMS 6901) - 1 credit
  • Lab Rotation (GMS 6090) - 1 credit
Spring Semester
  • Advanced Structural Biology (BCH 6740) - 3 credits
  • Electives from Advanced Courses - 3 credits
    (genetics, virology, immunology, cell biology, neuroscience, etc.)
  • Lab Rotations (GMS 6090) - 2 credits
  • IDP Seminar (GMS 6901) - 1 credit
Summer Semester
  • Research (GMS 7979) - 5 credits
  • Responsible Conduct of Biomedical Research (GMS 7003) - 1 credit
Second Year
Fall Semester
  • Any combination of the following - for 2 or 4 credits
    • Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy (BCH 6741C) - 1 or 2 credits
    • Molecular Structure Determination by X-ray Crystallography (BCH 6744) - 1 credit
    • Molecular Structure Determination by X-ray Crystallography Lab (BCH 6744L) - 1 credit
    • Molecular Structure and Dynamics by NMR (BCH 6745) - 1 credit
    • Molecular Structure and Dynamics by NMR (BCH 6745) - 1 credit
  • Research (GMS 7979) - 4 or 6 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
Spring Semester
  • Electives from Advanced Courses - For a total 6 credits for fall and spring. (Alternatively, a student could wait until the fall of the third year and take additional structural biology electives).
  • Research (GMS 7979) - variable credits (for a total of 9 credits for the semester)
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
Summer Semester
Third and Fourth Years
Fall Semester
  • Research (GMS 7980) - 8 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
Spring Semester
  • Research (GMS 7980) - 8 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
Summer Semester
  • Research (GMS 7980) - 6 credits
Fifth Year
Additional Semesters (if needed)
  • Research (GMS 7980) - 8 credits
  • BMB Journal Club (BCH 6936) - 1 credit
  • Write dissertation and defend!!!

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Course Listings

BMB Advanced Courses
Fall Semester  
Spring Semester  
 
All Advanced Courses
Fall Semester  
Spring Semester  
 


Qualifying Exam
The qualifying exam consists of a written and oral component. The written component is an NIH-style research proposal on the student's dissertation research. The student must distribute this proposal to committee members 10 days prior to an oral defense of the proposal. The oral component has two parts, a public presentation of the proposal and a "private" defense of the proposal. A 20-min presentation is given to the student's supervisory committee and any faculty, postdocs, and students who wish to attend. Following the public presentation, the student defends his/her proposal before the supervisory committee. After a student passes the qualifying exam, he/she is officially admitted to candidacy for a Ph.D. degree by the UF Graduate School.

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