Biology (PhD)
Degree Requirements
Students may choose from the degree tracks below to complete coursework within a focus area.
Degrees earned will be distributed as: "Doctor of Philosophy in Biology" without track specifications.
| Code | Title | Hours | Counts towards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core Courses | 3 | ||
| Introduction to Biological Research | |||
| Introduction to Research Ethics | |||
| Additional Courses | 69 | ||
| "Additional Courses" are determined in conjunction with the academic committee to meet the 72 total hours | |||
| Total Hours | 72 | ||
Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences Track
| Code | Title | Hours | Counts towards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quantitative Requirement | 3 | ||
| Select one of the following courses: | |||
| Statistical Methods For Researchers I | |||
or ST 512 | Statistical Methods For Researchers II | ||
| Advanced Special Topics 2 | |||
| Machine Learning Approaches in Biological Sciences | |||
| Applied Nonparametric Statistics | |||
| Modeling of Biological Systems | |||
| Restricted Elective | 6 | ||
| Select two of the following courses: | |||
| Ecology and Conservation of Freshwater Invertebrates | |||
| Fish Physiology | |||
| Freshwater Ecology | |||
| Advanced Fisheries Science | |||
| Special Topics in Applied Ecology (Management of Small Impoundments) | |||
| Special Topics in Applied Ecology (Aquatic Plant Ecology) | |||
| Special Topics in Applied Ecology (Advanced Biology of Fishes) | |||
| Advanced Fisheries Science | |||
AEC 710 | |||
AEC 726 | |||
| Biomathematics II | |||
| Human Dimensions of Wildlife and Fisheries | |||
| Principles of Biological Oceanography | |||
| Special Topics in Natural Resources | |||
| Environmental Toxicology | |||
ZO 524 | |||
| Total Hours | 9 | ||
- 2
BIT 815 or any Bioinformatics course determined in conjunction with the academic committee.
Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology Track
| Code | Title | Hours | Counts towards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quantitative Biology Requirement | 3 | ||
| Select one of the following courses: | |||
| Statistical Methods For Researchers I | |||
or ST 512 | Statistical Methods For Researchers II | ||
| Advanced Special Topics 2 | |||
| Machine Learning Approaches in Biological Sciences | |||
| Restricted Elective | 3 | ||
| Select one course from the following: | |||
| Topical Problems (Capstone Course in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology) | |||
| Molecular Genetics | |||
| Cellular and Developmental Genetics | |||
GN 750 | |||
| Biotechnology Requirement | 4 | ||
| Select one course below determined in conjunction with the academic committee based on thesis research | |||
| Core Technologies in Molecular and Cellular Biology | |||
| Special Topics | |||
| Total Hours | 10 | ||
- 2
BIT 815 or any Bioinformatics course determined in conjunction with the academic committee.
Ecology and Evolution Track
| Code | Title | Hours | Counts towards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quantitative Requirement | 3 | ||
| Statistical Methods For Researchers I | |||
or ST 512 | Statistical Methods For Researchers II | ||
| Machine Learning Approaches in Biological Sciences | |||
| Applied Nonparametric Statistics | |||
| Modeling of Biological Systems | |||
| Ecology Requirement | 3 | ||
| Foundations of Ecology | |||
| Freshwater Ecology | |||
| Community Ecology | |||
| Conservation and Climate Science | |||
| Population Ecology | |||
| Marine Plankton Ecology | |||
| Evolution Requirement | 3 | ||
| Evolutionary Ecology | |||
| Special Topics In Entomology | |||
| Population and Quantitative Genetics | |||
| Quantitative Genetics and Breeding | |||
GN 740 | |||
| Quantitative Genetics Theory and Methods | |||
| Systematic Botany | |||
| Paleobotany | |||
| Total Hours | 9 | ||
Forensic Sciences Track
| Code | Title | Hours | Counts towards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restricted Electives | 4 | ||
| BIO 520 | Skeletal Biological Laboratory Methods in Human Identification & Cold Cases | 3 | |
| BIO 811 | Forensic Sciences Seminar | 1 | |
| Quantitative Requirements | 9 | ||
| Statistical Methods For Researchers I | |||
| Statistical Methods For Researchers II | |||
| Applied Bayesian Analysis | |||
| Total Hours | 17 | ||
OTHER REQUIREMENTS
- Every student is required to complete training logs. Many of the modules can be completed while taking the BIO 520 course. Please contact the Forensic Sciences Concentration Chair for additional information.
- Students are also required to start the Training Case Record Form after their first year and/or after taking BIO 520, whichever comes first. Please contact the Forensic Sciences Concentration Chair for additional information.
- Forensic Anthropology Society of Europe Level II Certification is strongly recommended but not required- costs associated with this exam are the student’s responsibility.
