Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Graduate Program

Program Description

• Program Objectives
• Program Requirements
  
• Courses Offered by Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Faculty

Program Objectives

The program will educate scholars in Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology by providing thorough preparation for biological research. The specific objectives of the program are:

1. To provide the student with a thorough understanding of the current scientific basis of skeletal, craniofacial and oral biology and how new knowledge is generated.

2. To provide the student with experience in the scientific method and its application to laboratory research and clinically based research using human subjects.

3. To prepare students to assume university teaching positions and to provide them with an opportunity to study the problems and methodologies associated with instruction in professional schools.

Program Requirements

The formal requirements of the Graduate School must be met. Please refer to the Graduate Student Handbook for the most up-to-date requirements:

1. Residence Requirements

• Equivalent of three full-time study years beyond the Bachelor's degree or two years beyond a higher degree (full-time study requires a minimum of 12 credit hours per semester).
• Either the entire second or third year of graduate study must be completed while in residence at the University.
• All work must be completed within eight years of entry into the program.
  

2. Course Requirements

• A total of 44 credits of graduate work (300 and 400 courses) is required by the University for the Ph.D. degree. Modifications of course requirements can be made by the Advisory Committee on the basis of the student's previous experience.
• All students are required to complete 24 credits of core course work and 15 credits of Graduate Research. Of the 24, at least 9 must be taken from courses within each of two categories: Biomedical Science core and Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology core. All students must take DENT 5415 and DENT 5416 (Contemporary Topics in Oral Biology, I and II).

3. Research Courses

Laboratory research may be formally scheduled under the title MEDS 6496, "Laboratory Rotation." The format is flexible: the following options are illustrative only.

• Laboratory Rotation MEDS 6496 (1 credit) - A student spends one-fourth time for one semester in a laboratory learning research procedures.
  

4. A minimum of 3 credits of MEDS 6496 is required.

5. Thesis Research

Students doing thesis research may need to register for MEDS 5497 "Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Journal Club" or GRAD 6950 "Doctoral Research" in order to bring their total credits to 44.

Thesis Research

Thesis Advisory Committee
The student's thesis research is conducted under the guidance of a thesis advisory committee. This committee is selected by the student in consultation with the interim committee usually near the end of the second year, (prior to part 1 of the general examination). This committee shall consist of a major advisor and at least two associate advisors; one of the associate advisors may be a faculty person not appointed to the Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Graduate Faculty. Any member of the Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Graduate Faculty is eligible to serve as the major thesis advisor. At least one other program member serves and one or more faculty members who are members of the Graduate Faculty from any of the Schools in the University can serve as associate advisors. The director of the appropriate clinical program (an ex-officio member of the OBGP faculty) will be appointed to the advisory committees for students enrolled in the combined Ph.D./clinical certificate program.

Plan of Study
A plan of study must be submitted to the Graduate School prior to completion of not more than 12 credits. The student prepares a Plan of Study in consultation with the interim advisory committee or the thesis advisory committee if it has been constituted. The plan will specify all formal courses which are to be completed the language requirement (or supporting area of study), the scheduling of the general examination, and the general area of the thesis research. The plan of study must be approved by the student's interim advisory committee and the Graduate School prior to the general examination.

Thesis
Prior to writing the thesis, the student shall present a seminar describing his/her research progress. The seminar will be attended by all members of the advisory committee and by the SCOB faculty. Thesis writing shall begin only after the advisory committee has approved the student's report. Following completing of the thesis, it will be evaluated by the advisory committee. Distinguished members of other faculties may be invited to serve as thesis readers. There shall be a public examination of the thesis following its acceptance by the readers. The thesis will be written in the format prescribed by the Graduate School. It is the student's responsibility to be certain that the thesis format and style conform to these specifications. Scheduling of the final oral examination must adhere to the rules of the Graduate School. A copy of the completed thesis shall be provided before the defense and in addition to the copies required by the Graduate School and the Health Center, one bound copy will be supplied for the departmental library.

General Examination
Each student is required to pass the General Examination before becoming a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. This is generally accomplished by the end of the second year, but, under special circumstances, may occur later, especially for students who are in combined Residency/Ph.D. programs and have spent substantial time during their first two years in clinical training.

The purpose of the General Examination is for the candidate to demonstrate readiness to pursue independent research leading to the Ph.D. degree.

When the student and her or his advisor feel that it is appropriate to proceed with the exam, they should meet with the student’s advisory committee to plan the examination. The examining committee will consist of at least five graduate faculty including all members of the student's advisory committee. A minimum of three Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Graduate Faculty should be on the examining committee. The candidate, following consultation with the thesis advisor and advisory committee, will invite any additional faculty needed to join the examining committee.

The General Examination consists of two sections: a written grant proposal and an oral defense of the proposal and related scientific topics.

For the general written examination, the candidate is required to prepare a research proposal following the instructions for a R03 grant including all sections required by NIH. All instructions for the R03 NIH grant application should be followed including the length limitations. Information can be found at the following two web sites:

• NIDCR Small Grant Program (R03)
• Public Health Service Grant PHS 398
  Note that these forms are used for multiple grant mechanisms and the specific instructions for preparing R03 applications should be followed.

Additional resources about preparing successful grants should be sought from the mentor, area of concentration director, web and the UConn Health Center Research Administration web site.

