Dissertation

Qualifying Exam

The qualifying exam consists of a five-page grant proposal describing the candidate’s thesis plan. There is a 20-minute oral presentation of the proposal followed by a 1-2 hour question and answer session with a 3-person committee chosen by the Program Director.

Thesis Committee and Committee Meetings

After the qualifying exam is completed, a thesis committee should be formed of three individuals with committee meetings that assess the progress of the research. Committee meetings should take place every six months or more frequently dependent on the results of meetings.

Dual Degree Diploma and Ceremony

When MD/PhD students successfully complete the requirements for their PhD degrees, they will receive a formal letter from the registrar. This will provide them with documentation, should they need it prior to graduation. MD/PhD students will attend one graduation, at the time they complete their MD degree. They will receive two diplomas during the graduation ceremony.

The Dissertation

The graduate dissertation is the all-encompassing document describing original research carried out by the PhD student. The historical background, the scientific context of the experiments, and the data are presented and discussed extensively in the dissertation. It is expected that the research carried out to generate the dissertation will also result in published papers in recognized scientific journals, for which the student is the first author. Each chapter should indicate which publications (if any) are represented by the described work. At least one first-authored manuscript should be submitted for publication before a student may defend the dissertation. If a manuscript is not yet accepted for publication, a submitted draft must be appended to the dissertation, even if this draft ultimately requires additional experimental results. The manuscript should be written in the style of a specific (indicated) journal. A co-first authorship paper meets the requirement.

Dissertation Defense Details Dissertation Format Sample


List of Theses

Joshua Bloom

Structure-Function Relationships of Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor (MIF): Implications for Drug Design

Spyros Mavropoulos

NICOTINIC ACETYLCHOLINE RECEPTOR-MEDIATED PROTECTION OF THE ISCHEMIC/REPERFUSED HEART

Jolanta Norelli

Effects of Doxycycline and Tenogenically Differentiated Adipose-Derived Stem Cells on the Repair of Achilles Tendon Defects

Renata Lerner

Effects of Levodopa on Regional Cerebral Metabolism, Blood Flow and Blood-Brain Barrier Permeability in the 6-Hydroxydopamine Rat Model

Jaqueline Nestor

ANALYZING A TWO-PART MODEL OF NPSLE : MICROGLIA, COMPLEMENT AND POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC IMPLICATIONS

Patricia Avancena

DEVELOPMENTALLY PREDETERMINED FOLLICULAR DENDRITIC CELL CLUSTERS AND THEIR LIMITED ANTIGEN CAPACITY RESTRICT THE MAGNITUDE OF GERMINAL CENTERS

Adriana Gata Garcia

Sex chromosomes and gonadal hormones: genesis and rescue of ASD-like phenotypes in mouse models

Pinguang Yang

Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) regulates the generation and function of CD8 regulatory cells

Emily Battinelli Masi

Vagus Nerve Control of Glucose Homeostasis

Brian Dolmovits

MODULATION OF ERYTHROID PROGENITOR REGULATORY PROGRAMS BY INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC FACTORS IMPLICATIONS FOR THE TREATMENT OF ANEMIA

Mustafa Ghanem

Molecular dissection of a novel lupus risk locus

Simon Khuvis

Neurophysiology of Face Processing in Humans

Laura Warren

An investigation of menstrual effluent in the diagnosis and understanding of endometriosis

Ashley Barlev

Plasma Cell Activation in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Ryan Ashley

Characterization and Modulation of Human Erythroid Progenitors in Normal and Disordered Erythropoiesis

Elena Brindley

RASA3 REGULATES STAGE-SPECIFIC CELL CYCLE PROGRESSION IN MURINE ERYTHROPOIESIS: IMPLICATIONS FOR INHERITED BONE MARROW FAILURE SYNDROMES

Tianye Liu

RAGE and LAIR-1 and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Jimmy Hom

Rps19 haploinsufficiency causes severe skeletal defects in mouse models of Diamond Blackfan Anemia

Eric Sturgill

REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES IN CHRONIC LYMPHOCYTIC LEUKEMIA: METABOLIC DETERMINANTS OF CELL FATE AND FUNCTION

John Eun

ACUTE AND LATENT EFFECTS OF ANESTHESIA IN TRANSGENIC MODELS OF TAUOPATHY