Physiology and Behavior Track
| Code | Title | Hours | Counts towards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quantitative Biology Requirement | 3 | ||
| Statistical Methods For Researchers I | |||
or ST 512 | Statistical Methods For Researchers II | ||
| Advanced Special Topics 1 | |||
| Machine Learning Approaches in Biological Sciences | |||
| Applied Nonparametric Statistics | |||
| Modeling of Biological Systems | |||
| Restricted Electives | 6 | ||
| Select two of the following courses: | |||
| Ecology and Conservation of Freshwater Invertebrates | |||
| Fish Physiology | |||
| Freshwater Ecology | |||
| Advanced Fisheries Science | |||
| Special Topics in Applied Ecology (Management of Small Impoundments) | |||
| Special Topics in Applied Ecology (Aquatic Plant Ecology) | |||
| Special Topics in Applied Ecology (Advanced Biology of Fishes) | |||
| Advanced Fisheries Science | |||
AEC 710 | |||
AEC 726 | |||
| Biomathematics II | |||
| Human Dimensions of Wildlife and Fisheries | |||
| Principles of Biological Oceanography | |||
| Special Topics in Natural Resources | |||
| Environmental Toxicology | |||
ZO 524 | |||
| Additional Courses | 63 | ||
| Additional courses are determined in conjunction with the academic committee to meet the 72 total hours | |||
| Total Hours | 72 | ||
- 1
Students may take PHI 816 Introduction to Research Ethics or equivalent to meet this requirement.
Integrative Biology Track
This concentration is open to MS and PhD students who do not fit academically within the other Biology concentrations, or who integrate across multiple concentrations. Coursework is determined in consultation with your PhD mentor and committee and is approved by the DGP.
- David Derek Aday
- Betty L. Black
- Russell J. Borski
- David Buchwalter
- Jeffrey A. Buckel
- Ignazio Carbone
- Jaime A. Collazo
- William Gregory Cope
- Harry Valentine Daniels III
- Robert R. Dunn
- David B. Eggleston
- John R. Godwin
- Kevin Gross
- Craig A. Harms
- Jeffrey M. Hinshaw
- Rebecca Elizabeth Irwin
- Thomas J. Kwak
- Thomas M. Losordo
- Carolyn Jane Mattingly
- Heather B. Patisaul
- Luis Alonso Ramirez-Ulate
- Ann Helen Ross
- Mary Higby Schweitzer
- David R. Tarpy
- Scott M. Belcher
- Shobhan Gaddameedhi
- Adam Hartstone-Rose
- Randall Brian Langerhans
- John Edward Meitzen
- Nanette M. Nascone-Yoder
- Marianne Niedzlek-Feaver
- Antonio Planchart
- Reade Bruce Roberts
- Jie Cao
- Khara Deanne Grieger
- Nathan James Hostetter
- Kurt Marsden
- Jamian Krishna Pacifici
- Seema Nayan Sheth
- Caitlin Suzanne Smukowski Heil
- Joy Little Snowden
- Bradley William Taylor
- Christopher Scott Walker
- Elsa Youngsteadt
- Jennifer L. Campbell
- Louis Broaddus Daniel III
- Miles Dean Engell
- Miriam G. Ferzli
- Jesse Robert Fischer
- Terry Allen Gates
- William Miller Johnstone III
- Jane L. Lubischer
- Erin Alison McKenney
- Lisa M. Paciulli
- Lisa D. Parks
- Martha Burford Reiskind
- Damian Shea
- Adrian Alan Smith
- Lindsay E. Zanno
- Peter T. Bromley
- Billy J. Copeland
- Frederick T. Corbin
- Phillip D. Doerr
- William C. Grant
- Robert M. Grossfeld
- Thurman L. Grove
- Harold F. Heatwole
- Joseph E. Hightower
- Richard A. Lancia
- Richard L. Noble
- Kenneth H. Pollock
- James Alan Rice Jr.
- John F. Roberts
- Damian Shea
- Theodore R. Simons
- Herbert A. Underwood
- John G. Vandenbergh
- Thomas G. Wolcott
- Robert R. Anholt
- Tyler Ray Black
- Arthur E. Bogan
- Heather Evans
- John G. Boreman Jr.
- David T. Cobb
- Louis Broaddus Daniel III
- Mitchell J. Eaton
- John Jeffrey Govoni
- Nicholas M. Haddad
- Andrew Bittinger Heckert
- Ryan J. Heise
- Corinne J. Kendall
- Reid W. Laney
- Trudy F. MacKay
- Alexa J. McKerrow
- Gerard McMahon
- James Adiel Morris Jr.
- Jennifer R Runkle
- Megan Elizabeth Serr
- Rowland M. Shelley
- Kyle W. Shertzer
- Adrian Alan Smith
- Seth Patrick Stapleton
- Bryan Lynn Stuart
- Adam J. Terando
Assistant Professors
- Christa Baker
- Carter K. Clinton
- Natalia Dugue-Wilckens
- Corey Dunn
- Maria L. Rodgers
Adjunct Professors
- Christian Farrell Kammerer
- Candice Small
Teaching Associate Professor
- Jennifer Landin
Adjunct Associate Professor
- Guohong Cui