The Department of Microbiology and Immunology, in the School of Medicine, offers programs of study leading to the degrees of Doctor of Philosophy and Master of Science. For admission to the Ph.D. or M.S. program, the applicant must have attained the B.S or B.A. degree with a minimum grade-point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 point scale). In addition to the completed application form and $50 application fee, the scores of the General Test Section of the Graduate Record Examination and the TOEFL (when applicable), official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate course work, two letters of recommendation, and a short biographical sketch are required. The applicant must meet the other general requirements of the Graduate School as outlined in the General Information section of this catalog. Applicants are encouraged to apply early as space is limited. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis beginning February 1st.

The applicant is expected to have completed the following: One year of introductory biology, one year of organic chemistry, one year of physics, one semester (or equivalent ) of introductory calculus, and one semester of biochemistry.

Prospective students may be invited for a personal interview with members of the department.

Required Courses:

MBIO 601, Molecular Microbiology.....................................................(2 credit hours) 
MBIO 602, Introductory Immunology .............................................(2 credit hours)
MBIO 667, Cell Biology.................................................................. (3 credit hours)
BIOC 645, Biochemistry I ...............................................................(4 credit hours)
MBIO 606, Seminar/Journal Club ....................................................(2 credit hours)
MBIO 600, Laboratory Rotations in Microbiology and Immunology...(1-2 credit hours)
MBIO 690, Research Methods in Microbiology and Immunology ........(3 credit hours)
MBIO 619, Research .....................................................................(1-12 credit hours)

Select three courses from the list of suggested electives
(at least 1 elective must be offered in the Department MBIO):

MBIO 658, Cellular and Molecular Immunology..............................(3 credit hours)
MBIO 670, Molecular Virology..........................................................(3 credit hours)
MBIO 680, Genetics of Infectious Disease .......................................(2 credit hours)
MBIO 685, Microbial Physiology......................................................(3 credit hours)
MBIO 687, Microbial Pathogenesis .................................................(2 credit hours)
BIOC 668, Molecular Biology .........................................................(4 credit hours)
BIOC 675, Biochemistry of Cancer .................................................(2 credit hours)
BIOC 647, Biochemistry II...................................................... ........(4 credit hours)
BIOL 617, Advanced Molecular Biology............................................(4 credit hours)
MBIO 671-01, Epidemiology and Pathogenesis of Human Viruses ..........(1 credit hour)

MBIO 672-01, Recombinant viruses and viral vectors.............................(1 credit hour)(must take both 1 hour courses to equal one elective)

Note:
** Students enrolled in the M.D./Ph.D. Joint Degree Program, who have completed step I of NBME, will have satisfied all of the required course requirements except seminar, Research Ethics, Research Methods and research. Three electives will be required.  They will be required to satisfactorily complete the Qualifying Exam and successfully defend a dissertation research project, in addition to attending all journal club sessions and seminars.

Program of Study
Upon successful completion of the first two semesters of required course work, maintaining a minimum 3.0 GPA, and upon the recommendation of the advisor or chair, the student may take the Ph.D. Qualifying Examination. The Qualifying Examination will consist of a written research proposal outside of his/her area of primary research and oral defense of the project. Three to five faculty with expertise in the area of the proposal will be selected by the chair to serve as the Examining Committee. The student may enter degree candidacy upon receipt of satisfactory judgment from the Examining Committee and successful completion of the final semester of coursework.

Selection of a Research Advisor, Dissertation Committee and Research Proposal

Selection of the Research Advisor and specific research area is one of the most important decisions of the student’s entire graduate training program, and is a joint decision by the student and faculty member. Students must select a Research Advisor for their dissertation research by Dec. 20th of their second semester. Selection of the Research Advisor and formation of the Dissertation Committee must be approved by the Graduate School Dean. If the potential advisor has a primary appointment in another department, the potential advisor must agree, in writing, to provide stipend and tuition from his/her research funds. Upon approval of the Research Advisor, the student will formally decide upon a dissertation research project. The student, Research Advisor, and Departmental Chairperson will form a Dissertation Committee with five (5) graduate faculty members. The committee will be composed of the advisor, three faculty members of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, and one additional graduate faculty member from another department.  If the advisor does not have a primary appointment in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, one of the three other departmental members with a primary appointment in the department must serve as Co-Advisor. The Chairman of the Department may serve as an ex-officio member of the committee. The student will submit a written proposal co-signed by the Dissertation Advisor to the Dissertation Committee on the planned Ph.D. dissertation topic by April 1st, at the end of the first year in the program.  The proposal should be 5-10 pages long, single-spaced, 12 point type, with no more than 1.25 inch margins. Approval of this dissertation proposal by the Dissertation Committee is the first step toward candidacy status.

The committee will meet regularly to evaluate progress of the research. The student will also be required to present a research seminar to the department annually on this progress. When the dissertation research is completed, the committee will conduct the final oral examination in accordance with the guidelines in the General Information section of this catalog.

For more information go to the department website at:
http://www.louisville.edu/medschool/microbiology/