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PhD Program

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Description of Program

Dr. Gueye and Dr. Kamauu

PhD students Dr. Gueye and Dr. Kamauu

The PhD program provides intensive course work and research training in biomedical informatics. The primary goal of the program is to train students to be independent researchers when they graduate; many of our PhD graduates go on to academic careers. A key component of the PhD program is the completion of a dissertation which develops the student's research skills and develops domain expertise.

Overview of Degree Requirements
The PhD degree requires approximately 40 hours of formal class work with a grade of B or better. A PhD student must pass a written and oral Comprehensive Exam after the first year of study. Graduate work at this or other institutions, including courses taken for a MS degree, may be applied to the PhD course work requirement at the discretion of the student's advisory committee. After completion of course work, the student must pass a PhD written and oral Qualifying Examination . In addition to the class work, 14 or more hours of research work (taken as BMI 7970) are required. This work must lead to the completion and defense of an original PhD dissertation demonstrating the student's capabilities to conceive and execute an independent research project.  Please see Degree and Program Requirements for additional requirements.

Dissertation Requirements
There are two options for meeting the dissertation requirement. The first option, submitting three journal-ready academic manuscripts, is heavily recommended by the department. Students who choose this option are required to submit their three manuscripts to journals approved by the department for this purpose. The three manuscripts should be related and form a cohesive whole. The text of the submitted manuscripts then form the central part of the student's dissertation. The dissertation must also include an abstract, introduction, conclusion or discussion, references, and other required pages in the same manner as a traditional dissertation. Additional chapters to introduce and connect the individual manuscripts may also be required. The second option is the traditional 'book' style dissertation. Students will work closely with their supervisory committee to determine the dissertation option chosen.

Students will also work closely with their supervisory committee on the topic, 'relatedness,' and timing of paper submission. Manuscripts must be approved by the student's supervisory committee and submitted to an approved journal. Publication, though desirable, is not required. After the supervisory committee approves the dissertation, the student must submit the document to the University of Utah Graduate School Thesis Office, which has additional requirements and rules.

Finding a project & supervisory committee
Finding a supervisory committee chair
Students can obtain information on possible research projects from the department web site, which lists projects by faculty, training track, and funding availability. Once a student has an idea of what research projects are available, it is recommended that they interview different faculty members about research opportunities of interest, availability of funding, research expectations, etc. As stated in the university graduate school general catalog, it is strongly recommended that only regular faculty members from within the student's department (Biomedical Informatics) serve as a committee Chairperson. Exceptions to this rule may be possible, but will be decided on a case-by-case basis. Generally, the chair of one's supervisory committee is the primary mentor of the dissertation project(s).

Choosing other members of your supervisory committee
PhD supervisory committees consist of five faculty members, the majority of whom must be regular faculty members in the student's major department. Committee members can be members of the Biomedical Informatics faculty, members of other schools or departments of the University of Utah, and in special cases faculty from other academic institutions. Committee members must be faculty members who hold an academic or professional doctorate, the terminal degree in the relevant field, and/or must have demonstrated competence to do research and scholarly or artistic work in the student's general field.

Students must form their Supervisory Committees with at least least three committee members by March 31 of their first year of study. It is the responsibility of the student to approach prospective committee members to ascertain their willingness and availability to serve on the committee.

PhD students should submit their "Request for Supervisory Committee" form with 4 members indicated to the Department Chair, who will then assign the fifth member. The student will need to obtain the initials of all committee members and submit the form to Jo Ann Thompson, who will then obtain the Director of Graduate Studies' or Department Chair's signature and forward the form to the Graduate Records office. The form is available on-line from the Graduate School.

Committee meetings & defense
Each student is required to have a committee meeting at least once each semester (Fall and Spring).  A quorum of the committee members are required to attend each meeting. Each student is required to submit a semester report each Fall and Spring semester. The semester reports will be reviewed and supplemented by the chair of the student's supervisory committee and then forwarded to the Department Chair.

Voting committee members are required to be physically present and/or present by video teleconference for the student's dissertation defense. Any travel or expense involved will be borne by the faculty and/or funds provided by the Chair of the committee, excluding Department of Biomedical Informatics funds.

Minimum Registration Requirements
Doctoral students must maintain minimum registration until they have been formally advanced to candidacy (after completion of all course work and successfully passing the qualifying examination). This can be done by:

  1. Registering and paying applicable tuition and fees for at least three credit hours (Thesis Research, BMI 7970, may be used to fulfill this requirement) per semester during the academic year until they are advanced to candidacy (minimum continuous registration does not fulfill the residency requirement); or
  2. Registering for three credit hours of Faculty Consultation (BMI 7980) during any semester in which they are not otherwise enrolled.

Doctoral students who have been admitted to candidacy (after completion of all course work and successfully passing the qualifying examination) maintain minimum registration by:

  1. Registering and paying the applicable tuition and fees for a minimum of three credit hours if the candidate is in residence, i.e., those who use University buildings, consult regularly with their supervisory committee, or otherwise use University facilities. All candidates must be registered for a minimum of three credit hours in the semester they defend their dissertation; or
  2. Registering for Continuing Registration (BMI 7990), if the candidate is not using faculty time or University facilities except the library. No student may register for more than four semesters of 7990.

Doctoral students who successfully defend their dissertations are no longer required to register; however, those who wish to check out books from the library must register for Continuing Registration (BMI 7990).

Only courses numbered 7970 may be counted as dissertation hours in fulfillment of degree requirements. BMI 7980 does not count toward fulfillment of degree requirements.