The student will select a primary research mentor no later than the end of their second semester in the program. The mentor will supervise the student’s research, from developing a research project to carrying it out during the dissertation phase. Mentors’ duties may also include advising on any additional courses needed to reach research goals. The dissertation research will be conducted by the student with input from their mentor, who is expected to regularly offer guidance on research procedures, give feedback, and read drafts, in addition to overseeing the dissertation defense. The student’s progress will be monitored by a Ph.D. Thesis Committee.
In consultation with their mentor, and subject to approval by the Director of Graduate Studies, each student will select a Ph.D. Advisory Committee and chairperson to guide them through their research no later than the end of their second year in the program. The committee will be composed of no less than four faculty, including the research mentor. The research mentor may not serve as chairperson. The chairperson and at least one other committee member must be tenured or tenure-track faculty in the Computational Biology program who hold a Ph.D. and/or M.D. degree and have a proven record of graduate-level training, funding and research. The committee must also include at least one faculty member who is not affiliated with the Computational Biology program. Following successful completion of the qualifying exam, students will meet with their Ph.D. Advisory committee no less than once per year to monitor progress and recommend any additional or remedial actions.
Before advancing to candidacy, students will be required to pass a qualifying exam that will take the form of a written grant proposal and oral defense of the proposal before their Ph.D. Advisory Committee. The committee will assess the quality of the proposal, including the importance of the research, the research design, conceptualization, plan of work, and the feasibility of the project. Successful completion of the qualifying exam will advance the student to candidacy for the doctoral degree. If the grant proposal is not approved, the student and their research mentor will be informed and given actionable feedback and a specific window of time not to exceed six months in which to address concerns and resubmit the proposal. The committee may also request a repeat of the oral defense, as appropriate. Failure to secure approval upon resubmission of the proposal and/or the second oral defense will result in dismissal from the degree program.
Advancement to doctoral candidacy is based on the student’s successful completion of all required coursework and passing both the written and oral portions of the qualifying exam.
Before defending a dissertation, students should have made a substantial contribution to the field of computational biology. A substantial contribution is judged by the Ph.D. Advisory Committee, and typically is demonstrated by at least one first-author manuscript accepted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal that is based on work completed as part of the Ph.D. degree program. These manuscripts may have co-authors, including the faculty advisor and collaborators, and should have been written during the course of the degree program.
Students will be required to write and defend a dissertation summarizing a substantive body of research. Upon completion of their research, students shall prepare a written dissertation that fully communicates the original research, situates it within a larger literature, and explores larger implications. The final dissertation will be submitted to the Director of Graduate Studies, and to the student’s research mentor and Ph.D. Advisory Committee. An oral defense of the dissertation will be directed by the committee chair, and all committee members will participate. The oral defense will examine the student’s project, intellectual context, and the underlying fundamental knowledge or contribution to the field.
Following the defense, all committee members will vote on the acceptability of the dissertation. A student can pass the oral defense, signifying that the committee has accepted the dissertation project, with no more than one negative vote. A student who passes may still be asked to make minor revisions prior to submitting the dissertation to the School of Medicine. A student who does not receive a passing vote will be provided with significant feedback and offered the opportunity to revise and have a second examination within the following year. A second failure will result in dismissal from the program. Upon successful completion of the defense and dissertation, the student may apply for graduation from UVA with the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Computational Biology.