Program Description

The CMB Program offers interdisciplinary research education and training opportunities that lead to a Ph.D.  In this setting, students learn to integrate across concepts and to use multiple approaches to study contemporary biological problems. Students have access to state-of-the-art facilities and equipment in faculty laboratories and core facilities around campus. The CMB program prepares students for careers in academia and private industry.  All graduates of the program have obtained permanent positions in their field or are engaged in postdoctoral training.

The CMB degree requirements include a series of required CMB core courses; additional elective courses; written and oral preliminary examinations; a doctoral dissertation based on independent, original research in the area of cellular and molecular biology under the direction of a CMB faculty member; and an oral defense of the dissertation.

CMB faculty members are recognized and respected nationally and internationally for contributions to their fields of study. They are drawn from a number of academic departments, including Animal Sciences; Chemistry and Molecular Biology; Biological Sciences; Entomology; Health, Nutrition, and Exercise Sciences; Pharmaceutical Sciences; Plant Pathology; Plant Sciences; and Veterinary and Microbiological Sciences. With the interdisciplinary nature of the program, you can look forward to working closely with not just one but many faculty members at NDSU.

Students may engage in basic and applied aspects of cellular and molecular biology research in various systems, including animals, plants, and microorganisms. Examples of current research by CMB faculty include the following:

• Adaptation to environmental stress
• Assistive reproductive technology
• Apoptosis
• Cancer
• Cell-cell communication
• Cell cycle regulation
• Cell metabolism
• Cytogenetics
• Drug action and metabolism
• Enzymology and metabolic regulation
• Extracellular matrix
• Gene regulation and expression
• Hormone biosynthesis, metabolism, and evolution
• Immunology
• Molecular pathogenesis
• Protein structure and function
• Signal transduction
• Stem cells and developmental processes

Admissions Requirements

The Cellular and Molecular Biology Ph.D. program is open to qualified graduates of universities and colleges of recognized standing.  If possible, applicants should identify at least one cellular and molecular biology faculty member with whom they wish to study.

The following undergraduate courses have been identified as required for graduate work in the CMB program:

Biology: One year of general biology with laboratory and one course in genetics are required. Cellular biology or cellular physiology, animal or plant physiology, and microbiology are recommended.

Chemistry: One year of general chemistry with laboratory and two sequential terms of organic chemistry with laboratory are required. Biochemistry is recommended.

Mathematics: Two terms of life sciences calculus are required.

Physics: Two sequential terms of general physics with laboratories (above the concept level) are required.

In addition, introductory courses in computer science, statistics, and technical writing are recommended. Deficiencies in required courses may be made up within the first year of resident study without graduate credit.

Financial Assistance

Financial support, if required, is usually provided by the department in which the student will carry out research. In reviewing each application, the Steering Committee will contact the faculty member(s) identified by the applicant to determine if financial support is available. Students seeking financial support also can contact either the CMB faculty member(s) with whom they wish to study or the chair of the CMB Steering Committee.

Program Administration

This interdisciplinary graduate program is administered by the CMB Director with the participation of the CMB Steering Committee. The committee is composed of four CMB faculty members representing a variety of different academic departments. Steering Committee members, who serve overlapping three-year terms, are elected at a yearly meeting of the CMB faculty.

The duties of the Steering Committee include:

1. review of CMB students' plan of study, proposed research topic, and general progress;
2. review of applications for membership in the CMB faculty; and
3. implementation of the CMB program through established procedures.

By the end of the first academic year, the student will select an academic adviser from among the CMB faculty and arrange for the appointment of a Graduate Advisory Committee. This committee will consist of at least four members of the graduate faculty. This includes the student's major adviser, at least one additional CMB faculty member, and an appointee of the Graduate School. One committee member must be from outside the student's academic college.

The Plan of Study will be prepared by the student, in consultation with the major adviser, by the end of the first year in residence. The plan shall be approved by the student's Graduate Advisory Committee, the CMB Program Director, the department chair, the academic dean, and the Graduate School dean. The Plan of Study must be filed in the Graduate School prior to scheduling the comprehensive written examination.

The Graduate School requires the Plan of Study for the Ph.D. degree to include not less than 90 semester graduate credits. Of this total, not less than 27 credits must be in courses other than seminar or research credits. Of the 27 course credits, 15 must be at the 700-789 level. The CMB program requires students to complete a series of 7 courses totaling 21-23 semester credits in 4 core areas. The student will complete additional elective courses to fulfill the Graduate School requirement of 27 semester credits in academic courses. An overall GPA of 3.0 or better must be maintained.

Courses Offered

The core courses will normally be completed by the end of the second year in residence. These courses must be completed before the student takes the preliminary written examinations, whereas the elective courses may be taken at any time during the program prior to defense of the dissertation. The elective courses will normally be classes offered by the department in which the student is doing research or other departments participating in the CMB program. Each student is expected to attend all CMB seminars and present at least one seminar per year throughout the program.

Examination

Written Preliminary Examination covers the first three core areas (biochemistry and molecular biology, cellular biology, and molecular biology) and is normally taken at the end of the second year in residence. The written preliminary examination must be passed before the comprehensive oral examination can be scheduled.

Comprehensive Oral Examination shall be taken no later than the end of the third year in residence. This examination will be based on a non-dissertation research topic that will be submitted in the format of a National Institutes of Health or National Science Foundation postdoctoral fellowship research proposal. After successful completion of the comprehensive oral examination, the student will be formally admitted to candidacy for the Doctor of Philosophy degree. At least one academic semester, and preferably two semesters, shall elapse between the preliminary oral examination and the oral defense of the research-based dissertation.

Dissertation Research

A short proposal describing research suitable for preparation of a dissertation in Cellular and Molecular Biology shall be prepared and submitted to the student's Graduate Advisory Committee and the CMB Steering Committee for review and approval. The dissertation must show originality and demonstrate the student's capacity for independent research. It must embody results of research that constitutes a definitive contribution to knowledge.

In addition to the defense of the dissertation in the final oral examination, the candidate will present a final public seminar based on the dissertation research.