The grant application can be written on any topic but trainees are encouraged to write their grant on a topic directly relevant to their anticipated thesis research. Before writing the examination, the student will prepare one or more abstracts of proposals for review and approval by the student's examining committee. The topics of the proposals can be developed in consultation with the student’s major advisor. The abstract should include one or more hypotheses to be tested, the specific aims of the final proposal, and rationales for the hypotheses and the specific aims. The major advisor should not participate in formulating the specific aims, but should advise the student concerning the overall suitability of the topic. The major advisor will not participate in the final decision to approve the abstract. Once the abstract is approved, the specific aims should not be substantially changed without approval of the examining committee. Once the topic is chosen, the student is free to use all library materials and internet sites available at the Health Center or elsewhere, but may not consult either faculty or other students regarding the specifics of the hypotheses, rationale, scientific design and scientific strength their proposal. They may seek help regarding the general principles of grant writing, English grammar, identifying references in the literature and information regarding specific technical issues related to methodology. Not later than one month after the approval of the abstract, the proposal will be submitted to the examining committee.

The candidate will orally defend the grant proposal within 1 to 2 weeks of submission. A total of five graduate faculty including all members of the advisory committee must be present during the oral examination. The examining committee will choose the chair of the committee, which cannot be the thesis advisor. The written grant application will be reviewed by the examining committee. Immediately prior to the oral examination, the faculty will briefly discuss the quality of the written proposal and determine whether it warrants continuation with the oral examination. Usually the candidate makes a short 10 to 15 minute presentation at the beginning of the examination to present the hypothesis, rationale, and specific aims of the proposal. The candidate may also briefly present any important corrections or changes to the written proposal. While the oral examination will focus on the material in the grant, examiners are expected to pursue lines of thinking which flow out of the proposal. This allows the examiners to explore the ability of the candidate to relate basic science knowledge and principles to problem solving and scientific thinking. This discussion of the proposal is expected to focus on principles and lines of thinking, and not become overly concerned with technical details. The thesis advisor must refrain from interpreting the candidate's answers or answering questions posed to the candidate by the examining committee. The chair of the examining committee has the responsibility of maintaining an appropriately collegial, fair and unbiased environment during the examination and the duty to rephrase or ask for rephrasing of questions, if necessary.

The major emphasis of the evaluation of the proposal should be the ability of the student to:

• Survey and understand the current state of a focused field of study.
• Formulate one or two hypotheses related to deficits in our knowledge that can be experimentally tested given the current state of the field.
• Propose one or more logical, feasible experiments to address each of these hypotheses.
• Describe the potential outcomes of the proposed experiments, and discuss how these outcomes relate to the hypotheses.
• Describe potential problems with the experiments, and how these would be dealt with.

The goal of the student should be to propose experiments that can be completed by one person within two years. In general, the details of the proposed experimental methods do not need to be presented, except where the specifics are critical to their success. However the student should show evidence of enough familiarity with the methods to evaluate their suitability for the experiments. The standards for passing the exam are that the proposal be of the quality that could reasonably be expected from the student given their experience and training, and the examination should show strong evidence that the student has the potential for completing the Ph.D. program.

When the examination is finished, the candidate is excused and both written and oral sections of the examination are discussed by the examining committee. Following the discussion, the examining committee votes with a simple majority deciding. Grading will be on a pass-fail basis. Separate entries for the written and oral sections can be made into the records. There will be an overall grade for the entire examination. In cases where the performance is satisfactory but there are definable areas of weakness, the examining committee has sometimes awarded a pass but required the trainee to undergo additional training in limited areas specified by the examining committee. In the event that the examining committee determines the student's written or oral performance to be unsatisfactory, the examining committee shall recommend dismissal or prescribe a specific course of action the student must satisfactorily complete to remedy the unsatisfactory performance. This could include revising and re-defending the proposal, or performing a different remedial activity. The amount of time available for completion must be specified at this time. If the subsequent remedial activity is inadequate, the student may be asked to withdraw from the program.

After the examination, the major advisor shall communicate the results to the candidate as soon as a final decision can be made and immediately send the official report on the examination bearing the signature of each member of the advisory committee to the Graduate School Office of Records and Registration at the Health Center. Should the committee permit the student to take the examination in several sections, only the final result should be reported. Forms are available in the Office of Records and Registration.

In the event that any remedial program is not completed to the satisfaction of the examining committee, the Director shall call a meeting of the Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology graduate faculty to determine a suitable course of action. The Advisory Committee shall present options for deliberation by the SCOB Graduate Faculty.

Approved February 7, 2006.

Summary of Major Events

*A student actively engaged in thesis writing is excused from the Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Journal Club.

Courses Offered by Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Faculty

• Biomaterials for Dental Graduates, DENT 5432, 2 credits
• Principles of Oral Microbiology and Infections, DENT 5437, 2 credits
• Clinical Radiation Sciences (Part A), MEDS 6461
• Clinical Radiation Sciences (Part B), MEDS 6462
• Contemporary Topics in Oral Biology I, MEDS 5415, 2 credits
• Contemporary Topics in Oral Biology II, MEDS 5416, 2 credits
• Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Journal Club, MEDS 6497, 1 credit
• Introduction to Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering, DENT 5414, 3 credits

Evaluation
Each course section will receive a numerical grade. These are averaged for an overall letter grade each semester. A minimum passing score for each section will be established. Should a student fail an individual section, the course of remediation will be determined by the section faculty, the section leaders and the course director.