Steps to PhD

Getting Started: Admission

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Undergraduate Preparation for Admissions

Applicants should have completed an undergraduate degree in one of the physical or biological sciences and must take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test. As a general guideline, combined GRE quantitative and verbal scores of 1100 or better are considered necessary for admission. Courses required for admission include one year each of general chemistry, organic chemistry, physics and calculus and at least two years of biological sciences. Other preferred courses include biochemistry, physical chemistry and computer sciences. Preferred upper division courses in biology include vertebrate or human anatomy and physiology, embryology, genetics, cell and molecular biology, microbiology, immunology and neurosciences.

Application Information

Interested students are invited to write, telephone or visit the Division of Biomedical Sciences. Inquiries and requests for application forms should be addressed to:
Kathy Redd (kathy.redd@ucr.edu)
online applications can be downloaded from:
http://www.graduate.ucr.edu/admtoc.html

Application Timetable

The application process consists of submitting the application forms, GRE scores (and TOEFL scores if required), a $60 filing fee, official transcripts and three letters of recommendation. The Program reviews all formal applications as soon as they are completed. Early applications are welcomed and may result in early admittance decisions. The Program will consider applications received after April 1, but these applicants run a risk that the limited number of openings and fellowships may have been filled.

Applications for financial support are reviewed by January 5 of each year. In order to apply for Graduate Division fellowships only a complete application (including letters of recommendation and official transcripts and scores) for the Ph.D. program is required, but it should be received as early as possible and no later than January 5th.

International Applicants

International applicants whose native language is not English must score a minimum of 550 on the written Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and 215 on the computer-based version of the same exam. Applicants should arrange to take the examination in their home country by contacting the Educational Testing Service, P.O. Box 6161, Princeton, NJ 08540-6151. The date of this test may be no more than two years from the intended quarter of admission.

Curriculum requirements for degree

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-First year curriculum:
BMSC 229: Foundations for Translational Research (fast start medical curriculum and
introduction to problem based learning techniques, intellectual property
issues and bioethics)
BMSC 230 series-Foundations of Medicine (joint medical and graduate student lectures)
BMSC 260: Topics in Biomedical Research (graduate student problem based learning)
BMSC 261: Methods in Biomedical Research (technique based rotations)
-Second Year and beyond:
BMSC 252: Seminars in Biomedical Research (invited speakers on cutting edge
approaches to biomedical research
BMSC 254: Graduate Student Seminar (Biomed Pizza Friday)
-Qualifying Exam: Normative completion by the end of the second year of the program
-One Quarter TA-ship to acquire experience in mentorship and teaching (may be completed in any year prior to dissertation exam.
-Dissertation Exam: Normative completion by the end of the fifth year of the program

Formation and purpose of guidance and dissertation committees

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Upon entering the program, an Advisory Guidance Committee of three graduate program faculty is appointed for each student to monitor and aid each student’s progress until the student passes the qualifying exam. The Advisory Committee will consist of the student's major professor, who will serve as Chair, and two other professors from the program with expertise in the student's area of interest. Until the student advances to candidacy (passes qualifying exam), he or she will present the Advisory Committee with a written summary of his/her research progress and plans at the beginning of each academic year.

The student will have the most contact with his or her major professor during the course of graduate study. The major professor provides direct research guidance and is ultimately responsible for advising the student and making sure that all degree requirements are fulfilled. Each student must have identified a major professor willing to supervise his/her study by the end of the first year in order to remain in the program.

Advancing to candidacy: Qualifying and Dissertation exams

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Qualifying exam:
Before advancement to candidacy, students must complete both parts of a qualifying examination. Part I, will consist of the preparation of a research proposal written in the format of a NIH NRSA fellowship application. This proposal will include a literature review, description of methods and experimental plans. It will outline the student's research program, describe his/her progress to date and delineate the research aims and objectives planned for the dissertation. Part II, consists of an oral comprehensive examination and defense of the written research proposal administered by a committee of five faculty members, at least one of whom is from outside the program.

Following advancement to candidacy, the student will form a Dissertation Committee that will continue to advise and critique the student’s annual progress. The student's major professor again serves as chair of this committee, which will help guide and evaluate the student's research. While this committee may meet more than once a year, it is mandatory that each student meets with their dissertation committee at least once a year.

Dissertation Exam:
A dissertation acceptable to all committee members must be submitted, based upon independent, original research. Before the dissertation is approved, the student must present his/her research at a thesis defense seminar, which is advertised to the campus community and open to all who wish to attend. Following the seminar the student will answer questions from the committee on the thesis research and on topics within the general field of the thesis research.

UCR and Riverside: Where it all happens

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UCR Campus

The Riverside campus has an international reputation for high academic standards and strong graduate and undergraduate programs. This is an actively growing campus, but one that is still small enough that finding housing within walking distance or parking on campus is not a problem. The Highlander Haulder is a free shuttle service for all students, faculty and staff, designed to move you quickly around the campus between 16 different locations. The purpose of the shuttle is to relieve parking congestion, campus traffic, and reduce smog emissions. About one fifth of the enrolled students are graduate students, and this proportion is projected to remain the same or even increase over the next several years.

The 1200-acre Riverside campus is beautifully landscaped and includes an outstanding botanical garden. The campus has an extensive commons facility with several lounges, two eating establishments, a coffee shop and a snack shop. A brand-new bookstore offers general books and personal computers in addition to textbooks and school supplies. There is a sports complex which includes a gym, an Olympic pool, a running track, numerous softball fields, tennis courts, racquetball courts, volleyball courts and a vita course. Although these are not unusual attributes, what is unusual is that these facilities are not monopolized by intercollegiate athletics. The facilities are available to all for such activities as intramural softball games, departmental summer swim meets and individual pursuits. At the same time, the campus also boasts some superb intercollegiate athletic teams. The campus commons offers a good selection of leisure courses which range from windsurfing and skiing through highland dancing to pottery and sign language. Equipment for a variety of outdoor activities is available for rent.

The campus has a diversified Performing Arts Program that includes dance, music and theater. For music lovers, there is a fine arts program of concerts at the University Theater, folk and rock groups at the Barn, and the Wednesday Nooner where rock groups perform on the central green. The University has an art gallery and a museum of photography that houses one of the world's finest collections of Ansel Adams' work.

Among the student support services are an international student center where one can mingle socially as well as update or convert one's visa, a women's resource center concerned with such issues as counseling and rape prevention, a student health center with daily clinics, and a disabled student services center for acquisition of specialized equipment, arrangement of volunteer attendants and emotional support. The Riverside campus is superbly designed for handicapped access to all facilities.

University of California System

Students who enroll at UC Riverside in the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program will be part of the University of California, one of the largest, most innovative systems of higher education in the United States. The University of California has consistently been ranked among the best in the country for graduate programs by the American Council on Education. This ranking is a reflection of a University noted for its prestigious faculty, distinguished academic achievements, excellent research facilities and libraries.

The University is located on nine campuses in Riverside, Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz, and is governed by a Board of Regents. Each campus has a separate organization and style of academic life, but all share the same basic admission requirements and high scholastic standards. There is considerable interaction throughout the University system between faculty and graduate students who have common disciplinary interests.