Qualifying Exam

The student can obtain a Request for Qualifying Exam Form from the Graduate Program Administrator. This form must be filled out and signed by the student and Supervisor and then returned to the graduate office before the Graduate Program Administrator can begin scheduling the Qualifying Examination.

Note that the student must allow four weeks between submitting the request and the Qualifying Examination date.

The Qualifying Exam Document is intended to give an overview of the student's progress to date and proposed future work.

It must be written in a clear and scholarly fashion to describe the research question, define the hypothesis, provide preliminary data to support the hypothesis, and describe proposed experiments that will advance their understanding. The document should reflect the student’s ability to anticipate, interpret, and interrogate a number of possible experimental outcomes.

The document must be no more than 15 pages (12-point, double-spaced). References, figures, and figure legends are not part of this page count. Page limits will be strictly enforced. Proposals that contain more than 15 pages of text will be returned to the student and as a result may lead to a postponement of the exam.

Students may find it helpful to peruse other qualifying proposals before writing their own (they may contact the Graduate Program Administrator for copies). Editorial input from the Supervisor is considered to be part of the process, and the student may also seek the input of others, including Supervisory Committee members.

Required Format

Summary (1 page only): This page must include a summary of the objective, background results, research plan and the significance of the proposed research.

Introduction (~3 pages): The introduction should familiarize the reader with the field and provide a context for both the student’s work-to-date and the proposed work.

Results-to-Date (~4-5 pages): A description of the research that the student has done to date, including the rationale and conclusion for each experiment. Note that in some cases the student may have too much data to summarize; in this case, the student will only be able to present those experiments that are most relevant to the proposed work.

Proposed Work (~5-6 pages): This section should begin with a statement of the rationale and goals of the proposed research. A description of the experimental approach to be followed should then be given. Specifically, the strengths and weaknesses of each approach, the possible outcomes, as well as alternative approaches should be discussed.

Distribution and Submission

The student must distribute their written report to all members of the Examining Committee at least 10 business days in advance of the exam.  A hard copy of the report should be given to the Graduate Administrator for the exam file at least 1 day prior to the exam.

Presentation:

At the beginning of the exam, the student will give an oral presentation of 20-25 minutes length summarizing the work that has been done and describing the experiments that the student proposes to do. This presentation should clearly describe the work and must include well-constructed slides.

Supervisors may address the Examining Committee members at the beginning of the exam if needed; however, once the exam begins they will only be able to ask questions during the question period.

Question Period:

The presentation will be followed by questions from the Examining Committee members.

The questions will usually cover material drawn from all three aspects of the written document (Introduction, Research Completed, and Research Proposed) - given the purpose of the examination, the committee tends to focus on the Research Proposed. 

The student is expected to demonstrate a good grasp of fundamental aspects of Biochemistry and expertise in the background knowledge of their work and proposed studies.

The student should be able to answer questions that are both directly relevant to their proposed study and also questions that require “thinking-on-their-feet.” The student should be able to provide scientific models, alternative explanations, and approaches to test their ideas, without the aid of their mentor. To that end, the participation of mentors during the question period will be limited to speaking only during their turn through the rotation.

In judging the performance of the candidate, the Examining Committee is, in general, looking for evidence of:
i) a solid knowledge base
ii) insight into the aims and significance of the proposed work
iii) creativity in the approach to research
iv) data interpretation skills, that would collectively indicate an aptitude for independent research.

The Vote:

At the end of the exam, the student and supervisor will step out of the exam room, and all voting members of the Examining Committee, including the Chair, will vote. Both the student and Supervisor will return for the Examining Committee’s final decision.  

Satisfactory: the Examining Committee will recommend that the student continue in the PhD program.

Unsatisfactory: the Examining Committee will recommend that the student withdraw from the program. In this case, the department may support a request for transfer into the MSc program (which will include writing and defending an MSc thesis). Such a recommendation must be approved by the Associate Dean, Division IV, School of Graduate Studies.