During the spring semester of the second year of study, each student wishing admission to doctoral candidacy must successfully complete a qualifying examination administered by her/his Dissertation Committee.

The qualifying examination consists of two components: a written document describing the student's proposed research and experimental plan and an oral defense of the written document. The written document consists of a typewritten proposal that includes the specific aims of the student's proposed research, the scientific background and significance of the proposed study, a summary of preliminary results, a detailed description of the experiments planned together with their rationale and expected outcomes, and a list of all references cited in the text. The "PhD Qualifying Examination Research Proposal Guide", a detailed set of instructions describing the preparation of the proposal, is available below to assist students in their proposal writing and organization.