BMOL PhD Student Handbook Dissertation Requirements

Dissertation Requirements

The dissertation must be the result of independent and original research by the student, and must constitute a significant contribution to current knowledge in Biomolecular Sciences, equivalent to multiple peer-reviewed publications. Ideally, the dissertation research should be accepted for publication in peer-reviewed journal(s) prior to the final dissertation defense.

The style and format of the dissertation must conform to the standards of the Graduate College. The dissertation should consist of an abstract, an introductory chapter, research chapters and a final discussion chapter.  The introduction should present a review of the state of knowledge in the relevant fields of study and detail how the research advances scientific knowledge.   The discussion chapter should integrate the conclusions of the research chapters and suggest future directions of study.