New Students The department recruits PhD students through the Integrated Plant Sciences (IPS) and the Integrated Life Sciences (ILS) umbrella programs – thus, incoming PhD student will be advised by the IPS and ILS Graduate Coordinators during their rotations in the Fall semester. PhD students who chose a faculty of the Department as their major professor can join the Department in the Spring semester. MS students accepted by a faculty member are admitted directly into the Department. M.S. student committees All students need to identify an Advisory Committee within their first year. The committee is constituted by the student’s major professor, who serves as chair, plus two (MS track) or three (PhD track) additional members of the student’s choosing. The Advisory Committee is charged with mentoring the student and helping to guide their research project; importantly, it will administer the exams and approve the forms required for completion of the degree. Further details, including rules on eligible faculty and committee composition, are explained in the Graduate Student Handbook. Advising Requirements Students meet with their Advisory Committee at least once each academic year to discuss progress toward the degree objective. These meetings are important! For students, they can provide fresh perspectives or critical insights on their research. For committee members, they provide an opportunity to help avoid potential problems early on, rather than having to face flaws in the completed work. With these objectives in mind, students are required to present a summary of their research accomplishments and have relevant data ready for inspection. It is departmental policy that assistantship support will be withheld from graduate students who fail to meet with their Advisory Committees at least once during each academic year; meetings should be scheduled during the Fall or Spring semesters.
